Hugh Wilson

In his two-and-a-half-hour interview, Hugh Wilson (1943-2018) talks about his early years working for Armstrong Industries, which eventually led him to being a gopher for MTM Productions. He speaks of writing scripts for The Bob Newhart Show and The Tony Randall Show, and pitching WKRP in Cincinnati to CBS with Grant Tinker. He details writing and producing WKRP in Cincinnati, and speaks of the cast, several classic episodes, the atmosphere in the writers' room, and the eventual cancellation of the show. Wilson outlines the creation and production of Frank's Place, for which he won an Emmy award for the episode "The Bridge." He recounts creating the short-lived series Easy Street and The Famous Teddy Z, as well as his career as a feature film director with such movies as Police Academy, First Wives Club, and Guarding Tess. He concludes by discussing his mentors, giving advice to aspiring writers and directors, and talking about how he'd like to be remembered. Adrienne Faillace conducted the interview in a joint venture with the Writers Guild Foundation on November 16, 2015 in Los Angeles, CA.