Friday Questions

Friday Question time already? Where did the week go? (That’s not an official Friday Question.) Kim T. Bené asks: M*A*S*H had first rate acting, memorable characters, an unusual premise... and of course incredible scripts. However the audio was lousy. When they were shooting outside it was fine. But when they shot exterior scenes in the studio the audio was always echoy and sounded exactly like they were simply shooting film in a big metal warehouse....

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In honor of Jim Lange

Who passed away this week at 81, I'm reposting a section from my '60s book on how I was thrown off of THE DATING GAME (which he hosted).   Jim was a great guy.  I got to work with him at KMPC.  Easygoing and fun.  Later I became a disc jockey at KYA in San Francisco and would hang out with Jim and other local bay area radio greats at Perry's on Union Street.  Jim -- a big kiss goodbye, my friend.It was in the late 60’s,...

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How NOT to pitch a pilot

Pitching pilots to networks is somewhat of an art. I mean, it’s not Adele singing or Linda Lovelace eating a cucumber, but it does take a certain skill. My writing partner, David Isaacs and I have been pitching pilots for years. We don’t sell them all but we have sold quite a few. So we have some sense as to what’s involved.  (And it's closer to what Linda Lovelace does.) Generally, we keep our pitch down to about fifteen minutes. We never...

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If I wrote for THE AMERICANS

THE AMERICANS return tonight at 10 pm on FX for their second season. Yay!  Matthew Rhys and Keri Russell play Russian spies in the ‘80s who are posing as a typical American married couple in the ‘burbs outside of Washington DC. Some of the storylines are very far fetched, but the show is so much fun that the absurdities are easy to forgive. So to whet the appetite of fellow fans or introduce possible new fans, here’s a scene from THE AMERICANS...

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My thoughts on Harold Ramis

I wonder if he knew. Harold Ramis passed away yesterday and the internet tom toms are ablaze with tributes and an outpouring of love from his many fans. I wonder if he realized how beloved he was and how much his work meant to so many people. Our paths never crossed. I never met him. But the sense I get is that he didn’t. Other names garnered way more attention. John Hughes. Judd Apatow. The Ferrelly Brothers. But in his quiet, unassuming...

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Another crazy secretary story

And yes, back in the ‘90s they were still called secretaries. We’ve had several that proved to be total loons. Sweet people but seriously bonkers. One of the bat-shit carziest was Sally. This is when we had a development deal at Paramount. We had our own production company and the mandate was to sell pilots and get shows on the air. Sally lived in a modest apartment in Brentwood, a half-hour drive to Paramount. One morning her pet parakeet...

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The Happy Ending

Yesterday I told you about losing a radio gig because my “friend” stole my material. Now flash forward four years. I’m writing on MASH and doing a Saturday night disc jockey show on KTNQ (Ten-Q) in Los Angeles. Yes, I finally got to be on the radio in my own hometown. The station wasn’t in a high rise, it was in an abandoned mortuary in Koreatown but still!I’m on the air for about six months when I get a call on the station hot line....

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Stealing jokes

If there’s one thing that all writers and comedians hate it’s people stealing their material. It’s certainly an occupational hazard but there should be a place in hell for those who steal jokes. You can shovel coal for all eternity with Milton Berle. I’ve had it happen to me on numerous occasions but none more egregious than this:In the mid 70s I was an all-night disc jockey in San Bernardino. Trying to be funny every three minutes...

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Friday Questions

Here are Friday Questions: willieb starts us off: I see where they're mounting a play about Carole King on Broadway. I always thought Nancy Travis would be perfect to play Carole -- I always saw a remarkable resemblance. As someone who's familiar with Carole and Nancy, what do you think? It’s actually a musical called BEAUTIFUL that got terrific reviews and is playing to delighted audiences. The storyline centers on the young Carole King and from...

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How to audition for pilots

This is the time of year when actors are auditioning for TV pilots. It’s Hollywood's answer to musical chairs, but the music is sped up. 90% of the pilots that networks commission are made in the spring. So actors are scurrying from audition to audition.Producers are also scrambling. It used to be if you saw an actor you liked you brought him back in for a callback after you’ve seen a sizable number of applicants. Now you may see an actor you...

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I'm hosting the Marilu Henner show today...

It's Marilu's nationally syndicated radio program where we talk lifestyle issues, pop culture, TV, movies, and what Marilu had for lunch on August 7, 1993.  It's on from 9-12 PST and it streams live here.    I'll be on tomorrow as well. Check it out.  (Marilu had an egg salad sandwich that day.) Today's post follows soon. ...

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THE TONIGHT SHOW starring the new guy

Okay, so I’ve been sampling THE TONIGHT SHOW with Jimmy Fallon this week. And my verdict? It’s fine. NBC’s strategic move to attract a younger audience will probably payoff to some degree. Watching the final Jay Leno show with Billy Crystal, who’s had as much work done as Joan Rivers, talking about old variety shows from the ‘60s, I could see why NBC made the switch. No one under 50 knew what they were talking about or cared. Compare that...

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In praise of Woody Harrelson

Who would have thought?When CHEERS ended its run in 1993, if you had asked me which cast member was going to become a big movie star I would not have said Woody Harrelson. Not that he wasn’t extremely talented, charming, and a pleasure to work with – it’s just that I thought of him as more of a character actor. All of the actors from CHEERS have gone on to have nice careers… as well they all should. They’re either starring in TV series, doing...

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Perfect for Presidents' Day: THE HOUSE OF CARDS

Some random thoughts today. If I’m not coherent and there are a lot of spelling errors it’s only because I’ve had very little sleep this weekend. Binging on HOUSE OF CARDS. Fortunately, I still have some chapters to go. I may just pull an all-nighter and then look for a rib joint that’s open at dawn. The best ones always are.Lots of my middle-aged pals would love to have sex with Claire Underwood. I would love her to be my agent. If I...

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My thoughts on Sid Caesar

The great Sid Caesar passed away last week and lots of you have asked why I haven’t written about him; why I haven’t done one of my tributes. It’s because my tributes tend to be glowing and they’re always from the heart. As much as I admired Sid Caesar, I did not feel that way about him. For my tributes to mean anything they must be sincere, and truth be told, I was not a big fan of Sid Caesar personally. You’ve all been to funerals of people...

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My worst birthday EVER

Thanks to everyone for your lovely birthday wishes.  I not only survived it but had a nice day.    MUCH better than my birthday several years ago. But first, this is your last chance to get the Kindle version of my memoir, THE ME GENERATION... BY ME (GROWING UP IN THE '60s) for only $0.99.  Here's where you go to order yours.   Learn how I became the demented person I am and which rock star I threw out of a...

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Big book sale ends today

This is the final day you can buy the Kindle version of my book, THE ME GENERATION...BY ME (GROWING UP IN THE '60s) for only $0.99.   Normally it's $4.99.   Here's where you go to get yours.You need more incentive?  ($0.99 isn't incentive enough?).  Here is the book trailer I made.  Get yours today!...

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Friday Questions

What better way to spend my birthday than to answer Friday Questions? Oh yeah, Happy Valentine’s Day too. Good luck getting a dinner reservation.  And in case you missed my last post, I am selling my memoir -- THE ME GENERATION... BY ME (GROWING UP IN THE '60s) for only $0.99 today and tomorrow only.  Here's where you go to order yours.  B Smith has a question from down under: Ken....the new series of So You Think You Can Dance...

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My Valentine's Day Gift to You

To commemorate Valentine's Day and my birthday, for the next two days I am selling THE ME GENERATION... BY ME (GROWING UP IN THE '60s) Kindle version for only $0.99.   It's my humorous look back at the decade of the Beatles, the California Myth, California Meth, hippies, sex (for others), radio, records, the Sunset Strip, ridiculous fashions, three networks, cool cars, love ins and drive ins, and more. Normally $4.99, today it's less...

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Attending a TV taping

Tonight I get an early birthday present (my birthday is tomorrow – Valentine’s Day birthdays suck, but that’s another post) – I’ll be going to Paramount Studios to watch the taping of a show written by that talented young team of Annie Levine & Jonathan Emerson. It’s an episode of INSTANT MOM, starring Tia Mowry (Sundays at 8:30 on Nick @ Nite). Actually, it’s a “special” episode with a Mother’s Day theme and  will include famous TV moms...

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Sam Rubin responds on my blog

I have to say, the man is a mensch.  Sam recently left a comment on my blog regarding the dueling Sams incident.  It would have been so easy to just say, "Yeah, I meant the CAPTAIN AMERICA commercial," but Sam told the truth.  And he's being a great sport about this whole thing.  As you might imagine, humor has always been held in high regard in my family.  Both of my kids are funny.  But the one thing I always...

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My favorite romantic movie scene of all-time

With Valentine’s Day fast approaching (too fast for most guys), our thoughts turn to romance or execution-like gang slayings in Chicago. Love stories are the driving force of most movies. DIE HARD is essentially a love story. So is KING KONG. And SHREK. (I still can’t tell you what INSIDE LLEWYN DAVIS is). We’ve all been moved at one time or another by a romantic scene on the silver screen. So my question for today: what is yours? And I’m...

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Is the theatre really dead? NO!

Allow me to respond, sir. This is a comment I received last week on my “Tips For Young Playwrights” post. It’s by Angry Gamer. He writes:Writing a theater play to me seems so oh I don't know... so 1500s.I don't mean this as a slam or anything. I am saying this seriously. Why do a play in a time when TV and Film is getting overtaken by new media?For art? For challenge?For fun?All of these might be relevant back in 1562 when Bill was being born....

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