Overcoming Adversity


The Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation Presents

02:26

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Interviewees discuss difficult moments in their lives and careers.

Highlights
Yeardley Smith on the challenges of show business: "It made me care about things that don't matter"
02:26
Geri Jewell on how she does not see herself as being "courageous" for doing stand-up comedy, but instead attributes it to "the theory of the bumblebee"
01:49
Edie Falco on being diagnosed with breast cancer during the run of The Sopranos
03:31
Nanette Fabray on her difficulty with her hearing, and on her participation in issues involving the deaf community
06:26
Julia Louis-Dreyfus on Gary David Goldberg helping her with a contract dispute with Warner Bros. and the valuable lesson she learned from him
02:09
J. Michael Straczynski on being a big believer in failure
03:43
Who talked about this topic

Kevin Bright

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Kevin Bright on Bright/Kauffman/Crane developing shows for Warner Bros., and the challenge of networks wanting Dream On for network (which was impossible)
01:31

Michael Chiklis

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Michael Chiklis on playing John Belushi in the film "Wired" and getting blackballed
04:30

Rose Marie with Emerson College

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Rose Marie on being convinced to stay on The Dick Van Dyke Show after the death of her husband
02:54

Ann Curry

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Ann Curry on being hired as a reporter at KTVL in Medford, Oregon, a station that had never before had a female reporter, and on the sexism she faced on the job
04:27

Nanette Fabray

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Nanette Fabray on her difficulty with her hearing, and on her participation in issues involving the deaf community
06:26

Edie Falco

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Edie Falco on being diagnosed with breast cancer during the run of The Sopranos
03:31

Felicity Huffman

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Felicity Huffman on two stories of being fired: one, in a Neil Simon play (by Simon himself) and again on a TV show which was recast after they had shot the pilot
06:02

Geri Jewell

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Geri Jewell on how she does not see herself as being "courageous" for doing stand-up comedy, but instead attributes it to "the theory of the bumblebee"
01:49
Geri Jewell on having to perform a dance number on the first The Facts of Life episode on which she appeared ("Cousin Geri")
03:26
Geri Jewell on being made a recurring character on The Facts of Life, then her role being downsized, and her challenges navigating the entertainment industry and her own sexuality and identity
10:40
Geri Jewell on the difficulty she faced while filming a scene with Peter DeLuise on 21 Jump Street
02:33
Geri Jewell on filming a particularly challenging scene on Deadwood where she had to dance
03:40

Julia Louis-Dreyfus

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Julia Louis-Dreyfus on Gary David Goldberg helping her with a contract dispute with Warner Bros. and the valuable lesson she learned from him
02:09

Barry Manilow

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Barry Manilow on playing the Bijou Theater in Philadelphia with Andy Kaufman as his opening act
01:59

David Milch

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David Milch on "leading a double life" while writing for Hill Street Blues  and his duties as Story Editor
02:39

Pat Morita

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Pat Morita on his family being placed in an internment camp during World War II
04:46

Nina Shaw

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NIna Shaw on her involvement in The Hollywood Reporter Women In Entertainment Mentorship Program and the importance of mentorship
06:57

Yeardley Smith

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Yeardley Smith on the challenges of show business: "It made me care about things that don't matter"
02:26
Yeardley Smith on creating balance in her life, starting her shoe line, and creating her development company
02:56

J. Michael Straczynski

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J. Michael Straczynski on being a big believer in failure
03:43

Mike Wallace

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Mike Wallace on being hospitalized for exhaustion, and on dealing with depression
03:51

Malcolm-Jamal Warner

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Malcolm-Jamal Warner on being cast as "Theo Huxtable" on The Cosby Show
05:26

Jeff Zucker

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Jeff Zucker on being diagnosed with colon cancer
09:29

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