"Mel Brooks: The 99 Year Old Man!" is a Fascinating HBO MAX Documentary

 Mel Brooks was born in 1926, so he turns 100 years old this year. This HBO MAX documentary does a thorough, excellent job of detailing his iconic life in comedy. Director Judd Apatow interviews Brooks, but also has many clips from Mel on talk shows hosted by Johnny Carson, Merv Griffin, Mike Douglas, Tom Snyder and more. Mel was an entertainer in the Catskills resorts of upstate New York in the 1940s after serving in the US military during World War II. From 1950-54, he was a writer for "Your Show of Shows," which was one of the earliest comedy shows in infancy of the television medium. Here he formed important relationships with Carl Reiner and Sid Caesar. Brooks and Reiner are known for their comedy bit, "The 2000 Year Old Man." Reiner played the straight man. In 1962, Mel was one of the guests on the first episode of "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson."  The documentary goes through his impressive resume as a writer-director on such films as: "The Producers" (1967), "The Twelve Chairs" (1970), "Blazing Saddles" (1974), "Young Frankenstein" (1974), "Silent Movie" (1976), "High Anxiety" (1977), "History of the World Part I" (1981), "Spaceballs" (1987), "Robin Hood: Men in Tights" (1993), and others. From 1965-70, he wrote the TV show "Get Smart" which he created with Buck Henry. In 1967, "The Graduate" was released, written by Buck Henry and starring the woman who would become Mel's wife, Anne Bancroft (Mrs. Robinson). Mel Brooks is one of few celebrities who can say he is an EGOT winner (Emmy, Grammy, Oscar and Tony). He won the Tony for his 2001 stage production of "The Producers." The documentary talks about how hard it was for Mel to lose his wife Anne Bancroft and friend Carl Reiner. Anne passed in 2005 and Carl passed in 2020. Mel and Carl had a tradition of watching Wheel of Fortune and Jeopardy together in Carl's home, eating dinner off  TV trays. After Reiner's death, the chairs and TV trays were put on display at the National Comedy Center in Jamestown, New York. At age 99, Mel still had projects in the works. "Spaceballs 2" and "Very Young Frankenstein" are in post production. 

*Some information from imdb and wikipedia. 

Book Review: "Love Johnny Carson: One Obsessive Fan's Journey to Find the Genius Behind the Legend" by Mark Malkoff with David Ritz

 

 I have read many books about Johnny Carson. Three Carson books have been released lately, not far apart. The last two that came out were disappointing. They did not have as much information as was expected. I wanted something that took a deep dive into the life of Johnny Carson, the king of late night. I had high hopes for this latest book since it was written by Mark Malkoff, who was the host of my favorite podcast of all time, "The Carson Podcast." I listen to lots of podcasts, such as "Conan O'Brien Needs a Friend," "Fly on the Wall," "The Letterman Podcast," "Late Night Playset" and others. Mark's podcast had interviews with big stars such as Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner, Carol Burnett and many others. Often times, the best guests were the behind-the-scenes people such as writers, segment producers and technical crew members. The research for the podcast was impressive and extensive, so I knew it would be the same case with the book. The book is broken up into three sections: 1962-1972, (the first decade of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, based in New York City) 1972-1982 (the first decade with the show based in Burbank, California) and 1982-1992 (the final decade of Johnny's show, which wrapped up on May 22, 1992). The final section also covered Johnny's retirement years, in which he traveled to exotic locales like Russia and Africa and spent time on his 130 foot yacht, The Serengeti. This book is great since it has many anecdotes from the show, offering behind-the-scenes insights. This book reveals a lot of facts you never knew about Johnny and his landmark show. The quality of Johnny's show was impeccable, and the show ran like a well-oiled machine. Everyone on the staff was the best at their craft. There are many myths or urban legends about Johnny's show. This book tells if they are true or false. You can read about David Letterman, Freddie Prinze, Byron Allen, Joan Rivers, David Brenner, Ellen DeGeneres, Frank Sinatra, Paul Anka, Rodney Dangerfield and so many other stars. The sensitivity of Johnny is discussed, as well as his feuds, his shortcomings and his generosity. He demanded loyalty and if he was double crossed, he would hold a grudge. He was competitive, and he wanted to be #1, which he was for his 30-year run. Johnny was something special, and part of his success with the show was his breadth of knowledge in many different topics. He had a thirst for knowledge. He loved animals, travel, drumming, jazz music, astronomy, studying languages, comedy, magic and tennis. Producer Peter Lassally called Johnny the most well read person he ever met. Johnny was not a flawless person, but no one is. The book looks at the fact that Johnny was not a perfect father or husband, and he had challenges with alcohol. At the same time, this book presented an optimistic picture of television's premier entertainer. Johnny was a different person off the air as opposed to when he was on the air, and this book takes a deep dive into the complexities of his personality. This book presents an in-depth look into the iconic Johnny Carson, and it's highly recommended for any fan of Johnny, late night TV, or entertainment in general. 

“Sunday Best” on Netflix Tells the Fascinating Story of Ed Sullivan

 

Recently I watched one of the best documentaries I have seen in years. I knew very little about Ed Sullivan and his show, since he went off the air 2 years after I was born. When I think of his show, I think of the iconic appearances by The Beatles in the 1960s and Elvis in the 1950s. I have seen clips of The Doors and The Rolling Stones appearing on his show as well. Censorship played a role on this show. Elvis was to be shot only from the waist up, due to his gyrating hips. The Doors were instructed to change the lyric “Girl we couldn’t get much higher” to “Girl, we couldn’t get much better.” Jim Morrison originally said he would do this, but on the show he sang the original lyric, which was viewed as a drug reference. The Doors were banned from doing the show again. The Rolling Stones were told not to sing “Let’s spend the night together” and change it to “Let’s spend some time together.” Mich Jagger gave in, but he rolled his eyes as he sang the sanitized lyrics.  For 23 years, from 1948 to 1971, The Ed Sullivan Show yielded high ratings for CBS, every Sunday night.

Sullivan was born in Harlem New York in 1901. At that point, the neighborhood was largely Jewish and Irish, with Sullivan being the latter. These groups faced discrimination, and Sullivan was one who wanted to stick up for the underdog during his lifetime.

He worked as a newspaper columnist and a radio host before getting into television. His delivery on television was awkward, but he gained a following as someone who provided a forum for all people via his variety show. Many comedians did impressions of his unique posture and peculiar way of talking, including John Byner, Rich Little, Johnny Carson and Joan Rivers.

Even when it was controversial in the 1950s, especially in the Southern states, Sullivan welcomed many black performers to his stage. Over the years, his show featured Bo Diddley, Fats Domino, Nat King Cole, Harry Belafonte, Pearl Bailey and Motown artists such as Stevie Wonder, The Jackson Five and The Supremes. Sullivan said he despised intolerance since as an Irish Catholic he had faced that in his life. So, Sullivan was an important figure in the civil rights movement.

Sullivan’s show went off the air in 1971 and he died in 1974. His venue was named the Ed Sullivan Theater and was the home of David Letterman and Stephen Colbert’s late-night programs.

 

 

 

 

Danny McBride is Building an Empire

 

Danny McBride is the writer, creator, actor and producer of the following three MAX shows.

Eastbound and Down, 2009-2013, where he played a major league/minor league baseball player and also worked as a commentator on a sports TV show. Will Ferrell appeared in this show as a car dealership owner patterned after wrestler Ric Flair.

Vice Principals, 2016-2017, where he played a high school vice principal. He directed 2 episodes of this show. He said that this show was an homage to the high school teen comedies of the 1980s, like the Molly Ringwald films. Instead of it looking at the challenges and anxiety of being a high school student, it looked at how the high school teachers have many of the same issues. There was an episode where people were climbing through heating vents to get to the other side of the school in order to evade the principal. That was a shout out to a similar scene in The Breakfast Club. 

The Righteous Gemstones, 2019-2023, (on March 9, 2025, the final season kicked off on MAX). He plays a minister in a family of wealthy ministers that runs a mega church. These "religious" people need to practice what they preach. John Goodman plays his father in this show, and the head minister. Adam Devine plays his brother, and Edi Patterson is his sister. McBride directed 4 episodes of this show.

In each show he plays a vulgar, drug abusing buffoon with a distinctive haircut. His characters lack a moral compass.

Vice Principals and The Righteous Gemstones both co-starred Walton Goggins and Edi Patterson.

McBride’s shows stand out since they have talented, funny actors, character development and creative writers that come up with excellent storylines that hold your attention.

Here are some movies that McBride has appeared in…

Hot Rod, Superbad, Pineapple Express, Tropic Thunder, Sausage Party, Up in the Air, The Angry Birds Movie. He’s appeared in movies since 2003.

He did a voice in the video game Grand Theft Auto V.

Here are some quotes from McBride…

          

In my school, people liked the gym teachers because they were the football or soccer coaches. But look, if they're cool, they get respect.

I've always had the hair of Lionel Ritchie since I was a boy, but the mullet sadly is a hairpiece. My wife won't let me rock that hairstyle.

I'll still try to nail acting jobs, but with 'Eastbound,' creating it is what gives me the ultimate pleasure at the end of the day.

I usually choose movies that I would want to see. I appreciate drama and if the right script came across my desk, drama you will see.

I made movies all the time when I was a kid.

I had a classic gym teacher in junior high who wore a weightlifter's belt all the time.

        

Information from imdb.com.

  

Worldwide Pants

 

For David Letterman’s morning show (1980), that was produced by a company called Space Age Meats. (Letterman always seemed to have a meat obsession). On his CBS Late Show he did a segment called “Know Your Cuts of Meat.” Space Age Meats is also credited with producing Letterman’s NBC show Late Night with David Letterman from 1982-1990. This was produced in partnership with NBC and Carson Productions. Founded in 1991, Worldwide Pants was responsible for co-producing the final two years of Letterman’s Late-Night show (1991-1993) along with NBC and Carson Productions.
Letterman’s 1993 contract had some things in common with Johnny Carson’s 1980 contract. Carson Productions gave Johnny ownership of his show and projects made by the company (Amen and The Big Chill being two examples). With ownership of his Late Show and other programs, Letterman had many projects to contribute to building his wealth. Other than Late Show with David Letterman, the most successful Worldwide Pants show was Everybody Loves Raymond, starring Ray Romano (1996-2005). Letterman had Romano on his Late Show and wanted to base a sitcom around his life. This was co-produced with HBO Independent Productions and creator/executive producer Phil Rosenthal’s company, Where’s Lunch. The company tried to produce two programs with Bonnie Hunt, The Building (1993) and Bonnie (2015). Both were short lived. Worldwide Pants produced The Late Late Show which had different hosts, including Tom Snyder (1995-1999), Craig Kilborn (1999-2004) and Craig Ferguson (2005-2014). The program Ed was produced from 2000-2004 and aired on NBC. HBO shows produced by Letterman’s company include The High Life (1996) and Foo Fighters Sonic Highways (2014). Netflix shows include The Fundamentals of Caring (2016), My Next Guest Needs No Introduction (2018-present) and That’s My Time with David Letterman (2022). That’s my Time was a great showcase for young up-and-coming comics. Three shows were produced for PBS in conjunction with Sesame Workshop. The Knights of Prosperity was produced for ABC in 2007. In 2024, TBS aired a Worldwide Pants show called Stupid Pet Tricks, a program that was based on a Letterman staple from his Late Night and Late Show. It was hosted by Sarah Silverman.
Other crazy names for Letterman production companies over the years included: Cardboard Shoe Productions, United States Chemical Cheese Productions and Recreational Poultry Productions.

*Some information from Wikipedia and latenighter.com. 

Ordinary People (1980)

 

This year marks the 45^th anniversary of an outstanding film, Ordinary People.

Directed by Robert Redford (A River Runs Through It, Quiz Show, The Horse Whisperer and The Legend of Bagger Vance). Ordinary People was his feature filmmaking directing debut.

It’s based on a 1976 novel by Judith Guest.

This film starred: Donald Sutherland, Mary Tyler Moore, Judd Hirsch and Timothy Hutton (his film debut at age 20).

At the 1981 Oscars, this film won four awards. They won for best picture, best supporting actor (Timothy Hutton), best director (Robert Redford) and best writing, screenplay based on material from another medium (Alvin Sargent). Ordinary People had an uphill battle that year, going head-to-head against Martin Scorsese’s brilliant boxing film, starring Robert DeNiro, Raging Bull.

Overall, this film had 21 wins and 14 nominations.

It won five Golden Globes, including one for best picture (drama) and one for Mary Tyler Moore for best actress (drama).

The budget was $6 million, and the worldwide gross was $90 million.

The Jarrett family lives in an affluent Chicago suburban neighborhood. From the outside, they probably appear to be a family who has it all, but there is turmoil behind closed doors.

Donald Sutherland and Mary Tyler Moore played Calvin and Beth Jarrett, who are parents to Conrad Jarrett, played brilliantly by Timothy Hutton. The other son, Buck Jarrett, was killed in a tragic boating accident. Conrad feels responsible for his death and is haunted by images of the event. His grief and guilt are overwhelming. His feelings led to a suicide attempt. Conrad felt that his mother preferred Buck over himself. Conrad is closer to his father than his mother. The interactions between mother and son are awkward.

Mary Tyler Moore did not play her normal bubbly, positive character like she did when she played Mary Richards and Laura Petrie. Beth was cold and distant. This role showed the impressive range of Moore. She was shocked when Robert Redford said that he wanted her for the role. He had her in mind from the first time he read the novel. Her character was not always likeable. During the filming, Moore was aloof toward Timothy Hutton to get into character. Mary Tyler Moore called this film "The Holy Grail of my Career".

 The parents decide that Conrad needs to see a therapist to deal with his guilt and depression tied to what happened with his brother. Judd Hirsch played Dr. Tyrone Berger, the therapist who tries to help Conrad. Redford chose Hirsch for the role after seeing his character in the TV show Taxi. Some of the scenes between Conrad and Dr. Berger are intense and gripping. This film delves deep into the dynamics of human relations and the challenging feelings that accompany them. The film is largely about forgiveness…forgiving others and ourselves. The main theme for the soundtrack was Pachelbel’s Canon in D Major, which set the perfect mood for this emotional film.

Gene Hackman was considered for the role of Calvin. Michael J. Fox auditioned for the role of Conrad, but Redford wanted to go with Hutton. Natalie Wood was considered for the role of Beth, which went to Mary Tyler Moore.

The film received high praise from critics Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert. Siskel called it the 2^nd best film of 1980 and Ebert said it was the 5^th best film of the year.

The intense writing, acting and insights into stressful family dynamics make this an outstanding film.

 

*Some information from imdb.com and Wikipedia.  

 

 

Saturday Night Live Season 11, A Turbulent Period

This was a challenging season for the franchise to say the least. It marked the return of executive producer Lorne Michaels after a five-year absence. The season ran from November 1985 to May 1986.

The show had just come off a successful season with cast members Billy Crystal, Martin Short, Harry Shearer and Christopher Guest, with Dick Ebersol as producer. That season wanted to attract people with previous comedy experience. For example, Martin Short appeared on SCTV before doing SNL.

Cast members for season 11 included: Robert Downey Jr. (his uncle Jim Downey was a writer for the show), Joan Cusack, Anthony Michael Hall, Randy Quaid, Nora Dunn, Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller, Terry Sweeney, Danitra Vance, Damon Wayans, Dan Vitale and A. Whitney Brown. This season had an emphasis on youth and the cast did not seem to gel.

Most did not make it to the next season except for Jon Lovitz, Dennis Miller, Nora Dunn and A. Whitney Brown. The season ended with a fake fire in the studio, questioning who would survive for season 12 and who would not. In the closing credits everyone had a question mark after their name. NBC President Brandon Tartikoff threatened to cancel the show after this disappointing season. Michaels talked him out of doing that.

Lovitz had success with his “liar” character and “Master Thespian.” Nora Dunn had her fashion-obsessed Pat Stephens character. Dennis Miller was a strong Weekend Update anchor, with his sarcastic, smarmy attitude.

Damon Wayans sabotaged his career and got fired. He played a flamboyantly gay character in a sketch where he was not supposed to do that. Many do not realize that the leeway for improvisation on SNL is virtually non-existent. Cast members must do the skits exactly as written.

Dan Vitale was fired during the season due to substance abuse issues.

Chris Elliott from Late Night with David Letterman auditioned for the show. He was offered the job but decided not to take it. In 1994 he would join the cast of SNL. His daughter Abby was in the cast from 2008-2012.

Terry Sweeney was the first openly gay cast member. He portrayed Nancy Reagan.

Danitra Vance was the first black female member of the primary SNL cast. In 1994, she died of cancer at age 40.

Writers for season 11 included: Jim Downey (Head Writer), Al Franken, Tom Davis, George Meyer, Herb Sargent, Carol Leifer, Jack Handey, Robert Smigel, Don Novello, Jon Vitti, John Swartzwelder and more. Meyer, Swartzwelder and Vitti would later write for The Simpsons.

Hosts during this season included: Madonna, Chevy Chase, Pee-Wee Herman, John Lithgow, Tom Hanks, Teri Garr, Oprah Winfrey, Tony Danza and more.

Musical guests included: Simple Minds, Sheila E, Mr. Mister, Sade, The Dream Academy, Laurie Anderson, Al Green, Ladysmith Black Mambazo, Level 42, George Clinton and more.

Sam Kinison and Penn and Teller appeared as special guests a few times during the season.

SNL has had a show with so many ups and downs regarding writers and cast, but they have managed to hang on for 50 years.

*Some information from Wikipedia and snl.fandom.com/wiki/Season_11.

 

 

Carson Productions

 

As part of Johnny Carson’s landmark 1980 contract, Carson Productions was established. Its primary productions were “The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson” from 1980-1992 and “Late Night with David Letterman” from 1982-1993. Johnny’s contract gave him ownership of his show and the show that followed his, which was David Letterman’s program. With this contract, Johnny also received more money, more time off and the show was trimmed from 90 minutes to 60 minutes. Johnny had considered retiring or going to another network. NBC knew they had to pull out all the stops to keep him since his program was a cash cow for the peacock network.

Not every Carson Productions project was a hit. One successful show was “Amen” (1986-1991), starring Sherman Hemsley, best known for playing George Jefferson. A successful film they produced was “The Big Chill” (1983). From 1984-1993, Carson Productions co-produced along with Dick Clark Productions “TV’s Bloopers and Practical Jokes.” This show starred Ed McMahon and Dick Clark and Johnny appeared on the show as the victim of a practical joke.

Other productions included a miniseries starring Rock Hudson and Suzanne Pleshette called “The Star Maker” (1981). “Lewis & Clark” only lasted one season and premiered in 1981. “Cassie & Co.” starred Angie Dickinson but only lasted one season. “Teachers Only” went on the air in 1982 and lasted two seasons.

In the years since Johnny’s retirement and death, the company has been changed to Carson Entertainment. Its main goal is to preserve Johnny’s legacy and license clips from "The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson."

*Some information from Wikipedia.

 

Cartoonist Charles Schulz and the Peanuts Gang

 

The Peanuts comic strip has been beloved by millions of people for decades. It was drawn solely by one man, Charles Schulz, from 1950-2000. That is very rare for one person to draw 100% of the strips, especially for that duration. Many prominent cartoonists say that Schulz was an influence, such as Bill Watterson (Calvin and Hobbes), Matt Groening (Life in Hell, The Simpsons) and Jim Davis (Garfield). Schulz was born in Minneapolis in 1922. He served in the Army during World War II. From 1947-1950 he drew a one panel strip called Li’l Folks that featured a young boy named Charlie Brown. A four-panel comic strip was developed but United Feature Syndicate said they name had to be changed due to legal reasons. Schulz said that he was never a fan of the name Peanuts. Some of the Sunday strips were titled as “Peanuts, featuring good ol’ Charlie Brown.” At its peak, Peanuts was published daily in 2,600 newspapers, in 75 countries, in 21 languages. Over the 50-year period of the strip, Schulz drew nearly 18,000 strips. The merchandising for the characters was prominent and lucrative, earning more than $1 billion per year. Schulz earned $30-$40 million per year. The Peanuts TV specials proved to be very popular, and they became holiday traditions, airing around Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. Schulz was writer or co-writer of these and closely monitored the production. One of the specials was called “Snoopy’s Reunion.” It was very enjoyable since it revealed a lot of things about the life of Snoopy that many would not know about. Snoopy and his siblings were separated when they got adopted by different people from the Daisy Hill Puppy Farm. The TV show has them reuniting and reveals that all of them are musical. They come together and bond with each other in a musical jam session.

Various aspects of the strip are based on the life of Schulz and people that he knew. Themes of sports, art, the military and religion were prominent in the strip since those topics were important to Schulz.

  My dad was just 18 years old when the strip first appeared in newspapers, and he was always a fan. He was a fan of other strips too, such as Blondie and Beetle Bailey. I have always admired the talent of cartoonists since they need to be able to draw, plus come up with funny ideas. I have been a fan of Charlie Brown, Snoopy and the Peanuts gang for as long as I can remember.

Schulz died on February 12, 2000. His final strip was in papers the following day. His strips were drawn weeks in advance. His final strip was a goodbye message with Snoopy sitting on his doghouse writing on a typewriter. The strip has Schulz expressing his thankfulness for being about to draw the strip for 50 years. It says that he was unable to continue doing the strip, and it would not be drawn by anyone else. His final line was “Charlie Brown, Snoopy, Linus, Lucy, how can I ever forget them…” On May 27,2000 Schulz was honored by over 100 comic strips, where the Peanuts characters were incorporated into various strips.

The Charles M. Schulz Museum was opened in 2002, in Santa Rosa, California. This is just two blocks from the studio where Schulz drew Peanuts.

The thing that made Peanuts special was the character development. We knew them and loved them. Here are a few profiles of the prominent characters.

Charlie Brown…first appeared in 1950…a boy who struggles to get through life due to his confidence issues. He loves sports, and even though he is not a great athlete, he never gives up. He has a crush on the little red-haired girl but is too afraid to approach her.

Snoopy… first appeared in 1950…Charlie Brown’s dog who is a beagle that everyone loves. His imagination is second to none, seeing himself as a World War I flying ace, a star athlete, a best selling author and “Joe Cool.”

Linus…first appeared in 1952…a philosophical, intelligent, religious boy who never lets go of his beloved security blanket. He is often the voice of reason for Charlie Brown.

Lucy…first appeared in 1952…the fussbudget with a short fuse. She has a crush on Schroeder but it’s an unrequited love. She is the sister of Linus. She is notorious for holding the football for Charlie Brown and pulls it away at the last minute.

Sally… first appeared in 1959…The sister of Charlie Brown who has a crush on Linus. She hates school.

Schroeder… first appeared in 1951…the child prodigy who can play anything on his piano. The toy piano sounds like a real piano when he plays it. He idolizes Beethoven and has a bust of him on his piano. Lucy has a crush on him and leans on his piano as he plays.

Peppermint Patty… first appeared in 1966…she is the best athlete in town and the worst student. She is best buddies with Marcie, (first appearance was 1971) who calls her “Sir.”

A bit of trivia, some Peanuts characters had very unusual names. One young boy was named 5 (first name) 95472 (last name). He had younger twin sisters named 3 and 4.

Molly Volley was a mixed doubles tennis partner for Snoopy who has a hair trigger temper.

Tapioca Pudding is a character whose unique name comes from the fact that her father works in licensing.

Joe Richkid is from a family of wealth and is not liked by others due to his arrogance.  

The legacy of Charles Schulz and Peanuts will live on forever. He will always be remembered as one of the great artistic visionaries of the 20^th Century, along with Walt Disney and Jim Henson.

*Some information from Wikipedia and peanuts.fandom.com.

 

 

The Career of Conan O’Brien

 

Conan O’Brien is 60 years old, so he still has plenty of time ahead of him to accomplish more in show business. He has an impressive resume, although he has weathered some significant challenges. I wanted to write about him since he is an impressive figure in the history of late-night TV, who is #3 on my list of favorites, behind Johnny Carson and David Letterman.

Conaco Productions is a production company was founded by Conan O’Brien in 2001. It produced “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” “The Tonight Show with Conan O’Brien” and “Conan” (TBS). Having ownership of his programs has contributed significantly to Conan’s wealth, which is estimated at $200 million. Other shows produced by Conaco produced included “Andy Barker PI,” “Operating Instructions,” and “Outlaw.”

His dad was a doctor and his mother was a lawyer, so he came from a family that emphasized education. Both of his parents died in December of 2024, a few days apart. They were both in their 90s.

Here are a few key events in the timeline of Conan.

1981 Conan graduates from high school in Brookline, Massachusetts as valedictorian.

1981-85, attends Harvard where he was president of “The Harvard Lampoon,” the college humor magazine. He majored in history and literature.

1985-1987 Conan wrote for “Not Necessarily the News.” Another writer on the show was Greg Daniels, who Conan knew from Harvard. Daniels went on to write for “Parks and Recreation”, and he was the creator/writer for “The Office” and “King of the Hill.”  Around this time, Conan took improvisational classes at “The Groundlings” in Los Angeles.

1987 “Rich Hall Show,” writer

1987-88 “The Wilton North Report,” writer

1987-1991 He wrote for “SNL.”

1991 He worked with Robert Smigel to write a pilot for “Lookwell,” starring Adam West. NBC chairman Brandon Tartikoff liked the show, but it was not picked up as a series. Smigel would end up writing for “Late Night with Conan O’Brien” and “Saturday Night Live.”

1992-1993 he wrote for “The Simpsons”. Two episodes in season 4 (New Kid on the Block, Marge vs. the Monorail), 2 in season 5 (Homer Goes to College, Treehouse of Horror IV).

1993 marked his debut on “Late Night with Conan O’Brien,” replacing David Letterman in the 12:35 am time slot. He stayed at the show until 2009.

2009-2010 “Tonight Show” host. Conan was only host for a short period of time and then Jay Leno was reinstated as “Tonight Show” host. NBC wanted to hand on to Conan and Jay so they made a deal where Conan would eventually replace Leno as “Tonight Show” host. NBC tried putting Jay into a Monday-Friday 10 pm show, but the ratings were poor. An offer was made to Conan to start his show at 12:05 am eastern, following a 30-minute Jay Leno show but Conan declined. This was a poorly handled fiasco for NBC. The whole situation is detailed in the book “The War for Late Night.” This was written by Bill Carter, who also wrote “The Late Shift” which chronicled the period in 1991-93 where it was Leno vs. Letterman to take over for Johnny Carson. Leno got The Tonight Show and Letterman left for CBS.

April 2010 Kicked off a 30-city tour of live performances since he could not do TV shows for a certain period after leaving The Tonight Show.

2010-2021 Conan on TBS.

2019 Conan show on TBS was trimmed back to 30 minutes and the live band was dropped. Conan switched to a more casual wardrobe, often wearing a jean jacket over a button-down shirt.

2018 “Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend” podcast begins. This is released every Monday. This podcast has become very successful, and Conan attracts big name guests.

2019-2023 “Conan without Borders.” This made sense since often the best Conan comedy bits were when he was outside of the studio.

2022 Conan’s podcast and entire Team Coco digital media business were sold to SiriusXM radio for $150 million.

2024 “Conan O’Brien Must Go” on MAX. This is another travel show, but it’s a brilliant concept since Conan is meeting up with people overseas that he has interviewed on his podcast “Conan O’Brien Needs a Fan.” That podcast comes out on Thursdays and features interviews with non-celebrities. It’s kind of like Conan took a cue from Johnny Carson who would sometimes feature non-celebrities on his show, or as he called them, “civilians.”

I have always felt that Conan had a very impressive career even before getting his Late-Night job in 1993. He graduated from Harvard, wrote for “SNL” and “The Simpsons.” Many writers for “The Simpsons” and “SNL” came out of Harvard, which can be a reason for the success and longevity of those programs.

Conan owes a large debt of gratitude to Lorne Michaels, who recognized his talents and saw his potential as a late-night host. Conan had zero experience as a stand-up comic or interviewer when he took the job filling the shoes of David Letterman in 1993. The odds were against him, but he prevailed. He worked in late night TV for 28 years, coming close to the longevity of 2 of his idols, Johnny Carson (30 years) and David Letterman (33 years). Other influences include Bob Hope, Woody Allen, Bob Newhart, Peter Sellers, Sid Caesar and others.

Conan may no longer have a late-night show on TV anymore, but Samsung has a 24/7 channel that has highlights from his TBS show.

Conan has been married to his wife Liza since 2000 and they have 2 children.

*Some information from imdb and Wikipedia.

 

Succession

 

This is another HBO produced hit, joining shows like The Sopranos, Veep, Curb Your Enthusiasm, The Larry Sanders Show, Oz, The Wire, Entourage, etc. HBO has the slogan “It’s not TV, it’s HBO.” This makes sense since the quality of programs put out by HBO is impressive. TV critic David Bianculli wrote a book called “The Platinum Age of Television.” He mentioned many of the 21^st century HBO shows in his book since their productions are outstanding.

This aired from 2018-2023, with 39 episodes. The show was created by Jesse Armstrong, who wrote 16 of the episodes. He was nominated for an Oscar in 2010 for the film “In the Loop.” 8 Primetime Emmys were won for “Succession.”

The imdb rating is 8.8, which is very high. The Godfather is 9.2, The Sopranos is 9.2, The Wire is 9.3, Breaking Bad is 9.5, Mad Men is 8.7.

The show is about the Roy family, a very wealthy family who owns the world’s largest media company. The drama arises when the elderly man who founded the company has serious health issues, and it needs to be decided who will take over the company. Brian Cox plays Logan Roy, the patriarch of the family. His kids are played by Kieran Culkin, Alan Ruck, Jeremy Strong and Sarah Snook. These characters have no redeeming qualities. They are spoiled brats who have zero integrity. There is a lot of backstabbing, lying and bickering in this show. You never know who is being sincere when they say something. The members of the Roy family think nothing of double crossing one another.  But, that makes it entertaining. People have drawn parallels between the Roy family and Rupert Murdoch’s (founder of Fox News) family. The show is heavily influenced by King Lear by Shakespeare.

The actors, sets and costumes are all top notch. The writing staff is incredible and the scripts are highly creative. It’s easy to get sucked into this show. It's just fascinating and so well done. 

Some information from imdb.com. 

 

Book Review: Carson the Magnificent by Bill Zehme and Mike Thomas

 

This Johnny Carson biography has been long awaited. It was released on election day, November 5, 2024. Bill Zehme wrote a good portion of the book, then contracted cancer. He passed away in 2023 at age 64 and his assistant, Mike Thomas, finished the book. Zehme had written books about show biz giants such as Frank Sinatra, Andy Kaufman, Hugh Hefner and Jay Leno.  I expected this book to be longer, especially since Zehme worked on it for many years. The book did a good job of covering the major events in Johnny’s life, from his time growing up in Nebraska, to his various TV shows that he hosted and touched on his retirement years. Many people have questions about Johnny’s 13 retirement years (1992-2005) after The Tonight Show ended. Apparently, he spent a lot of time on his 130 foot yacht, Serengeti. The book mentioned how Johnny and his fourth wife Alex had some challenges, but he did not want to be a guy who got divorced four times.  I would have liked Zehme to go into more detail about Johnny’s different shows, such as Carson’s Cellar, The Johnny Carson Show, Earn Your Vacation, Who Do You Trust and of course The Tonight Show. The Carson biography by his talent coordinator Craig Tennis went into more detail about the behind-the-scenes aspects that went into producing The Tonight Show. The book talked about Johnny’s challenging relationship with his mother and how that led to shape his view of women. This can be linked to the fact that he had four marriages and had problems with infidelity. His drinking got in the way of building strong relationships with women, so did the fact that he was married to his job. But that was common with many men of his generation. In his 60 Minutes interview with Mike Wallace, Johnny discussed how he did not handle alcohol well.  The book talked about his four wives, how he met them, the differences between them, and factors that led to the marriages ending. The end of Johnny’s first marriage was devastating to him, probably since they had three kids together, and she was with him through the early days of his career. Some may think that Johnny was always rich and famous, but he was not. He had to pay his dues like anyone else. He had shows that were not successful. I wish the book would have talked more about people like Ed McMahon, Doc Severinsen, Fred de Cordova, Peter Lassally, etc. This book did not delve into the psychological analysis of Johnny to the degree that other books did, especially the book by his lawyer Henry Bushkin. The book had some email quotes from Johnny’s son which I don’t think we have seen before. It's not a revelation that Johnny was not a great father or husband, but his son realizes that he did the best he could under the circumstances.  It would be nice to get a definitive biography of Johnny that went into extensive detail about every aspect of his life, but it remains to be seen whether that will happen.

There have been many biographies of Johnny Carson over the years. Some others that I’d recommend include:

Johnny Carson by Henry Bushkin

King of the Night by Laurence Leamer

And Now…Here’s Johnny! By Nora Ephron

Johnny Tonight by Craig Tennis

Carson: The Unauthorized Biography by Paul Corkery

So, there are many ways to learn about the fascinating life of a supremely talented but complicated man who many view as the undisputed king of late-night TV.

People who crave a deep dive into the life of Johnny Carson and his Tonight Show should check out Mark Malkoff’s Carson Podcast. This podcast was produced from 2014-2022 and totaled almost 400 episodes. Many prominent celebrities were interviewed who appeared on Johnny’s show. In addition, several people who were crew members on Johnny’s show discuss what it was like behind-the-scenes on such an iconic program.

 

 

HBO's The Newsroom Was Another Hit for Aaron Sorkin

 

The Newsroom aired from 2012-2014 on HBO, 25 episodes (all are now on MAX).

The creator/primary writer was Aaron Sorkin (Syracuse University, Bachelor of Fine Arts in theater).

Writer of…The West Wing, A Few Good Men, Moneyball, The Social Network, Sports Night, Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip, The American President, etc. He also adapted “To Kill a Mockingbird” into a stage production where Jeff Daniels played the lead role of Atticus Finch.

He’s known for writing rapid fire dialogue, and “walk and talk” scenes that feature tracking shots that lead characters down a hallway as they converse.

He has had challenges in his personal life. He was a chain smoker but quit after having a stroke. He has battled substance abuse issues.

He has won one Oscar (The Social Network), three Golden Globes and six primetime Emmys.  He has been nominated 174 times for various awards and has had 104 wins.

The Newsroom starred Jeff Daniels who played Will McAvoy, a cable news anchor in New York. Other stars included Emily Mortimer, John Gallagher Jr, Allison Pill, Dev Patel, Olivia Munn, Sam Waterston, Marcia Gay Harden and Jane Fonda.

This show did a fantastic job of demonstrating the intensity, manic energy and pressure-cooker atmosphere that comes with working in TV news. In news coverage, there is the balance between being first and being right. Multiple sources must be confirmed before putting a story on the air. This show was excellent since it was a time capsule of the period in which it took place. Real stories were covered in this show, such as the BP oil spill, the killing of Osama Bin Laden, and the explosion at the Boston Marathon. The character development is excellent, and I wish there would have been more episodes.

Jeff Daniels won a leading actor Emmy Award for his role in 2014.

The lobby and exterior shots depicting ACN (Atlantis Cable News), the fictional cable network, are New York’s Bank of America tower.

The interiors were shot at Sunset Gower Studios in Hollywood.

Sorkin learned about the world of cable TV news by observing Fox News, MSNBC, and CNN newsrooms first-hand as a fly on the wall.

The role of Mackenzie McHale (the new executive producer) was offered to Marisa Tomei but the negotiations fell through.

Jane Fonda had a memorable role as Leona Lansing, the CEO of the media conglomerate that owns the ACN cable channel. This is not unlike her third husband, CNN Chairman Ted Turner.

Surprisingly, the reviews for season one were mixed. Seasons two and three received better critical acclaim.

“Newsroom” stars Jeff Daniels and Sam Waterston starred together in the TV mini-series “Godless”.

The show aired on the Canadian, European and Indian versions of HBO, as well as on other networks around the world.

The show has an imdb rating of 8.6 out of 10. That is very high. For comparison, The Godfather is 9.2, Schindler’s List is 9.0 and Seinfeld is 8.9. The West Wing, another Sorkin creation, is 8.9.

*Some information from imdb.com and Wikipedia.

     

Everybody’s in L.A. with John Mulaney Was Unusual Yet Refreshing

 

This was a different type of show that aired live via Netflix for six consecutive nights in May of 2024. It had the feel of a late-night show, even though it was on at 7:00 pm pacific/10:00 pm eastern time. The host was comedian John Mulaney (SNL writer from 2008-2022, and voice actor on animated show “Big Mouth”). The announcer/sidekick was comedic actor Richard Kind (best known for Mad About You and various animated projects). I did not like this show at first, but it grew on me. This was a show that took chances and did something different. We don’t see that enough on today’s TV shows. The title refers to the fact that the week it aired was the week of the “Netflix is a Joke” comedy festival. Therefore, at that point it seemed like everyone, especially in the world of comedy, was in L.A. at the same time. The theme song was “To Live and Die in L.A.” by the group Wang Chung (1985). That song has probably seen a resurgence in popularity since this program aired. It was a mix of serious topics with comedians chiming in with their thoughts too. Each show had a serious topic that is of interest to those in L.A., such as earthquakes, coyotes, palm trees or the future of Los Angeles. Each show featured a highly educated expert on the topic, joined by funny people who provided comic relief. Comedians that appeared on the show included: David Letterman (note: Mulaney appeared on Letterman’s Netflix show “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction”), Nikki Glaser, Bill Hader, Cedric the Entertainer, George Wallace, Sarah Silverman and more. Musical guests appeared on the show such as: Los Lobos, Weezer, Beck and St. Vincent. The shows had remote segments where they would check in on what was going on in the L.A. area with everyday residents. A taped segment had several comedians looking at a home for sale in Los Angeles and making humorous observations. The show felt disjointed at times, but that is the nature of live shows, which can be refreshing. Sometimes it felt like the host and guests were flying by the seat of their pants. With a live show, they were able to take phone calls, which was a nice touch. One segment had them sending two people in limos on a hunt around L.A. looking for Red Hot Chili Peppers member “Flea.” I was looking at Reddit comments regarding this show and someone said this… “Netflix, don’t let John leave the building without giving him a weekly talk show.” Mulaney would make a great late night talk show host, with his quirky sense of humor. His show was a bit like Conan’s in the NBC days, with that crazy, unpredictable vibe. Someone on Reddit commented that he needs to be the new Daily Show host. He did well with the interviews too, considering many people were on the set at the same time. One of the “stars” of the show was Saymo, a delivery robot, which is apparently a common sight around L.A. It would randomly appear, and people would open its lid to reveal drinks. An article said that the set for this show was patterned after Johnny Carson’s Malibu home. USA Today called the show “So weird, but also wonderful.” The review said…” It does not make sense. It does not follow regular formats. It is so strange. And yet it is also pretty funny.” Who knows what the numbers were for this show, but hopefully we will see more.

My Next Guest Needs No Introduction

 

When Johnny Carson retired from The Tonight Show in 1992, people wondered what his next project would be. Besides brief appearances with David Letterman, a Kennedy Center Honors Award and a Bob Hope special, he disappeared. Johnny passed away 13 years later, in 2005. When David Letterman retired from his CBS Late Show in 2015, people thought that Letterman would pull the same disappearing act as his idol, Carson. Thankfully, that did not happen, and David Letterman has kept active with various projects. He is still a co-owner of the Rahal-Letterman-Lanigan Indy racing team. Since growing up in Indianapolis, he has been a die-hard auto racing fan. He appeared at the “Netflix is a Joke” Comedy Festival in Los Angeles. He makes regular appearances on his official You Tube page, being interviewed by longtime producers Barbara Gaines and Mary Barclay. Plus, he has released several seasons of his Netflix show “My Next Guest Needs No Introduction.” Since 2018, Letterman has released 5 seasons and 28 episodes. The tagline for the show is “His beard is big. His guests are bigger.” The show has been nominated for a primetime Emmy five times. Its theme song was written and performed by Letterman’s longtime band leader, Paul Shaffer.  This show demonstrates Letterman’s top notch interviewing skills. Even if the viewer is not interested in a specific guest, Letterman makes it fascinating.

His two most recent guests were Miley Cyrus and Charles Barkley. At age 77, David Letterman is no spring chicken. People have suggested that he return to daily TV, or even have a weekly show, perhaps filling in for Jimmy Kimmel, who looks up to Dave like Letterman looked up to Carson. At his stage in life, Dave probably wants a show like he has on Netflix, where he can call the shots and decide how busy he will be. No doubt, he does not need the money. His net worth is a staggering $400 million.

The show is refreshing since Letterman interviews people of all ages and disciplines. It would be easy for him to stick with people only from his age group and talk with nothing but comedians. But he has talked with people much younger than himself who would appeal to a youthful demographic. Examples include: Lizzo, Cardi B, Tiffany Haddish, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Kim Kardashian and Billie Eilish. That is not to say that he has not interviewed more “seasoned” guests, such as: George Clooney, Howard Stern, Robert Downey Jr, Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Jerry Seinfeld. In 2018, Letterman interviewed President Barack Obama for this program. That was his first interview since leaving the White House.

His interview with Miley Cyrus had Dave talking with Miley’s mother and sitting with her as Cyrus performed at the legendary Chateau Marmont Hotel in Los Angeles.

When he talked with NBA great Charles Barkley, Dave joined him on the golf course and Charles showed Dave around the TBS studios where he acts as an NBA analyst. Letterman joined Barkley and his cohorts on TBS to discuss the current state of the NBA. Dave talked with Barkley’s co-hosts on the NBA show, including Shaquille O’Neal.

It’s refreshing since the show is not just Letterman sitting in a studio interviewing a guest for an hour, although he could make that interesting. Each show is partially in studio and partially on location. It is nice to see Letterman in a long form interview format where he does not need to break for commercials every few minutes like he did with his shows on CBS and NBC.

In 2022, Letterman did another project for Netflix, called “That’s My Time with David Letterman.” This show consisted of six episodes, recorded at the “Netflix is a Joke” comedy festival in Los Angeles. Each episode featured a comedian doing a stand-up set with Letterman briefly interviewing them afterwards. In 2023, Disney Plus released a show called “Bono and the Edge: A Sort of Homecoming, with Dave Letterman.” This show had Letterman interviewing the duo from then legendary band U2 in their hometown of Dublin, Ireland. Bono and The Edge performed some of their iconic songs, reimagined.

Without a doubt, Letterman will be remembered as one of the icons of late-night television, like his idol, Johnny Carson. 

*Some information from Wikipedia and imdb. 

A Transitional Season for SNL: 1984-85

Next year, Saturday Night Live marks 50 years on the air. It’s been a springboard for many funny people over the years, such as Chevy Chase, Bill Murray, Adam Sandler, Dana Carvey, David Spade, Will Ferrell, Molly Shannon, Jan Hooks, and many more. It’s an American institution that has stood the test of time. I really enjoyed the 10th season, which was 1984-85. I was in high school at that point and found many other fans of SNL in my classes. This season started on October 6, 1984 and ended on April 13, 1985. A writers’ strike and budget constraints caused it to be an abbreviated season. At this point, Dick Ebersol was in his final season as showrunner. Lorne Michaels took a 5-year break from 1980 to 1985. The cast for 1984-85 included: Martin Short, Billy Crystal, Harry Shearer, Rich Hall, Jim Belushi, Mary Gross, Gary Kroeger, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Pamela Stephenson and Christopher Guest. The opening credit sequence was created by the same person who made the video for “You Might Think” by The Cars. It depicted the cast members as giants among New York City landmarks. The previous season saw the departure of Eddie Murphy, Joe Piscopo, Robin Duke, Brad Hall (husband of Julia Louis-Dreyfus) and Tim Kazurinsky. Christoper Guest became the host of Saturday Night News.

Harry Shearer left mid-season, in January of 1985, due to creative differences. He did not enjoy the experience and atmosphere of working on SNL. He was the co-creator, co-writer and co-star of the 1984 mockumentary This is Spinal Tap. He has provided many voices for The Simpsons, which has been on Fox since 1989. 

Martin Short joined the cast of SCTV later in its run, 1982-83, where he was known for characters like Ed Grimley, defense attorney Nathan Thurm, and songwriter Irving Cohen. His Ed Grimley character had a shock of hair sticking up like Alfalfa from The Little Rascals. His catchphrase was “I must say.” Ed was obsessed with Wheel of Fortune and its host Pat Sajak. Nathan Thurm was a paranoid lawyer who would appear in a 60 Minutes parody on SNL. In that skit, Christopher Guest played the novelty toymaker, Herb Minkman. Irving Cohen was a very old songwriter, and his catchphrase was “Give me a C, a bouncy C.” He would reminisce about the old days of Vaudeville. Jackie Rogers Junior was an odd albino performer who was in a memorable SNL skit where he was a game show host. It was called “Jackie Rogers Junior’s $100,000 Jackpot Wad.” In his autobiography, “I Must Say: My Life as a Humble Comedy Legend,” Short said that he preferred SCTV over SNL, since the former was taped, not live. He liked being able to perfect a sketch and try it many times, but this was not possible on SNL. He was hesitant to join the SNL cast but said yes after hearing that the show had hired Crystal, Shearer and Guest. Those four signed one-year only contracts. 40 years later, Short is still going, after a career with a wide variety of TV and movie projects. He appeared in the films Three Amigos, Father of the Bride, Innerspace, Captain Ron and Mars Attacks. He played the clueless celebrity interviewer Jiminy Glick on Comedy Central from 2001-03 on the show Primetime Glick. In 2016 he had an NBC variety show with SNL alum Maya Rudolph called Maya and Marty. He currently stars in a Hulu series called “Only Murders in the Building” with Steve Martin and Selena Gomez. Martin Short and Steve Martin have a very funny live stage show that has toured the country. For 50 years, Short has been friends with musician and fellow Canadian Paul Shaffer, who was part of the SNL band before he worked as David Letterman’s bandleader. A memorable skit from the 10th season had Short and Harry Shearer playing dim witted synchronized swimmers. The skit was directed by fellow cast member Christopher Guest. Short is 74 years old but still in demand. All this week he is the guest host on ABC's Jimmy Kimmel Live. 

Billy Crystal had appeared in the sitcom “Soap” (1977-81), but SNL allowed him to appear on a sketch show. His character Fernando, had the catch phrase “You look marvelous.” He would also say “It is better to look good than to feel good.” He was based on the actor Fernando Lamas. He did a segment called Fernando’s Hideaway where he would interview celebrities. Episode 15 had him interviewing Mr. T and Hulk Hogan. Fernando became so popular that he had his own song and music video, “You Look Marvelous.” On SNL, Crystal portrayed New York City talk show host Joe Franklin. People outside the New York area probably did not realize that Franklin was a real talk show host, and Crystal was doing a spoof. One Joe Franklin skit had Martin Short playing magician Doug Henning, and one had Short playing singer Jackie Rogers Jr. 

The writers acknowledged that they did not utilize Julia Louis-Dreyfus as much as they should. It didn’t hurt her career since she went on to have success with Seinfeld, The New Adventures of Old Christine and Veep. 

Jim Belushi had the goal of establishing himself as a funny sketch player, but it must have been rough to be in the shadow of his late brother, John Belushi, an SNL legend. Jim starred in the sitcom According to Jim from 2001-2009. 

Rich Hall was a writer-performer on David Letterman’s morning show in 1980. He appeared on the late-night show Fridays from 1980-82. He is the only person to have been a cast member of both Fridays and SNL. He currently splits time between Montana and London. He has become better known overseas than in America. 

After leaving SNL, Christopher Guest became known for his mockumentary films such as Spinal Tap, Best in Show, Waiting for Guffman, A Mighty Wind and more. In SNL, Guest and Crystal played co-workers Willie and Frankie who describe painful situations they bring on themselves. Their catchphrase was “I hate it when that happens.” Guest played a Spanish ventriloquist who appeared in the Joe Franklin Show spoof. 

Mary Gross is the sister of Michael Gross, who played Steven Keaton in Family Ties. On SNL she played Alfalfa from The Little Rascals, and did many impressions, such as Dr. Ruth Westheimer, Pee-Wee Herman and Mary Tyler Moore. 

Pamela Stephenson was born in New Zealand. A Rolling Stone writer called her “A bright spot in a weak season.” She has a doctorate in psychology and has been married to comic Billy Connolly since 1989. 

On SNL, Gary Kroeger impersonated Walter Mondale. He played Donny Osmond in a sketch where Julia Louis-Dreyfus played Marie Osmond. After leaving SNL he appeared in various TV shows and has relocated to his hometown in Iowa. He writes a column for a newspaper and has owned a restaurant. He has appeared in community theater productions.

The musical guests for this season included: The Thompson Twins, Frankie Goes to Hollywood, The Kinks, Billy Squier, Tina Turner, Bryan Adams, The Commodores and more.

I still look back fondly on season 10 and it was my introduction to the comedy of Martin Short. He is my favorite comedic actor. 

 *Some information from imdb and wikipedia.

ABC's Modern Family Has Been a 21st Century Hit

I have always been a fan of situation comedy TV shows. I think the golden age of sitcoms was in the 1980s when NBC had their “Must See TV” lineup. On Thursday nights this included: The Cosby Show, Family Ties, Cheers and Night Court. For the last several years, sitcoms have become rare for the major broadcast networks. Much of prime time is occupied by reality shows like Survivor, Big Brother or The Amazing Race, and the hour-long crime dramas such as CSI, FBI or NCIS. The reality shows are cheaper to produce since the only star to pay big bucks is the host. The crime dramas seem to follow a specific template and they lack creativity in my opinion. Some of the best sitcoms through the years have included: Seinfeld, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, The Bob Newhart Show, The Jeffersons, All in the Family, MASH, Happy Days and Laverne and Shirley. Recently CBS aired the final episode of Young Sheldon, which I thought was well done. That was a spin-off of The Big Bang Theory. So many spin-offs are a disappointment when compared to the original show, but I enjoyed Young Sheldon more than The Big Bang Theory. The E! network airs Modern Family each weeknight, and I feel that it was an excellent show, with a top notch cast and creative storylines. The show has been credited for reviving the sitcom format for the 21st century. This show aired on ABC for an impressive 250 episodes, from 2009 to 2020. The main structure of the show was based around three couples and their adventures. The three couples are diverse, representing a nuclear family, a blended family and a same-sex family. Ed O’Neill and Sofia Vergara played Jay Pritchett and Gloria Delgado-Pritchett. Jay is much older than Gloria, who is from Columbia. Jay owns a company that makes blinds and organizes closets. Jay’s kids are Claire and Mitchell, other key characters in the show. O’Neill is best known for his role as Al Bundy in the Fox sitcom “Married with Children” (1987-1997). Craig T. Nelson (“Coach” and “Young Sheldon”) turned down the role of Jay Pritchett. Julie Bowen and Ty Burrell played Claire and Phil Dunphy. Julie Bowen appeared in 83 episodes of the sitcom “Ed” from 2000 to 2004. Claire works for her father’s company and Phil sells real estate. Jesse Tyler Ferguson and Eric Stonestreet play Mitchell Pritchett and Cameron Tucker. They adopted a baby from Vietnam. Mitchell is a lawyer and Cameron sometimes works as a substitute teacher. Primary kids in the show were Rico Rodriguez as Manny Delgado, Sarah Hyland as Haley Dunphy, Nolan Gould as Luke Dunphy, Ariel Winter as Alex Dunphy and Aubrey Anderson-Emmons as Lily Tucker-Pritchett. Anderson-Emmons won a Screen Actors Guild Award at age 4 in 2011. That made her the youngest winner of that award. On imdb, even Stella the dog, a French Bulldog, gets a credit. Her name is Beatrice and she was in 46 episodes. The co-creator of this show was Steven Levitan. He created the show “Just Shoot Me” (1997-2003). He directed several of the “Modern Family” episodes. The other creator was Christopher Lloyd who was show runner/writer for “Frasier.” The 6 main cast members appeared in all 250 episodes, which is unusual for a show with an ensemble cast. This show has won 22 Emmy Awards over its 11 seasons. Ed O’Neill knew the show would be a winner from the beginning. He felt it would be on for 10 seasons after reading the first script. At first, he was hesitant about signing on to do the show. Creators Levitan and Lloyd set out to create a relationship-driven and heart-warming show so that families could watch together. The show had some similarities to “Cheers” and “Frasier” since it would make viewers laugh and cry. The cast was allowed to improvise to a degree. The casting director saw over 1400 actors for the 10 main characters. The show was designed to be enjoyed by the whole family, so the writers wanted to avoid any racy storylines. Often times, someone in the show will break the fourth wall and look into the camera. Recurring characters were played by Fred Willard, Nathan Lane, Adam DeVine, Elizabeth Banks and Nathan Fillion. “Modern Family” is a mockumentary type of show, similar to “The Office” and “Parks and Recreation.” CBS and NBC turned down the show. The show’s average number of viewers ranged from 6 million to almost 13 million. In the 2010-11 season, “Modern Family” was the #1 scripted show in the 18-49 demographic. From the first season, the show received critical acclaim from Rotten Tomatoes, Entertainment Weekly, Time, Metacritic and others. The series has been successful in syndication in America, plus in other countries, including The United Kingdom, South Africa, Sweden, Israel, India and Canada. *Some information from imdb and Wikipedia.

The Midnight Special

This show was taped at NBC Burbank, down the hall from Johnny Carson. The executive producer was Burt Sugarman. Producers were Dick Ebersol and Stan Harris. It aired as a special in 1972 and started its weekly run in 1973. 90 minutes, 1:00 am to 2:30 am, Friday nights. At that point, stations would sign off after 1 am. Sugarman wanted to attract the 18-33 age bracket audience. There was another reason to have programming after 1:00 am. As of 1971, tobacco ads on network TV were prohibited, so that led to lost revenue that the networks wanted to earn back. Once the time slot became popular, NBC added Tomorrow with Tom Snyder to air Monday through Thursday from 1:00 am to 2:30 am. Wolfman Jack was the announcer and he hosted from 1973-81 for 109 episodes. There was a different guest host each week. The show featured performances by some of the biggest popular music acts of the day. They were taped in front of a live audience. The performers sang live, with no lip-syncing. In 1981 when the show was cancelled, it was replaced by the sketch comedy show SCTV. In 1983, in the dawn of the MTV era, the time slot was taken over by Friday Night Videos. Performers on the show included: Electric Light Orchestra (seven appearances, more than any other band), David Bowie, Tina Turner, The Bee Gees, Paul McCartney, Blondie, Ray Charles, Dolly Parton, Chuck Berry, BB King, Earth, Wind and Fire, Steely Dan, Michael Jackson, Steve Miller Band, The Doobie Brothers, Supertramp, Prince and many more. Comics that appeared included: Steve Martin, David Brenner, Andy Kaufman, Richard Pryor, George Carlin, George Burns, Bill Cosby, Carol Burnett, Richard Belzer, Joan Rivers, Jonathan Winters and more. This show was created by Burt Sugarman, who was a friend of Johnny Carson. In the 6/4/24 episode of Mark Malkoff’s “Inside Late Night” podcast, Sugarman talks about how Johnny promoted the show since he knew it would attract younger viewers to his show. Sugarman and Carson would play tennis together. From 1975 to 1980, Sugarman was married to Carol Wayne, who worked with Johnny Carson as his “Tea Time Lady” in the Art Fern sketches. Since 1989 he has been married to Mary Hart, host of Entertainment Tonight from 1981 to 2011. The You Tube page for this show has lots of fascinating videos. The quality of the performances was top notch, especially for fans of that era’s music. *Some information from imdb and Wikipedia.

Book review: “Johnny Came Lately” by Fred deCordova, 1989

From 1970 until Johnny Carson’s Tonight Show went off the air in 1992, his executive producer was Fred deCordova (1910-2001). Before working for Johnny, Fred already had built an impressive resume in Broadway, TV and film. He worked with stars such as Jack Benny, Fred MacMurray, George Burns, Bob Hope, Bing Crosby, Elvis Presley and many more. He earned a law degree from Harvard. He directed 108 episodes of My Three Sons. Johnny never let him forget that he directed a film called Bedtime for Bonzo (1951) which starred Ronald Reagan and a chimpanzee. Fred talked about what he called “The Five Musketeers.” This included himself, Johnny, Ed, Doc and director Bobby Quinn. He had a chapter on the Joan Rivers controversy when Joan got a Fox late night show to go against Johnny. This caused a rift and Johnny never talked to Joan for the rest of his life. Fred’s book talked about the many guest hosts who filled in for Johnny over the years. Some were great, some, not so much. Fred mentioned the stars that they would love to have on the show, but their response is always…thanks, but no thanks. Those include: Woody Allen, Al Pacino, Robert DeNiro, Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Robert Redford, Jack Nicholson, Paul Newman, Meryl Streep and others. I enjoyed the first half of Fred’s book more than the second half. The first half was largely focused on the day-to-day activities involved in planning The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson. He detailed in-depth information about his schedule planning the show which involved many meetings. Fred said that every day he had lunch at the NBC commissary, known as The Hungry Peacock, with assistant producer, Peter Lassally. He discussed the roles of the segment producers and writers, who are key to the success of the show. The segment producers/talent coordinators find the appropriate guests and interview them to determine what they need to discuss on the show. Certain writers would provide jokes for the monologue, and others provided material for the comedy bits that Johnny did after the first commercial break. If you listen to Tonight Show producer Peter Lassally’s Carson Podcast, he said that he did most of the work and Fred largely was a figurehead who chatted with the guests. True or not, Fred was involved in many meetings and behind-the-scenes details of putting the show together. He also stood just off camera to give Johnny time cues. During the breaks he would talk to Johnny about any issues with the show. He was an advisor on Jay Leno’s Tonight Show after Johnny retired. Fred even played a producer of a late-night show (what a stretch) in Martin Scorsese’s film The King of Comedy (1982). Ironically, Scorsese wanted Johnny for the main role, a late-night talk show host, but he said no and the role went to Jerry Lewis. Fred played himself on HBO’s The Larry Sanders Show in 1995 and 1998. The fictional late-night show profiled on The Larry Sanders Show seemed to be patterned after Johnny’s show. The second half of the book was the autobiography section, where Fred discussed his work in show business. Different people will find different things interesting. Some may not want to read about every detail of what went into planning Johnny’s show. I found that to be endlessly fascinating. But in the second half of the book, I did not find it interesting to hear some of Fred’s “Old Hollywood” stories about the likes of Ronald Coleman, David Selznick, Sam Goldwyn, Jack Warner, Sam Spiegel, Harry Richman, Tallulah Bankhead and the like. But those people all played important roles in the life of Fred, and an autobiography will discuss prominent people. It’s just that for someone my age, those people were way before my time. No book is 100% perfect, and for those who are hardcore fans of Johnny and his show, this book is recommended, especially the first half. Another great book about the details of putting together Johnny’s show is “Johnny Tonight” by Craig Tennis. The author had the inside scoop since he worked on Johnny’s show for several years as a segment producer.