First Big Break The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation Presents 02:26 Tabs About “Breck is a very important part of my career. I did that commercial and I'm swinging my hair around and Glen Larson saw me on that and said I want her to be a lead in a McCloud.” - Jaclyn Smith, Actress Interviewees discuss how they got their start in the entertainment industry. Related topics Pivotal Career Moments Highlights Jaclyn Smith on being a "Breck Girl" and appearing on McCloud 02:24 Norman Stiles on going to write for Sesame Street 03:21 Edie Falco on how she got her first agent 00:48 Martin Manulis on being hired by CBS 08:45 Lucy Lawless on playing "Xena" on Hercules: The Legendary Journeys 05:49 Hal Linden on making his Broadway debut in "Bells Are Ringing" with Judy Holliday 05:24 Who talked about this topic Chris AlbrechtView Interview Chris Albrecht on becoming President of Original Programming at HBO 04:44 Jason AlexanderView Interview Jason Alexander on performing in "Jerome Robbins Broadway" 10:07 Jason Alexander on being cast in The Seinfeld Chronicles, the pilot to Seinfeld 04:56 Robert G. AndersonView Interview Robert G. Anderson on being rejected by television news stations as an on-air correspondent, and realizing he could be a producer 02:48 Dick AskinView Interview Dick Askin on his first job in television 07:34 Rona BarrettView Interview Rona Barrett on breaking into television 08:59 Samantha BeeView Interview Samantha Bee on auditioning for and being hired as a correspondent on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart 10:37 Rick BermanView Interview Rick Berman on his early days in Los Angeles going to work at Warner Bros. and Paramount 08:49 Allan BlyeView Interview Allan Blye on how a call from Tom Smothers led to him moving to the United States from Canada 03:07 Vin Di BonaView Interview Vin Di Bona on his first television job at WBZ in Boston and becoming a director 07:40 Kevin BrightView Interview Kevin Bright on his first job after graduating from Emerson College 01:40 David BrinkleyView Interview David Brinkley on being hired by NBC Radio 03:26 Connie BrittonView Interview Connie Britton on being cast as "Heather" on Ellen 01:14 Harvey BullockView Interview Harvey Bullock on coming to write for The Andy Griffith Show 01:09 Vince CalandraView Interview Vince Calandra on his big break into entertainment - getting a job in the CBS mailroom without having an Ivy League degree 02:22 David CanaryView Interview David Canary on his first big TV role on Peyton Place, playing Mia Farrow's doctor 04:49 Jim CantoreView Interview Jim Cantore on being hired by The Weather Channel 02:37 Charles CapplemanView Interview Charles Cappleman on becoming a stage manager at CBS 01:44 Josie CareyView Interview Josie Carey on being hired by WQED before the station went on the air 03:22 Glenn Gordon CaronView Interview Glenn Gordon Caron on getting his big break at NBC - the unaired pilot The God Squad 06:14 RuPaul CharlesView Interview RuPaul Charles on his breakthrough hit song "Supermodel" 02:46 Roy ClarkView Interview Roy Clark on his first television appearance, on the local series The Hayloft Conservatory of Musical Interpretation 04:04 Kevin ClashView Interview Kevin Clash on going to work on Sesame Street full time 04:14 Alf ClausenView Interview Alf Clausen on being a copyist for The Carol Burnett Show and various feature films 04:55 Rose Marie with Emerson CollegeView Interview Rose Marie on her weekly NBC radio show as baby Rose Marie, and on touring RKO Theaters skirting child labor laws 05:42 Steven Wright with Emerson CollegeView Interview Steven Wright on how his first time on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson came about 05:52 Jan Murray with Emerson CollegeView Interview Jan Murray on getting his big break -- working in the Catskill Mountains 02:14 Norman Lear with Emerson CollegeView Interview Norman Lear on he and Ed Simmons beginning their career writing for Ford Star Revue 00:56 Barbara CordayView Interview Barbara Corday on pitching a series with Barbara Avedon 05:41 Pierre CossetteView Interview Pierre Cossette on the first music shows he produced 05:16 Ron CowenView Interview Ron Cowen on the first play he wrote, "Summertree", which was championed by his college professor Jerome Lawrence, developed at the Eugene O'Neill National Playwrights Conference, and optioned by Lincoln Center before being made into a movie 08:20 Douglas S. CramerView Interview Douglas S. Cramer on working at Procter & Gamble 06:06 Ann CurryView Interview Ann Curry on being hired by NBC News, and on moving from reporting to anchoring 04:57 Jane CurtinView Interview Jane Curtin on being cast on Saturday Night Live 02:18 Greg DanielsView Interview Greg Daniels on writing for Not Necessarily the News with Conan O'Brien 07:26 Tony DanzaView Interview Tony Danza on getting his first acting job on Fast Lane Blues 04:24 Elias DavisView Interview Elias Davis and David Pollock on their first big break as writers for Pat Buttram on the radio 03:12 Bill DavisView Interview Bill Davis on his first job at the Canadian Broadcasting Company 09:32 Louis DorfsmanView Interview Louis Dorfsman on meeting CBS President Frank Stanton and being hired at CBS 03:06 Betty Cole DukertView Interview Betty Cole Dukert on how she came to join Meet the Press as a producer 09:10 Rebecca EatonView Interview Rebecca Eaton on her first producing job, on an arts magazine show on WGBH radio in Boston 02:58 Jeff FagerView Interview Jeff Fager on his first job out of college, at the NBC affiliate WBZ in Boston 01:17 Edie FalcoView Interview Edie Falco on how she got her first agent 00:48 Julian FellowesView Interview Julian Fellowes on writing the feature film "Gosford Park" for director Robert Altman 07:52 Tom FontanaView Interview Tom Fontana on how he came to write for St. Elsewhere after being discovered by Bruce Paltrow and Blythe Danner 06:53 Ray ForrestView Interview Ray Forrest on his first job as a junior radio announcer and why he finally joined AFRA (the precursor to AFTRA) 02:09 Albert FreedmanView Interview Albert Freedman on his big break - writing for Groucho Marx on You Bet Your Life 02:58 Harry FriedmanView Interview Harry Friedman on moving to Los Angeles and being hired to write for Hollywood Squares 03:52 Chuck FriesView Interview Chuck Fries on going to work for Ziv Productions and moving to California 07:36 Sandra GimpelView Interview Sandra Gimpel on her first big job: as a dancer in the Fred Astaire movie "The Pleasure of His Company" 03:15 Paul Michael GlaserView Interview Paul Michael Glaser on getting cast in Love of Life, appearing in the feature film "Fiddler on the Roof" and being put off by acting in film 03:29 Lesli Linka GlatterView Interview Lesli Linka Glatter on being tapped by Steven Spielberg to direct Amazing Stories, and on shadowing many directors on that show 02:12 Gary David GoldbergView Interview Gary David Goldberg on his mentor, Nate Monaster 00:34 Carl GottliebView Interview Carl Gottlieb on being hired to write for The Summer Brothers Smothers Show 04:00 Walon GreenView Interview Walon Green on meeting David Milch and going to write for Hill Street Blues 01:43 Hal GurneeView Interview Hal Gurnee on his first television job, at the DuMont Television Network as a page 02:35 Danette HermanView Interview Danette Herman on her first television job on the Dick Clark series Where the Action Is 08:43 Lee HoldridgeView Interview Lee Holdridge on a seminal career moment: his involvement in scoring the film Jonathan Livingston Seagull 01:33 Ellen HollyView Interview Ellen Holly on being discovered as an actress by Charlotte Perry 01:37 Ellen Holly on appearing as "Stephanie" in the Broadway production of "Too Late the Phalarope" 19:58 Felicity HuffmanView Interview Felicity Huffman on appearing on an ABC Afterschool Special called "Home Run for Love" when she was fifteen 02:06 Felicity Huffman on appearing on the Stephen King miniseries Golden Years, which she considers her first big break 01:49 Kim HunterView Interview Kim Hunter on playing "Stella Kowalski" in "A Streetcar Named Desire" on Broadway in on film 05:51 David IsaacsView Interview Ken Levine and David Isaacs on selling their first script, a spec for The Jeffersons 02:42 Al JeanView Interview Al Jean on getting his first job in television 02:42 Geri JewellView Interview Geri Jewell on how a college friend inspired her to try stand-up comedy at the Comedy Store, which led to her breaking into television 05:15 Hal KanterView Interview Hal Kanter on his first big break writing for Eddie Cantor and other comedians on radio 12:11 Elodie KeeneView Interview Elodie Keene on editing Tales of the Unexpected for Norman Lloyd 09:54 David E. KelleyView Interview David E. Kelley on meeting Steven Bochco and interviewing to work on L.A. Law 01:09 Walter KoenigView Interview Walter Koenig on being cast as "Pavel Chekov" on Star Trek and making the character Russian 07:24 Lucy LawlessView Interview Lucy Lawless on playing "Xena" on Hercules: The Legendary Journeys 05:49 Norman LearView Interview Norman Lear on how he schemed to reach out to Danny Thomas and write a bit for him that turned out to be his big break 05:29 Eugene LeeView Interview Eugene Lee on a pivotal moment in his career: doing set design for a theater in Madison, WI 01:21 Jack LemmonView Interview Jack Lemmon on his first big break on the radio 04:00 Ken LevineView Interview Ken Levine and David Isaacs on selling their first script, a spec for The Jeffersons 02:42 Barry LevinsonView Interview Barry Levinson on writing and performing with Craig T. Nelson on Lohman and Barkley 04:03 Hal LindenView Interview Hal Linden on making his Broadway debut in "Bells Are Ringing" with Judy Holliday 05:24 James LiptonView Interview James Lipton on appearing on "The Lone Ranger" radio show at age 12 03:31 Susan LucciView Interview Susan Lucci on auditioning for the character of "Erica Kane" on All My Children and finding out she got the part 01:55 Stewart MacGregoryView Interview Stewart MacGregory on going to work for NBC television 01:38 Gavin MacLeodView Interview Gavin McLeod on the first Broadway play he appeared in "A Hat Full of Rain" 06:15 Robert MacNeilView Interview Robert MacNeil on how he came to work for NBC 03:13 Jodi MancusoView Interview Jodi Mancuso on how she started working as a hair stylist on Saturday Night Live 03:29 Barry ManilowView Interview Barry Manilow on becoming the musical director for the local WCBS series Call Back 02:51 Martin ManulisView Interview Martin Manulis on being hired by CBS 08:45 John A. MartinelliView Interview John Martinelli on assistant editing The Lawrence Welk Show 01:36 Rue McClanahanView Interview Rue McClanahan on being cast by Norman Lear as "Vivian Harmon" on Maude 04:52 Barney McNultyView Interview Barney McNulty on how he became involved with The Ed Wynn Show, where he first became involved in writing out cue cards 06:54 David MilchView Interview David Milch on how he came to write for Hill Street Blues 04:04 David Milch on how he came to write for Hill Street Blues 04:04 Millie MooreView Interview Millie Moore on her first big break - working on the travelogue documentaries of Jack Douglas 01:15 Donald A. MorganView Interview Donald A. Morgan on his first job in television -- in the mailroom of KTTV -- and on how he became interested in lighting 06:30 Bob NewhartView Interview Bob Newhart on his big break at the local Chicago Emmy Awards and recording his first comedy album 06:07 Bob Newhart on his national big break at the 1960 Emmy Awards 03:11 Laraine NewmanView Interview Laraine Newman on performing on The Lily Tomlin Special 03:04 Edward James OlmosView Interview Edward James Olmos on being cast as "Martin Castillo" on Miami Vice 11:39 Lori OpendenView Interview Lori Openden on getting hired as a secretary on Barnery Miller and getting interested in casting 03:01 Bernie OrensteinView Interview Bernie Orenstein on how he got his start in show business: he dropped out of college after appearing in a University of Toronto show called "The All Varsity Revue" 01:06 Bernie Orenstein on how his first writing job on a Canadian variety show produced by Norman Jewison led to his moving to New York City and writing for Candid Camera 02:31 Alan PerrisView Interview Alan Perris on his first television job at PBS station WVIZ in Cleveland 02:25 David PollockView Interview Elias Davis and David Pollock on their first big break as writers for Pat Buttram on the radio 03:12 Fred RogersView Interview Fred Rogers on being hired at WQED to work in educational television 04:31 Stanley Ralph RossView Interview Stanley Ralph Ross on becoming in-demand as a writer after being hired to write for Batman 03:19 Marion RossView Interview Actress Marion Ross on her first television role, on Life with Father starring Leon Ames 03:37 Mark RothmanView Interview Mark Rothman on his first professional writing job on The Mike Douglas Show 05:01 Thomas Del RuthView Interview Thomas Del Ruth on his working as an assistant cameraman at 20th Century Fox and learning his way around a camera 02:18 Joseph SargentView Interview Joseph Sargent on his first directing job on the series Lassie 08:56 Bob SchiefferView Interview Bob Schieffer on moving to Washington, D.C. and on going to work for CBS News 03:27 John ShaffnerView Interview John Shaffner on starting out in television 11:54 John Shaffner on his big break in television in first run-syndication 03:15 Nina ShawView Interview NIna Shaw on her involvement in The Hollywood Reporter Women In Entertainment Mentorship Program and the importance of mentorship 06:57 Treva SilvermanView Interview Treva Silverman on writing for the variety series The Entertainers, starring Carol Burnett 10:48 Sam SimonView Interview Sam Simon on how he came to write for Taxi 03:02 John SingletonView Interview John Singleton on getting his first agent based on the strength of the screenplay to "Boyz N the Hood" 02:01 G.E. SmithView Interview G.E. Smith on playing guitar for Hall & Oates and appearing with them on Saturday Night Live 03:47 Yeardley SmithView Interview Yeardley Smith on how she got her first New York agent 01:54 Yeardley Smith on her Broadway debut in Tom Stoppard's "The Real Thing" directed by Mike Nichols 06:09 Jaclyn SmithView Interview Jaclyn Smith on being a "Breck Girl" and appearing on McCloud 02:24 Mark SnowView Interview Mark Snow on The Rookies being the first show he worked on and getting the job through his then-brother-in-law, Georg Stanford Brown 01:12 Suzanne SomersView Interview Suzanne Somers on her audition with George Lucas for the movie "American Graffiti" 02:35 Darren StarView Interview Darren Star on how his first industry job, as an assistant at the public relations firm Guttman & Pam, led to his first break: selling a film script to Warner Bros. 04:18 Darren Star on the serendipitous events early on his career that led to his first big break, including working at Showtime for Peter Chernin, who later became the decision maker on Beverly Hills, 90210 at Fox 03:09 Jeremy StevensView Interview Jeremy Stevens on his first writing job for television on The Skitch Henderson Show 12:02 Norman StilesView Interview Norman Stiles on going to write for Sesame Street 03:21 Jeffrey TamborView Interview Jeffrey Tambor on appearing on Kojak, his first television role 02:10 Nina TasslerView Interview Nina Tassler on how agent David Windsor helped her to see her potential to become an agent 01:45 Daniel J. TravantiView Interview Daniel J. Travanti on finding out he was cast on Hill Street Blues 02:37 Saul TurteltaubView Interview Saul Turteltaub on forming a comedy team with a college friend and getting hired to perform at Catskills resorts 02:24 Saul Turteltaub on dating Shari Lewis (then Phyllis Hurwitz) at summer camp as a kid and calling her up for a writing job when he saw her on television in 1957 02:31 Leslie UggamsView Interview Leslie Uggams on how she began performing at the Apollo Theater when she was nine years-old 02:09 Leslie Uggams on getting her start in television as a child on The Milton Berle Show and other variety shows 01:19 Tracey UllmanView Interview Tracey Ullman on she transitioned from dance into acting early in her career, and on being cast in the play "Four in a Million" by Les Blair, which was improvised and how that led to her being cast on a sketch show on the BBC 03:44 Tracey Ullman on the first sketch show she was on, Three of a Kind 02:56 Bruce VilanchView Interview Bruce Vilanch on his first job, writing for Bette Midler 08:22 Keenen Ivory WayansView Interview Keenen Ivory Wayans on appearing on The Tonight Show with Johnny Carson; his childhood idol- and what it meant for him personally "like stepping into your dream"; on being asked to sit with Johnny after his act 04:45 Ellen WheelerView Interview Ellen Wheeler on being cast as "Marley Love Hudson McKinnon" on Another World 09:39 Cindy WilliamsView Interview Cindy Williams on the effect the film "American Graffiti" had on her career and her fame 00:55 Hugh WilsonView Interview Hugh Wilson on going to work for Armstrong and how he started in television at MTM Productions 09:31 Ben WolfView Interview Ben Wolf on his first television job as a cameraman at KLAC 05:49 Bud YorkinView Interview Bud Yorkin on his big break becoming director of The Colgate Comedy Hour at the behest of Pat Weaver 02:14 Lauren ZalaznickView Interview Lauren Zalaznick on working on her first feature film, "Compromising Positions" 08:49 Jeff ZuckerView Interview Jeff Zucker on getting his first job after college, as an Olympic Researcher for NBC 04:52 Alan ZweibelView Interview Alan Zweibel on meeting Lorne Michaels and being hired to write for Saturday Night Live 03:27