Rita Lakin

In her two-hour interview, Rita Lakin (1930-2023) talks about her early life, as well as growing up during World War II. She describes her first television-writing job for Dr. Kildare, on an episode that featured Ron Howard and was directed by Sydney Pollack. She recalls writing several episodes of various series including Bob Hope Presents Chrysler Theatre, Daniel Boone, and Peyton Place, where she was close to producer Paul Monash, and began to learn about production. She recounts being head writer for the daytime serial The Doctors, and writing several made-for-television movies including Women in Chains, Torn Between Two Lovers, and A Summer Without Boys. She details her experience as the first female showrunner - for the nighttime serial Flamingo Road. Lakin discusses writing a groundbreaking episode of Medical Center, which was the first television show to feature a transsexual storyline. She speaks of writing for several series produced by Aaron Spelling, including The Mod Squad, Dynasty, and Nightingales, a short-lived series which marked the end of her television-writing career. Adrienne Faillace conducted the interview in a joint venture with the Writers Guild Foundation on May 11, 2017 in San Rafael, CA.