Douglas S. Cramer

In his nearly three-and-a-half-hour interview, Douglas S. Cramer (1931-2021) talks about his early life and his first foray into television at Procter & Gamble. He describes the development of his first primetime series Peyton Place, the groundbreaking first nighttime soap opera. He recounts the development of Batman and supervising the artistic style of the show. He discusses his years as vice president in charge of production at Paramount, where he shepherded such hit series as The Brady Bunch, The Odd Couple, Bridget Loves Bernie, Barefoot in the Park, and the first network miniseries, QB VII. Cramer outlines the creation and development of The Love Boat and its various guest stars, including Andy Warhol and Ethel Merman, and speaks of his long association with Aaron Spelling. He comments on developing the wildly successful primetime soap Dynasty, and shares how he saved the show from cancellation in its second season by casting Joan Collins as "Alexis Carrington Colby." He concludes by discussing his feelings on the then-current state of television and offers sage advice to aspiring television producers. Henry Colman and Jenni Matz conducted the interview on May 22, 2008 in New York, NY.