Allan Burns

In his five-hour interview, Allan Burns (1935-2021) describes his early years as a page and later a story analyst at NBC in Los Angeles. He outlines his move into the animation field, working for the legendary Jay Ward on The Bullwinkle Show and Fractured Flickers, and recounts the unusual publicity campaigns that accompanied the animated shows. He speaks of his work for Ward on the advertising campaign for "Cap'n Crunch"— a character that Burns himself invented. Burns talks about working with writing partner Chris Hayward on the series My Mother the Car, He & She, and Get Smart, and discusses his work as a writer, then as producer on the first season of the groundbreaking series Room 222 — his first association with producer-director Gene Reynolds and writer-producer James L. Brooks. Burns then details his co-creation (with Brooks) of the classic sitcom The Mary Tyler Moore Show. He chronicles the creation of the concept for the series, the casting process, and memorable episodes. He recalls later series he wrote and produced at MTM Productions (a tenure that lasted over twenty years) including Rhoda, Lou Grant, The Duck Factory (starring Jim Carrey), and FM. B-roll consists of publicity pieces from Jay Ward Productions and photographs from several MTM series. Dan Pasternack conducted the interview on February 18, 2004 in Brentwood, CA.