tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post5282784594942325790..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: Writing for BARNEY MILLERBy Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger61125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-89670461009212658812017-07-08T05:51:56.370-07:002017-07-08T05:51:56.370-07:00Lol that's my favorite Luger scene too!Lol that's my favorite Luger scene too!bigsonny45https://www.blogger.com/profile/10393207367169969447noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-34589333697098197762017-01-11T04:17:25.166-08:002017-01-11T04:17:25.166-08:00Barney Miller was one of a kind. I actually like t...Barney Miller was one of a kind. I actually like the video over the film. I never like video, but for some reason, I think it's the set and how it was lit and dressed, I like Barney in video. I don't think the jokes would've worked as well on film. But who knows? Like you said elsewhere, Cheers looked horrendous on video. I can believe that. Barney was shot with very warm grays. The LIVE audience (for the early years) added to that stage play feel. I always thought Barney Miller was a Teleplay rather than a TV sitcom. It just felt like a play. One room, plus Barney's office. That's it. Live audience. Shot on video. I really felt like the players were playing to the audience, too. It felt like they spaced out their lines, if the laughter or shock stretched out. I liked that very much. <br /><br />As my little sister used to say when we'd have it on, 'this show feels comfortable'. She was only 7. But she was right. Barney Miller made us feel comfortable. <br /><br />As for networks showing the series. TV Land used to have a bunch of different Barney Miller specials, where they'd run two back to back out of order but with some common thread. Or they'd just run them in order. But the commercials and promos on TV Land for BM were well done and fun. <br /><br />Those days are over sadly. It seems like the two networks which did that nightly, Nick at Nite and TV Land have gone belly up. Like most everything else on TV nowadays. <br /><br />Barney Miller was an exceptional show, the characters were wonderful. To quote a line, "In all their cunning, could the CIA come up with a group like that?" <br /><br />I was saddened to hear of Ron Glass's passing, which led to a sight which listed two great character actors, Richard Libertini (time traveler - one of my favorites) and Don Calfa, known for so much it's not even funny. I had no idea either of them passed on this year. <br /><br />It's been a tough year, we've lost a lot of the actors and entertainers I grew up watching or listening to. Robbie in Tokyohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/03769485143634503515noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-26698663793496614452016-09-30T19:58:53.574-07:002016-09-30T19:58:53.574-07:00Just saw the tribute to Jack Doo last night and re...Just saw the tribute to Jack Doo last night and realized Max Gail was suddenly bald... it was a sad episode.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-34061411812698307532016-08-28T00:14:48.548-07:002016-08-28T00:14:48.548-07:00"Barney, Barney, Barney is your mother from K..."Barney, Barney, Barney is your mother from Killarny?"<br />Honestly one of the funniest things I had ever seen on TV, and I watched a lot of TV back then. Thank You!!JDygolahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06572920437580948731noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-89235677719253998612013-10-29T12:09:22.311-07:002013-10-29T12:09:22.311-07:00Tom Reeder commenting on Ken Levine's site? W...Tom Reeder commenting on Ken Levine's site? Wow, a mini-Cheers writers reunion! (A question, in fact: Do you writers from all those great shows ever get together to reminisce - all the comraderie / frustration / elation?)<br /><br />As someone who grew up experiencing your great writing on shows like MASH, Barney Miller, Cheers, I just want to thank you both of you for the well-earned laughter over the years.Davidnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-802932192357726562013-10-24T11:39:04.314-07:002013-10-24T11:39:04.314-07:00I loved that show. That show was partially what i...I loved that show. That show was partially what inspired my love for ensemble casts. I loved watching it, I love the memories surrounding the watching it.Devon Ellingtonhttp://devonellington.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-26724646386832038652013-10-22T18:03:22.226-07:002013-10-22T18:03:22.226-07:00Mr. Reeder, I join in bowing in your direction, al...Mr. Reeder, I join in bowing in your direction, also for the MASH episode in which Charles's houseboy is a North Korean spy. Between you and Ken, we have a little too much comedy writing talent here, ya know?Michaelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01998867386294693956noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-54897303516667825372013-10-21T20:36:25.484-07:002013-10-21T20:36:25.484-07:00Tom Reeder -
One more kudos for "Hash"...Tom Reeder - <br /><br />One more kudos for "Hash"! There are just so many classic lines in it!<br /><br />Nick: Barney...Barney...Barney...is your mother from Killarney<br /><br />Wojo: Boy, you ask the average guy to be divine, and see what you get<br /><br />Nick: did you know it makes a noise when you close your eyes? It goes squish....squish....squish<br /><br />We get to see a spark of what Fish must have been like when he was younger:<br /><br />Perp: The old guy - he jumps over the gap - BANG ZOOM! <br />Fish: Yeah! <br /><br />Which leads to this great exchange at the end:<br /><br />Fish: Barney..is it true? There was something in those brownies? <br /><br />Barney: Loaded with hashish<br /><br />Fish: Really?<br /><br />Barney: Verified by the lab<br /><br />Fish (sad look on his face): Best I've felt in 20 years...........and it has to be illegal<br /><br /><br />It is a testimony to the brilliance of this episode that it took me forever to choose which lines to use, and also took forever to type, 'cause I kept giggling remembering!!<br /><br />mooshy mooshy forever!<br /><br /><br /><br />LouOCNYhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16151395857835632917noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-10703651253739062412013-10-21T18:32:57.212-07:002013-10-21T18:32:57.212-07:00"Mark said...
If more people were too cheap f...<i>"Mark said...<br />If more people were too cheap for cable, they would find that the Golden age of 70s sitcoms is well represented on terrestrial superstations."</i><br /><br />Ah, Mark, speakng as someone who is not "too cheap for cable," I can assure you that Time-Warner Cable brings Annteanae TV and ME TV into my home every day, and allows me to DVR them, so I don't have to get up at 4AM to watch Bilko.<br /><br />@Tom Reeder, the hash brownies episode is the one <i>Barney Miller</i> episode I always record when I see that it's airing, absolutely my favorite episode of that series (Which I believe I've seen every episode of.) One can make me laugh like crazy if one says "Mooshie, mooshie, mooshie" just right.<br /><br />I had a lady friend who worked for a while in the box office at a Pussycat straight-porn theater in Hollywood back in the early-to-mid 1970s. She said that Jack Soo was a regular patron and was always charming and sweet. Since he showed up so often, they got to regularly chatting, and she just loved him, and Jack loved his porn.D. McEwannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-64545328379490361232013-10-21T12:50:48.441-07:002013-10-21T12:50:48.441-07:00I loved Barney Miller when it was on. I teach Med...I loved Barney Miller when it was on. I teach Media Studies at university now, and I use BM as a kind of a case study on how television shows can reflected the social and political debates of the time. They're all there: gay rights, feminism, NY going bankrupt. I tell my students that if they want a good idea of what the US was like in the late 70s (and early 80s) they should watch Barney Miller.Steve Cloutiernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-63151035214493246682013-10-21T11:56:42.361-07:002013-10-21T11:56:42.361-07:00Late to the thread, but if you like Barney Miller,...Late to the thread, but if you like Barney Miller, you might give a peep to Andy Samberg's new Fox sitcom vehicle, Brooklyn 99, with the great Andre Braugher as sort of a gay Barney. Well, no, not exactly; we're comparing apples and pistachios here. But the ensemble is funny, the cop work is plausible and those of us who miss Barney Miller will grasp at any straw for a laugh these days...courtneynoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-3975729202794376162013-10-21T10:41:27.229-07:002013-10-21T10:41:27.229-07:00Loved that show!
Too bad you didn't get to wri...Loved that show!<br />Too bad you didn't get to write an episode.<br />I could never work for a bi-polar showrunner like that.chuckcdnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-60344892200873881582013-10-21T09:23:26.420-07:002013-10-21T09:23:26.420-07:00Thank you for your kind words, Storm. It's be...Thank you for your kind words, Storm. It's been years since I've looked at that episode, too, but my recollection is that Hal Linden gave an excellent performance. I suspect that we can all relate to Barney's increasing desperation as he tries to hold it together while everything is falling apart around him.Tom Reedernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-91296031304204330262013-10-21T07:25:08.728-07:002013-10-21T07:25:08.728-07:00Barney Miller is indeed seen today on the subchann...Barney Miller is indeed seen today on the subchannel network "Antenna TV" two times a week, Thursday and Sunday nights.<br /><br />It's a digital subchannel of a local over-air station - WJW 8.2 here in Cleveland, for example. Tribune runs it, so check for a local Tribune-owned station.Mike W.noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-65843637857966490462013-10-21T06:32:35.864-07:002013-10-21T06:32:35.864-07:00I LOVED Barney Miller. It was such a great ensemb...I LOVED Barney Miller. It was such a great ensemble sitcom, plus the ever changing cast of suspects/guest stars. You never knew what was going to happen next week, but they would find a way to make it funny. And every New York stereotype was represented. Good stuff. And I bet it paid the rent for a lot of starving actors.McAlvienoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-33213381041375536032013-10-21T06:10:08.041-07:002013-10-21T06:10:08.041-07:00I just read chicoruiz's post and realized THAT...I just read chicoruiz's post and realized THAT is the mark of great comedy. I read that line and laughed out loud at it, just from the memory of that scene being played by Jack Soo and George Scanlon. When a line and a scene from an almost 40 year old comedy stays with you so strongly that even reading the lines from the scene can crack you up, you know as a comedy writer that you've left something lasting. I disagree about Barney Miller being a forgotten gem; it's definitely a gem, but it's most assuredly not forgotten by a lot of us. Ron Clarknoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-36769821741502849162013-10-21T05:33:01.369-07:002013-10-21T05:33:01.369-07:00(A recruiting sergeant is in the station house aft...(A recruiting sergeant is in the station house after someone sets off an explosive device in the recruiting station)...<br /><br />SERGEANT: I just don't understand it....Why would anyone want to bomb a U.S. military station?<br /><br />YEMANA: ...Nostalgia?chicoruiznoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-11754504939024022052013-10-21T04:57:00.136-07:002013-10-21T04:57:00.136-07:00No way? THAT Tom Reeder?!
Good Sir, if you happen...No way? THAT Tom Reeder?!<br /><br />Good Sir, if you happen to read this thread again, please let me thank you for writing one of the funniest episodes of television, ever. I saw it again recently after not seeing it for years, and it was even funnier than I remembered. I re-watched it like five times; I kept it in my DVR for a while to replay whenever stupid depression decided to rear its stupid head. Laughing myself goofy is better than any pill, so I thank you, and Ken, and all Bringers Of Mirth.<br /><br />Cheers, thanks a lot,<br /><br />StormStormnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-80299785368409245192013-10-21T04:20:48.197-07:002013-10-21T04:20:48.197-07:00If you want tape to look gritty, just run it throu...If you want tape to look gritty, just run it through FilmLook or another similar process. I don't think anyone shoots on actual film any more, just video filtered to look like film. I wonder if any producer has tried doing that with old taped sitcoms to make them look more retro and less dated (what a trick)....<br /><br />The one geeky thing I always noticed on Barney Miller - and I contributed this fact to IMDb - is that when you see the names on the station roll call board, besides the familiar names of MILLER, YEMANA, WOJO, FISH, etc. you would see names like BURSTEIN, CRESS, TALOSI, ALCOCER, etc. Where did those names from? Check the closing credits - they were all ABC camera ops and crew members!Dave Mackeyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13454782108761662940noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-40831710101357178452013-10-21T03:21:47.495-07:002013-10-21T03:21:47.495-07:00I like that the 70s era of TV looks dated because ...I like that the 70s era of TV looks dated because it was shot on tape and not on film. It adds a raw, grittiness to the look of the show that generally matches it's overall tone. <br /><br />I'd rather have less visual appeal with great writing and clearly defined characters than a shit show that looks stunning.Terrence Mosshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09365112876091271689noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-57484073096376692542013-10-21T00:24:11.630-07:002013-10-21T00:24:11.630-07:00To answer one question, though, Arnold wanted to s...To answer one question, though, Arnold wanted to shoot BARNEY on film, but ABC wouldn't spend the money. So the compromise was that they'd let him shoot it on video and edit it as if it had been shot on film. To facilitate that, he set up monitors for each camera in a square with a timecode reader in the center, and shot that with an additional camera, thus inventing the quad split.Bob Clasterhttp://www.bobclaster.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-73739895226785802542013-10-21T00:19:52.806-07:002013-10-21T00:19:52.806-07:00Many questions posted here are answered by Danny A...Many questions posted here are answered by Danny Arnold himself in my half-hour interview with him, which you can hear at www.bobclaster.com, for absolutely free! Fascinating man. He claimed that all of the characters in BARNEY were actually aspects of his own personality. It's a shame it isn't easy to get ahold of the 6-episode series he did after BARNEY with Peter Boyle called JOE BASH. Great stuff. Very dark, but great.Bob Clasterhttp://www.bobclaster.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-528967156043180702013-10-20T23:28:39.925-07:002013-10-20T23:28:39.925-07:00I hope your next book will be available on Nook.I hope your next book will be available on Nook.Alan Hintonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-16705167099993420882013-10-20T23:14:16.175-07:002013-10-20T23:14:16.175-07:00My all-time favorite sitcom. So well-written, and ...My all-time favorite sitcom. So well-written, and the characters were just that - CHARACTERS!! And it was loaded with heart, too. I loved it!Nick Davisnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-49977728288370233312013-10-20T21:23:26.231-07:002013-10-20T21:23:26.231-07:00By the way, be it duly noted that commenter Tom Re...By the way, be it duly noted that commenter Tom Reeder WROTE the brownie/hash classic episode of BARNEY MILLER.By Ken Levinehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.com