About
"If you are an original and if you can write, you can't stop it. A real writer always writes. And it's the loneliest and the toughest."
In his four-and-a-half-hour interview, Mel Shavelson (1917-2007) talks about starting out as a press agent with Milt Josefsberg in 1938 and moving to Los Angeles the following year, with Mr. Josefsberg, to write for the radio show The Pepsodent Bob Hope Show. He discusses writing for the first commercial television program ever broadcast west of the Mississippi, for Paramount's experimental station W6XYZ (which became KTLA), in 1947. Shavelson discusses creating Make Room for Daddy and the critically acclaimed series My World... and Welcome to It. He reminisces about writing for several Academy Awards broadcasts and talks about the Writers Guild of America, for which he served as president. He also speaks about writing and directing the television movies The Legend of Valentino, The Great Houdini, and Ike: The War Years. Karen Herman conducted the interview on April 6, 1999 in Los Angeles, CA.
Highlights
Mel Shavelson on writing The Danny Thomas Show
Mel Shavelson on creating My World ... and Welcome to It
Mel Shavelson on his TV movie The Great Houdini
Mel Shavelson on working with Lucille Ball on the feature film Yours, Mine and Ours
Mel Shavelson on advice to aspiring writers
Full Interview
Chapter 1
On his early life and influences; on being part of a minstrel show in high school, and on racial breakthroughs in television; on movies he watched growing up
On writing around NBC Standards and Practices for Bob Hope; on the kind of writing he did when he was younger; on getting into comedy writing; on getting a job writing jokes for newspaper columns in 1937
Chapter 2
On working with Milt Josefsberg; on how he came to be a writer for Bob Hope; on writing for Bob Hope's radio show; on the format of Bob Hope's radio show
On writing the various segments of Bob Hope's radio show; on working with Judy Garland; on how Bob Hope tested his material for his radio show and on Hope's comedic style
On Bob Hope acting in movies and doing his radio show for the soldiers during World War II; on Bob Hope's travels around the world entertaining soldiers during World War II; on Bob Hope bringing his radio show to vaudeville; on Hope's celebrity
Chapter 3
On how Bob Hope treated his writers and on what he learned as a writer for Hope; on Bob Hope doing jokes about Senator Joseph McCarthy; on censorship on Bob Hope's radio show
On Bob Hope entertaining the troops in Vietnam and on the politics of the time; on the early development of television and color television; on writing an early experimental broadcast with Bob Hope
On finding the topics for Bob Hope's jokes and on Hope's "jokes vault"; on leaving Bob Hope's radio show
Chapter 4
On writing feature films for Bob Hope; on how he came to write for Danny Thomas; on writing The Danny Thomas Show; on helping to shape The Danny Thomas Show
On how Danny Thomas took to television on The Danny Thomas Show; on the writing process of The Danny Thomas Show; on the writers of the show; on the network relationship with The Danny Thomas Show
Chapter 5
On his experience with the Hollywood Blacklist; on the societal impact of television; on how the television industry has changed since he started; on directing the Bob Hope feature film "The Seven Little Foys"
On his style of directing; on writing material for Academy Awards telecasts
Chapter 6
On the relationship between movies studios and networks in the '50s; on the growth of television; on a directors strike
On creating My World ... and Welcome to It
Chapter 7
On his affiliation with the WGA; on writers strikes
On his duties as president of the WGA; on serving three terms as president of the WGA; on the WGA Foundation; on the WGA's relationship with other entertainment guilds and on the writing he did for Ike: The War Years
Chapter 8
On his work on the miniseries Ike: The War Years; on his TV movie The Great Houdini
On directing features, including "Houseboat"; on advice to aspiring writers: on how he'd like to be remembered
Chapter 9
On some of the people he worked with in his career including Milt Josefsberg, Sy Rose, Al Schwartz, Sheldon Leonard, Lucille Ball, and Jack Rose; on his family
Shows
Academy Awards, The
Mel Shavelson on writing material for the Academy Awards telecasts hosted by Bob Hope
Danny Thomas Show, The aka Make Room for Daddy
Mel Shavelson on writing The Danny Thomas Show
Mel Shavelson on helping to shape The Danny Thomas Show
Mel Shavelson on how Danny Thomas took to television on The Danny Thomas Show
Mel Shavelson on the writing process of The Danny Thomas Show and on the writers of the show
Mel Shavelson on the network relationship with The Danny Thomas Show
Great Houdini, The
Mel Shavelson on his TV movie The Great Houdini
Ike: The War Years
Mel Shavelson on the writing he did for Ike: The War Years
Mel Shavelson on his work on the miniseries Ike: The War Years
My World ... and Welcome to it
Mel Shavelson on creating My World ... and Welcome to It
Topics
Advice
Mel Shavelson on advice to aspiring writers
Censorship / Standards & Practices
Mel Shavelson on writing around NBC Standards and Practices for Bob Hope
Mel Shavelson on censorship on Bob Hope's radio show
Historic Events and Social Change
Mel Shavelson on being part of a minstrel show in high school and on racial breakthroughs in television
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope entertaining the troops in Vietnam, and on the politics of the time
Hollywood Blacklist
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope doing jokes about Senator Joseph McCarthy
Mel Shavelson on his experience with the Hollywood Blacklist and on the societal impact of television
Industry Crossroads
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope doing jokes about Senator Joseph McCarthy
Mel Shavelson on his experience with the Hollywood Blacklist and on the societal impact of television
Mel Shavelson on a directors strike
Mel Shavelson on writers strikes
Industry Strikes
Mel Shavelson on a directors strike
Mel Shavelson on writers strikes
Representation on Television
Mel Shavelson on being part of a minstrel show in high school and on racial breakthroughs in television
Technological Innovation
Mel Shavelson on the early development of television, and of color television, and on writing an early experimental broadcast with Bob Hope
Television Industry
Mel Shavelson on writing around NBC Standards and Practices for Bob Hope
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope doing jokes about Senator Joseph McCarthy
Mel Shavelson on the early development of television, and of color television, and on writing an early experimental broadcast with Bob Hope
Mel Shavelson on his experience with the Hollywood Blacklist and on the societal impact of television
Mel Shavelson on how the television industry has changed since he started
Mel Shavelson on the growth of television
Mel Shavelson on a directors strike
Mel Shavelson on writers strikes
Mel Shavelson on advice to aspiring writers
Underrepresented Voices
Mel Shavelson on being part of a minstrel show in high school and on racial breakthroughs in television
Vietnam War
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope entertaining the troops in Vietnam, and on the politics of the time
War
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope's travels around the world entertaining soldiers during World War II
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope's travels around the world entertaining soldiers during World War II
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope entertaining the troops in Vietnam, and on the politics of the time
World War II
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope's travels around the world entertaining soldiers during World War II
Professions
Directors
Mel Shavelson on his style of directing
Writers
Mel Shavelson on how Bob Hope treated his writers and on what he learned as a writer for Hope
Mel Shavelson on the writing process of The Danny Thomas Show and on the writers of the show
Mel Shavelson on advice to aspiring writers
Genres
Awards Shows
Mel Shavelson on writing material for the Academy Awards telecasts hosted by Bob Hope
Comedy Series
Mel Shavelson on writing around NBC Standards and Practices for Bob Hope
Mel Shavelson on writing The Danny Thomas Show
Mel Shavelson on creating My World ... and Welcome to It
TV Movies/Miniseries/Dramatic Specials
Mel Shavelson on his work on the miniseries Ike: The War Years
Mel Shavelson on his TV movie The Great Houdini
People
Lucille Ball
Mel Shavelson on working with Lucille Ball on the feature film Yours, Mine and Ours
Judy Garland
Mel Shavelson on writing the various segments of Bob Hope's radio show and on working with Judy Garland
Bob Hope
Mel Shavelson on writing around NBC Standards and Practices for Bob Hope
Mel Shavelson on working with Milt Josefsberg; on how he came to be a writer for Bob Hope
Mel Shavelson on writing for Bob Hope's radio show
Mel Shavelson on the format of Bob Hope's radio show and the process of getting the show on
Mel Shavelson on writing the various segments of Bob Hope's radio show and on working with Judy Garland
Mel Shavelson on how Bob Hope tested his material for his radio show and on Hope's comedic style
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope acting in movies and doing his radio show for soldiers during World War II
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope's travels around the world entertaining soldiers during World War II
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope bringing his radio show to vaudeville and on Hope's celebrity
Mel Shavelson on how Bob Hope treated his writers and on what he learned as a writer for Hope
Mel Shavelson on finding the topics for Bob Hope's jokes and on Hope's "jokes vault"
Mel Shavelson on leaving Bob Hope's radio show
Mel Shavelson on the early development of television and color television and on writing an early experimental broadcast with Bob Hope
Mel Shavelson on writing feature films for Bob Hope and how he came to write for Danny Thomas
Mel Shavelson on directing the Bob Hope feature film "The Seven Little Foys"
Mel Shavelson on writing material for the Academy Awards telecasts hosted by Bob Hope
Milt Josefsberg
Mel Shavelson on working with Milt Josefsberg; on how he came to be a writer for Bob Hope
Joseph McCarthy
Mel Shavelson on Bob Hope doing jokes about Senator Joseph McCarthy
Danny Thomas
Mel Shavelson on writing feature films for Bob Hope and how he came to write for Danny Thomas
Mel Shavelson on how Danny Thomas took to television on The Danny Thomas Show