Latest News from The Interviews

55 Years Ago: Dick Clark becomes Permanent Host of "American Bandstand"

 Sat, 07/09/2011 Fifty-five years ago, on July 9, 1956 Dick Clark became the permanent host of American Bandstand and his boyish looks and straight-laced style bridged the gap between teenagers and their parents, helping to bring rock ‘n’ roll to the mainstream. The show broadcast locally from Philadelphia starting in 1952 and by August 5, 1957, with Clark taking the show to the top of the ratings, the show went national (its initial title Bandstand was changed to American Bandstand ). Records were rated in one...

What would Alexis Carrington think? Designer Nolan Miller Retires from QVC after 19 Years

 Wed, 07/06/2011 Home shopping's QVC announced last weekend that legendary designer Nolan Miller has retired after 19 years of designing fashion and jewelry collections for the network. We thought that this would be an excellent time to showcase one of our favorite clips from his Archive of American Television interview , where the master of glamour (who began his TV career at NBC in the 1950s) discusses how high-fashion was built into Dynasty from day-one and how Joan Collins almost didn't get the role she was...

Blame it on Bulova: Commercial Television turns 70!

 Thu, 06/30/2011 July 1, 1941: the beginning of life as we know it. Commercial television made its debut in the United States. Over the next few years, television programs and personalities would become closely identified with their commercial sponsors, some shows even featuring their backer within the title, as in Milton Berle ’s Texaco Star Theater . Jack Benny would forever become associated with J-E-L-L-O, and those who loved George Burns and Gracie Allen may still have a special fondness for Carnation milk...

George Shapiro on Andy Kaufman, Jerry Seinfeld, and more!

 Tue, 06/28/2011 George Shapiro has had the pleasure, although some might call it the challenge, of managing the seemingly unmanageable Andy Kaufman. In his Archive interview, manager George Shapiro describes his work with comedians Andy Kaufman and Jerry Seinfeld, among others, and discusses the intricacies of negotiating television appearances and series for clients. In the following excerpt Shapiro details the unbelievable story of how Andy Kaufman secured the role of “Latka” on Taxi : You can view George...

Composer Fred Steiner, best known for the "Perry Mason" theme, has died

 Tue, 06/28/2011 Legendary composer Fred Steiner passed away on June 23rd at the age of 88. The prolific composer (and musicologist) worked on many series including Playhouse 90 , The Twilight Zone , Perry Mason , Star Trek , The Bullwinkle Show , and Gunsmoke . He also received an Oscar nomination for his work on The Color Purple . Fred was interviewed by the Archive of American Television in 2003. Here are some excerpts from his 4+ hour interview: On composing the theme for Perry Mason . CBS Music Director...

Katherine Helmond to appear on "True Blood"

 Fri, 06/24/2011 Archive Interviewee Katherine Helmond is schedule to return to the small screen as "Caroline Bellefleur" on the HBO series True Blood . Ms. Helmond is of course, well-known to our followers as "Jessica Tate" on Soap and "Mona" on Who's the Boss as well as her numerous roles on Everybody Loves Raymond, Coach , and most recently, Melissa & Joey . In this video excerpt from her two-hour Archive interview, she talks about why she believes it was important that Soap was written by a woman: You...

Diane English on "Murphy Brown", "My Sister Sam" and more!

 Fri, 06/24/2011 Archive Interviewee Diane English is no stranger to the big or small screen. In her two-and-a-half hour interview, she discusses writing for television’s Foley Square , My Sister Sam , and Ink , among others; tells of her feature-film directing debut for The Women ; and describes the creation of Murphy Brown . In the following clip she explains how she came up with “Murphy Brown’s” unusual name: Watch Diane English’s full interview here : About this Interview: Diane English was interviewed for...

Katie Couric on her career at CNN, CBS, and more

 Thu, 06/23/2011 In her newly released 2010 interview, journalist Katie Couric describes her career in front of the camera as correspondent, reporter, co-host & anchor of some of television’s most respected programs. She tells of her first on-camera debut at CNN, her role as co-host of NBC’s Today , and how she hoped to revamp the traditional format of CBS Evening News while serving as television’s first, female, fulltime anchor. Watch Katie Couric's interview in its entirety here . The Archive is saddened...

Irving Fein, longtime manager of Jack Benny and George Burns turns 100!

 Tue, 06/21/2011 Happy 100th birthday to manager/producer Irving Fein ! Fein is best known for his 28-year association with comedian Jack Benny, and later, his 22-year association with comedian (and now fellow centenarian ) George Burns. He was interviewed by the Archive of American Television in 1998. Interview clip: Irving Fein discusses working on The Jack Benny Program : Watch his full Archive of American Television Interview here. Interview description: Irving Fein was interviewed for three-and-a-half...