Norman Lear

In his five-hour interview, Norman Lear (1922-2023) speaks about his early work in publicity and his move to Los Angeles, where he teamed up with comedy writer Ed Simmons. He recounts how he broke into the business by finagling Danny Thomas' phone number from his office and pitching a comedy routine idea to him personally. He enumerates his continued television writing jobs for such stars as Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis on television's The Colgate Comedy Hour. He fondly recalls writing for The Martha Raye Show, which he also directed, and describes how the show ran afoul with its ad agency and was canceled. He outlines the creation of his own production company, with producing partner Bud Yorkin, and his work on the Andy Williams specials and The George Gobel Show. Regarding All in the Family, he discusses the creation of the show (based on a British series but inspired by his own family), the struggles to get it picked up by a network, and the show's impact. He discusses his collaboration with Carroll O'Connor on the iconic Archie Bunker and candidly comments: "When Carroll O'Connor realized he had to embrace the script, not without some of the changes he suggested but without the wholesale changes he would insist upon; that when he finally accepted it and slipped into the character, none of us could write Archie Bunker the way it flew out of him— in his understanding of the character, and the idiom, the language, the malapropos. It was worth all of the aggravation to get to that moment. I'd wait for that moment with awe." He outlines the conception and casting of the numerous successful series he subsequently launched, including Sanford and Son, Maude, Good Times, The Jeffersons, One Day at a Time, Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, and Fernwood 2-Night. Lastly, he comments on series he refers to as the "misses and near misses." Morrie Gelman conducted the interview on February 26, 1998 in Brentwood, CA.