tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post6606922531308877677..comments2023-11-03T06:02:02.128-07:00Comments on By Ken Levine: Firing actors By Ken Levinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17305293821975250420noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-9339147088256612192013-12-18T13:39:19.335-08:002013-12-18T13:39:19.335-08:00Do writers / showrunners ever succumb to the tempt...<i>Do writers / showrunners ever succumb to the temptation to chew up a departing character because they didn't like the performer, or the circumstances of his/her exit?</i><br /><br />Just a hunch, but I think Chuck Lorre might have have had this in mind when it came to to Charlie Sheen: <br /><br />http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0PVLTNh01_E<br /><br /><i>"His body just exploded like a balloon full of meat."</i><br />iainnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-31212635123322078222013-12-18T11:32:25.273-08:002013-12-18T11:32:25.273-08:00Radio is insane. I don't understand it. The ...Radio is insane. I don't understand it. The decisions made are so out of whack with reality. <br /><br />Many years back, when Howard Stern was still on "terrestrial radio", here in San Francisco we had a morning drive lady named Darian O'Toole on a FM rock station. She was the number one drive time person, even beating Howard, sort of.<br /><br />At the time, Stern was on low wattage station out of San Jose, and most of the San Francisco market couldn't receive it.<br /><br />Didn't stop the radio station from touting it, though. Darian took full advantage of it, getting some acting gigs and comedy gigs. She even got a got great write up in the local paper with the cover of the Sunday entertainment section, the Pink Pages -- her star was rising. The world was her oyster.<br /><br />About a month after the cover of the "Pink Pages", the stations changed formats -- they went R&B/soul.... and she got the boot. <br /><br />WHO DOES THIS?<br /><br />This was actually the first time I got see this insanity in action, and I've seen it a number of times since....<br />Jeannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-25277628695303017592013-12-18T01:43:08.831-08:002013-12-18T01:43:08.831-08:00I had heard that Trapper John MD, was based on the...I had heard that Trapper John MD, was based on the movie Trapper John (Elliot Gould), not the TV show Trapper.Albert Giesbrechthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17742338183833125104noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-77116691103485067522013-12-17T23:07:44.702-08:002013-12-17T23:07:44.702-08:00I worked for the government for 32 years. What'...I worked for the government for 32 years. What's firing? As for tongue guy, he should have been credited for his realistic performance. Cap'n Bobhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11783977137812876489noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-50887997430557799892013-12-17T22:24:20.748-08:002013-12-17T22:24:20.748-08:00HG: I know there's a story that the death of H...HG: I know there's a story that the death of Henry Blake was partially to block a spinoff show of the character (Trapper John left alive; a few years later his name was tacked on an unrelated medical series), but the Blake character went out beloved.<br /><br />I was curious about those occasions where they didn't just close the door, but seemed to want the audience to lose affection for the character in the bargain.DBensonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-84842660634633408412013-12-17T19:58:34.099-08:002013-12-17T19:58:34.099-08:00Do writers / showrunners ever succumb to the tempt...<i>Do writers / showrunners ever succumb to the temptation to chew up a departing character because they didn't like the performer, or the circumstances of his/her exit?</i><br /><br />When McLean Stevenson left M*A*S*H, it seems that the episode was written in such a way to make sure the departure was permanent.Hank Gillettehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17328364486555780403noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-19728791027268458712013-12-17T16:31:32.958-08:002013-12-17T16:31:32.958-08:00Firing people is necessary at times. I recently ha...Firing people is necessary at times. I recently had to fire a guitarist. It simply was not working and the ensemble must come first. The livelihood of the group must take priority. The gentleman in question was hurt, but had been made aware a month before that he needed to lift his game. He failed to do so.<br /><br />Finding the right group of people is not easy. In this case rehearsals are unpaid. People only get paid for gigs. Under these circumstances it is a win just to get 6 people in a room at the same time. That becomes increasingly difficult when a member lags behind or has a bad attitude.<br /><br />I have been fired once. That it was due to my being injured hurt, in more ways than one. I missed a tour because a leader thought I was involved with a dancer. That was just bad luck. On both counts. :-)Dalehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09092985199027690430noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-6515322326759936682013-12-17T13:52:22.299-08:002013-12-17T13:52:22.299-08:00Canda,
I was also a Jack Cassidy fan, but I think...Canda,<br /><br />I was also a Jack Cassidy fan, but I think it's that very buffoonish quality that made Ted Baxter so memorable. Cassidy was wonderfully waspish, but that wasn't Ted Baxter.<br /><br />As good as Cassidy was, I don't think anyone could've improved on Ted Knight.Dixon Steelenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-2802485429443564742013-12-17T13:41:45.135-08:002013-12-17T13:41:45.135-08:00Ken -
FYI, over at "Gawker," they'v...Ken -<br /><br />FYI, over at "Gawker," they've posted writers' salaries for cable and network. http://tinyurl.com/l7njdr6Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-9901911424722097892013-12-17T13:14:08.141-08:002013-12-17T13:14:08.141-08:00What I sort of wonder about is when a character is...What I sort of wonder about is when a character is written out of a show, and his/her departure is explained with reference to uncharacteristic bad or stupid behavior. <br /><br />I remember being a bit shocked when "Mork and Mindy" introduced Georgina Engel as the bride of Mork's eccentric friend, and a few episodes later had the friend casually say "When my wife left me . . . " Would our Georgina do a thing like that? Especially after the show set her up as an endlessly patient and understanding sweetie? That one I chalked up to a hasty and sloppy patch after she didn't work out as a regular. "Mork and Mindy" wasn't a show to dwell on a breakup.<br /><br />When "Veronica's Closet" dropped a character clearly brought in as Veronica's romantic interest, he was retconned as a jerk when the character's bimbo widow was introduced. A neat device to introduce a new character, or a desire to not only to kill off the old character but any goodwill the audience had for him? <br /><br />In contrast, Major Burns' off-camera exit from "MASH" was precisely in character; there was no effort to make the audience think better or worse of him. If memory serves, Burns even landed in a cushy stateside job.<br /><br />Do writers / showrunners ever succumb to the temptation to chew up a departing character because they didn't like the performer, or the circumstances of his/her exit? Or to retcon a departing character as a nice guy because they DID like the performer? DBensonnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-68655369629597534552013-12-17T12:17:23.480-08:002013-12-17T12:17:23.480-08:00@Dan Ball: Except, in an SNL sketch, the strugglin...@Dan Ball: Except, in an SNL sketch, the struggling actor would have to do exactly the same stupid thing every time. Otherwise, it wouldn't be a rubber-stamped SNL sketch.Mikenoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-65600599553089264552013-12-17T11:24:08.809-08:002013-12-17T11:24:08.809-08:00After the tongue-guy story, all I can picture from...After the tongue-guy story, all I can picture from this post is a series of sketches on SNL where a struggling actor always self-sabotages his big breaks by doing something stupid. Tonguing the star, trying to photobomb the final shot, stealing the stars' thunder, doing unauthorized product placement for absurd crap, live-tweeting while cameras are rolling, etc.<br /><br />I'm sorry, but tongue guy has me rolling over here. The fact that someone would have the cojones to do that! Brilliant.<br /><br />You tell some of the best stories, Ken. Again, you've given this industry more depth than I could've hoped to learn otherwise. <br /><br />Tongue guy...lol<br /><br /><br /><br />Dan Ballhttp://thedanballbrand.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-34121168017864285932013-12-17T10:12:09.510-08:002013-12-17T10:12:09.510-08:00While not a firing, I always wondered what the Mar...While not a firing, I always wondered what the Mary Tyler Moore Show would have been like if Jack Cassidy had not turned down the role of Ted Baxter.<br /><br />I believe the character would have been less buffoonish, and more real as an overbearing narcissist.Candanoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-18294095712630939782013-12-17T09:07:03.396-08:002013-12-17T09:07:03.396-08:00I know of one firing that occurred because this pe...I know of one firing that occurred because this person, a guest star, would have been in the final shot. One of the stars' agents balked and insisted that their client be included in the final shot, whether it made sense to the story or not. This meant that the guest had to go.Brian Phillipshttp://ultrasonicremote.blogspot.com/noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-26635779649884499042013-12-17T08:11:00.249-08:002013-12-17T08:11:00.249-08:00Think of this post as a roman a clef. Clues, clues...Think of this post as a roman a clef. Clues, clues...uh, "square peg in a round hole" Square Pegs! You fired Sarah Jessica Parker! Or Jami Goetz!Scooter Schechtmannoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-7938804147337560792013-12-17T08:01:26.011-08:002013-12-17T08:01:26.011-08:00Of course, the guy sending Christmas cards for ten...Of course, the guy sending Christmas cards for ten years may have been engaging in a much more subtle form of revenge. <br /><br />wgWendy M. Grossmanhttp://www.pelicancrossing.netnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-61276172426816506052013-12-17T07:32:05.358-08:002013-12-17T07:32:05.358-08:00I'm not in the entertainment biz, but it's...I'm not in the entertainment biz, but it's truisms of all industries like:<br /><br />If someone needs to be replaced, the rest of the (staff) knows it too. If you take action you send a message that you’re really looking out for them. And if the replacement (person) is better then everyone’s performance is elevated.<br /><br />that keep me coming back to this blog every day -- a reminder that TV is a business like any other. Only with cuter people.RyderDAhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00980791636129598607noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-40571186006240739322013-12-17T07:04:29.104-08:002013-12-17T07:04:29.104-08:00By cheerful coincidence, I was just re-watching th...By cheerful coincidence, I was just re-watching <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrofxhwgLzk" rel="nofollow">this hilariously on-topic gem</a> from A BIT OF FRY AND LAURIE. "I'm having the most terrible difficulty firing somebody..."Mr Pondhttp://mrpond47.wordpress.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-10755343292650943392013-12-17T06:58:57.555-08:002013-12-17T06:58:57.555-08:00One of the best cast replacements ever was when Ta...One of the best cast replacements ever was when Taxi replaced Randall Carver with Christopher Lloyd. A very bland character replaced with with well, the total opposite! LouOCNYhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16151395857835632917noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-19336675.post-34334355509133681632013-12-17T06:16:02.307-08:002013-12-17T06:16:02.307-08:00Obviously, if you’re firing two people a day your ...<i>Obviously, if you’re firing two people a day your set becomes Shutter Island</i><br /><br />It's gems like this that keep me coming back to this blog every day.<br /><br />Regarding good actors who were fired, an example of a good decision and a bad decision:<br /><br />Good one - Replacing Eric Stoltz with Michael J Fox in Back to the Future. Stoltz is a fine actor but doesn't have Fox's likeability and warmth.<br /><br />Bad one - Michael Keaton being fired from The Purple Rose of Cairo. I do love that film and Jeff Daniels is great in it, but I'd have loved to see what Keaton would've done in the role. Then again, I AM biased, as I'm a huge fan of his and think he should be cast in at least 95% of the films made every year. He's also the definitive Batman. So there, Bale fans.Hamidnoreply@blogger.com