Alan J. Levi

On growing up in St. Louis, MI, his family, his father’s various businesses, and traits he inherited from his parents; on his early interests in photography and electronics; on getting his first camera from his father; on going to the movies and watching television with friends; on doing stop motion photography and making his first comedy, Keep Your Spirits High; on knowing he wanted to make movies after watching the film Good News; on the movies he made before college, including On Leave for Love 

On the production of Keep Your Spirits High and On Leave for Love; on his first production company, Petite Productions, and being featured in Parade magazine while recovering from shoulder surgery; on writing letters to Dick Powell and Bing Crosby; on Dick Powell inviting him to Paramount to shadow television professionals; on studying electrical engineering at Northwestern, helping build the television station WNUR, and teaching TV directing there; on working as a lighting director at WTTW 

On joining the army after graduating college; on working as a producer/director at a local TV station in St. Louis; on moving to Los Angeles in 1960 and meeting with Dick Powell; on the various people Dick Powell has mentored; on getting his first job as assistant producer on the television version of National Velvet; on working on the television adaptation of Father of the Bride; on working on the pilot of Buttons and her Beaus starring Linda Evans and Jim Davis; on getting into sports programming, including with ABC’s Wide World of Sports and the 1968 and 1972 Olympics  

On working with George Schlatter Productions, including on Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In, Burlesque Is Alive and Living in Downtown Burbank, Arnold’s Closet Revue, Letters to Laugh-In, and various specials; on preferring live audiences over canned laughter; on switching from filming in black-and-white to color; on directing ABC’s Wide World of Entertainment “Salute to Israel–25” TV special, including visiting the Western Wall and working with Isaac Stern, Pablo Casals, and Rudolf Nureyev

On his contract with Universal Television; on helping Leslie Stevens and Bob Seidenglanz form Compact Video; on directing The Invisible Man and working with Harve Bennett; on directing the pilot for Gemini Man; on the terms of his contract with Universal; on being a guest director on Miami Vice

On the special effects used in the Universal shows in the 1970s; on working with Image Transform for special effects in commercials; on directing The Bionic Woman and a typical production week on the show; on working with his crew, including assistant directors, the editors, and the composer 

On working with Lee Majors on The Bionic Woman and The Six Million Dollar Man; on working with Sandra Bullock as the new “Bionic Woman” in Bionic Showdown; on working with Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno on The Incredible Hulk television series and the show's two pilot episodes; on getting involved in the pilot for Battlestar Galactica, the complexities of directing the pilot, and how expensive it was 

On working with producer John Dykstra on the special effects for Battlestar Galactica; on shooting on the bridge set of the pilot; on his parents visiting him on set; on the pilot’s theatrical release and the legacy of the show; on the cost of special effects on JAG 

On directing the TV movie The Legend of the Golden Gun; on the nuances of directing TV movies and miniseries; on how casting has changed throughout his career; on handling actors who don’t meet expectations, including on Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman; on how the lead actor sets the tone

On working with musicians as guest stars, including Johnny Cash and Willie Nelson; on working with Donald P. Bellisario on Magnum, P.I. and Airwolf; on producing and directing Airwolf and working with Jan-Michael Vincent on the show; on how dangerous the Airwolf set could be

On directing Frank Sinatra on Magnum, P.I.; on directing Cicely Tyson on B.L. Stryker; on working with Burt Reynolds on B.L. Stryker and becoming good friends with him (Ed. note: Mr. Levi would like to correct that in his story about Cicely Tyson, she was in a scene with Burt Reynolds, not Tom)

On directing Quantum Leap; on producing and directing Columbo; on working with Peter Falk; on casting his wife, Peter Falk’s wife, and Dabney Coleman together for an episode of Columbo

On how he likes to use the camera for mysteries; on directing the “Death and Taxes” episode of Magnum, P.I., on directing the TV movie Without Warning: Terror in the Towers on the 1993 attack on the World Trade Center

On Peter Falk's false eye moving while filming the Columbo episode "Columbo: Uneasy Lies the Crown"; on working with George Clooney in Without Warning: Terror in the Towers; on directing the “Men in Pink” episode of Hercules: The Legendary Journey and filming in New Zealand; on directing the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode “Sleeper"; on directing an episode of ER and working with Noah Wyle

On filming on an active aircraft carrier on JAG; on directing and editing a pilot written by David Johnson called Supernova; on working on a short film titled Take my Hand written by Eileen Grubba

On what he loves about directing; on preferring the pace of working in television compared to film; on building VidiFilm and how it’s been applied in different industries; on how technological changes have improved production and post-production

On what he enjoys about teaching; on his first mentee being Dick Powell’s son, Richard Powell; on advice to aspiring directors; on the value of oral history interviews; on his proudest career achievement and regrets; on how he would like to be remembered