Ann Marcus

In her nearly four-hour Archive interview, Ann Marcus (1921-2014) talks about her early interest in writing, which led her to become a "copy boy" at "The New York Daily News" and later a reporter/researcher at "Life" magazine. She describes her early, unsuccessful attempts at being an actress and her and her husband's determination to make it in Los Angeles. She recounts her earliest television-writing jobs on The Hathaways, Camp Runamuck, and Please Don't Eat the Daisies. She discusses breaking into soap opera-writing with Peyton Place and Love is a Many Splendored Thing. She recalls the syndicated serial The Life and Times of Eddie Roberts, which she co-created and co-executive-produced with her husband, Ellis Marcus. Marcus then discusses working with Norman Lear on the groundbreaking soap opera satire Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman and the less successful All That Glitters. She speaks of how the television industry has changed for writers and comments on ageism she has encountered in more recent years. She also outlines her time writing for Knot's Landing, Falcon Crest and General Hospital. Karen Herman conducted the interview on November 16, 2001 at Ann Marcus' home in Sherman Oaks, CA.