About
"'The Cosby Show' changed the face of NBC. 'Cosby' leading off the night, 'Family Ties,' 'Cheers,' 'Night Court' behind it, with 'L.A. Law' at ten o'clock. Thursday night became a night of bests for NBC - the finest comedy and drama that we had as a network. Thursday became the destination for the best television had to offer."
In his two-hour-and-forty-five-minute interview, Warren Littlefield discusses his early life and his big break working for Warner Bros. Television. He recalls his early days at NBC working under the legendary Brandon Tartikoff, and their attempts to get NBC out of third place with "sophisticated adult" programming like Cheers. He discusses the break-through on Thursday nights with The Cosby Show, which would anchor what became one of the most famous line-ups in television history: The Cosby Show, Family Ties, Cheers, Night Court, and L.A. Law. He also shares the inception of the mega-hit, The Golden Girls, on Saturday nights. Littlefield recounts his efforts to maintain the powerhouse line-up while dealing with cast departures from Cheers and Brandon Tartikoff's exit from NBC. He talks about being named president of NBC Entertainment and rebuilding NBC's Thursday night with Friends, Seinfeld, Frasier, and ER. He speaks of the challenge of Johnny Carson announcing his retirement from The Tonight Show and his desperate efforts to keep both Jay Leno and David Letterman at the network. Finally, he discusses leaving NBC, his later efforts as a producer, and what he sees as the future of television. Dan Harrison conducted the interview on December 12, 2011 in Burbank, CA.
Highlights
Warren Littlefield on replacing Shelley Long as "Diane" with Kirstie Alley as "Rebecca" on Cheers
Warren Littlefield on the creation of The Golden Girls
Warren Littlefield on replacing Nicholas Colasanto ("Coach" on Cheers) with Woody Harrelson
Warren Littlefield on General Electric acquiring NBC in 1986
Warren Littlefield on "Must-See-TV"
Full Interview
Chapter 1
On his early life and influences; on working for Warner Brothers Television; on how he came to work for NBC
On becoming a Vice President at NBC; on Hill Street Blues and The Cosby Show
On Family Ties and Cheers
On dealing with cast departures from Cheers; on the legacy of Cheers and The Cosby Show
Chapter 2
On The Cosby Show; on A Different Word; on The Golden Girls
On the appeal of The Golden Girls; on General Electric acquiring NBC in 1986; on Bob Wright
On NBC's transition from the Tartikoff era to the Littlefield era; on Frasier
On The Tonight Show' s transition from host Johnny Carson to Jay Leno; on the development of Seinfeld
Chapter 3
On the development of Seinfeld and Frasier; on "Must-See-TV"
On the development of Mad About You, Friends, and ER
On Law & Order; on leaving NBC and his legacy there; on then-current projects and advice to network programmers
Shows
Barney Miller
Warren Littlefield on Hill Street Blues starting out as "an hour-long Barney Miller"
Cheers
Warren Littlefield on the state of NBC when he started at the network
Warren Littlefield on Cheers becoming a hit series
Warren Littlefield on the development of Cheers
Warren Littlefield on replacing Nicholas Colasanto ("Coach" on Cheers) with Woody Harrelson
Warren Littlefield on replacing Shelley Long as "Diane" with Kirstie Alley as "Rebecca" on Cheers
Warren Littlefield on the legacy of Cheers
Warren Littlefield on NBC's transition from the Tartikoff era to the Littlefield era, which coincided with the end of Cheers and the beginning of Seinfeld
Cosby Show, The
Warren Littlefield on The Cosby Show
Warren Littlefield on The Cosby Show anchoring NBC's Thursday night line-up
Warren Littlefield on the legacy of The Cosby Show
Warren Littlefield on The Cosby Show's collaborative team
Warren Littlefield on NBC's relationship with Bill Cosby
Warren Littlefield on ending The Cosby Show
Different World, A
Warren Littlefield on the The Cosby Show spin-off A Different World
ER
Warren Littlefield on the development of ER
Family Ties
Warren Littlefield on Family Ties
Frasier
Warren Littlefield on the development and success of Frasier
Warren Littlefield on moving Frasier to Tuesday night
Friends
Warren Littlefield on the development of Friends
Golden Girls, The
Warren Littlefield on the creation of The Golden Girls
Warren Littlefield on the appeal of The Golden Girls
Hill Street Blues
Warren Littlefield on the state of NBC when he started at the network
Warren Littlefield on Hill Street Blues starting out as "an hour-long Barney Miller"
Homicide: Life on the Street
Warren Littlefield on becoming President of NBC Entertainment and his approach to dramas
Law & Order
Warren Littlefield on the development of Law & Order
Mad About You
Warren Littlefield on the development of Mad About You
Seinfeld
Warren Littlefield on NBC's transition from the Tartikoff era to the Littlefield era, which coincided with the end of Cheers and the beginning of Seinfeld
Warren Littlefield on the development of Seinfeld
Warren Littlefield on the development of Seinfeld
Warren Littlefield on the nurturing of Seinfeld
Warren Littlefield on keeping Seinfeld on the air
Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, The
Warren Littlefield on The Tonight Show's transition from host Johnny Carson to Jay Leno
Tonight Show with Jay Leno, The
Warren Littlefield on The Tonight Show's transition from host Johnny Carson to Jay Leno
Will & Grace
Warren Littlefield on the development of Will & Grace
Topics
Characters & Catchphrases
Warren Littlefield on replacing Nicholas Colasanto as "Coach" with Woody Harrelson on Cheers
Warren Littlefield on replacing Shelly Long as "Diane" with Kirstie Alley as "Rebecca" on Cheers
Media Consolidation
Warren Littlefield on General Electric acquiring NBC in 1986
Pop Culture
Warren Littlefield on replacing Nicholas Colasanto as "Coach" with Woody Harrelson on Cheers
Warren Littlefield on replacing Shelly Long as "Diane" with Kirstie Alley as "Rebecca" on Cheers
Television Industry
Warren Littlefield on General Electric acquiring NBC in 1986
Professions
Executives
Warren Littlefield on becoming President of NBC Entertainment
Warren Littlefield on advice to network programmers
Television Executive
Warren Littlefield on becoming President of NBC Entertainment
Warren Littlefield on advice to network programmers
Genres
Comedy Series
Warren Littlefield on Cheers
Warren Littlefield on Family Ties
Warren Littlefield on The Cosby Show
Warren Littlefield on The Cosby Show
Warren Littlefield on the development and success of Frasier
Warren Littlefield on Seinfeld
Warren Littlefield on Friends
Drama Series
Warren Littlefield on ER
People
Kirstie Alley
Warren Littlefield on replacing Shelley Long as "Diane" with Kirstie Alley as "Rebecca" on Cheers
David Angell
Warren Littlefield on the development and success of Frasier
James Burrows
Warren Littlefield on the development of Cheers
Marcy Carsey
Warren Littlefield on The Cosby Show's collaborative team
Johnny Carson
Warren Littlefield on The Tonight Show's transition from Johnny Carson to Jay Leno
Peter Casey
Warren Littlefield on the development and success of Frasier
Glen Charles
Warren Littlefield on the development of Cheers
Les Charles
Warren Littlefield on the development of Cheers
Nicholas Colasanto
Warren Littlefield on replacing Nicholas Colasanto as "Coach" with Woody Harrelson on Cheers
Bill Cosby
Warren Littlefield on The Cosby Show
Warren Littlefield on The Cosby Show's collaborative team
Warren Littlefield on NBC's relationship with Bill Cosby
Michael Crichton
Warren Littlefield on developing ER
Larry David
Warren Littlefield on the development of Seinfeld
Selma Diamond
Warren Littlefield on the creation of The Golden Girls
Michael J. Fox
Warren Littlefield on Family Ties
Gary David Goldberg
Warren Littlefield on Family Ties
Helen Hunt
Warren Littlefield on Mad About You
David Lee
Warren Littlefield on the development and success of Frasier
Jay Leno
Warren Littlefield on The Tonight Show's transition from Johnny Carson to Jay Leno
David Letterman
Warren Littlefield on The Tonight Show's transition from Johnny Carson to Jay Leno
Shelley Long
Warren Littlefield on replacing Shelley Long as "Diane" with Kirstie Alley as "Rebecca" on Cheers
Julia Louis-Dreyfus
Warren Littlefield on the development of Seinfeld
Don Ohlmeyer
Warren Littlefield on Don Ohlmeyer
Paul Reiser
Warren Littlefield on Mad About You
Doris Roberts
Warren Littlefield on the creation of The Golden Girls
Jerry Seinfeld
Warren Littlefield on the development of Seinfeld
Fred Silverman
Warren Littlefield on how he first came to work for NBC
Brandon Tartikoff
Warren Littlefield on how he first came to work for NBC
Warren Littlefield on Hill Street Blues starting out as "an hour long Barney Miller"
Warren Littlefield on The Cosby Show
Warren Littlefield on Cheers becoming a hit series
Warren Littlefield on Grant Tinker's exit from NBC and Bob Wright's philosophy for NBC
Warren Littlefield on his professional relationship with Brandon Tartikoff
Grant Tinker
Warren Littlefield on Cheers becoming a hit series
Warren Littlefield on Grant Tinker's exit from NBC and Bob Wright's philosophy for NBC
John Wells
Warren Littlefield on developing ER
Tom Werner
Warren Littlefield on The Cosby Show's collaborative team
Bob Wright
Warren Littlefield on General Electric acquiring NBC in 1986
Warren Littlefield on Grant Tinker's exit from NBC and Bob Wright's philosophy for NBC