In response to Sarah's letter ...
Question: In response to
Sarah's letter on TV being better 30 years ago (mentioning
Little House on the Prairie), I pulled up the schedule from one of the years
Little House ran. Among the listings:
Operation Petticoat, Battlestar
Galactica (the hokey original),
Kaz,
Grandpa Goes to Washington,
What's Happening!!,
Project UFO,
The New Adventures of Wonder Woman,
Flying High,
Who's Watching the Kids,
Carter Country. I watch a lot of TV, but I don't remember most of this list. When comparing to the past, it's best to remember (a paraphrasing of) Sturgeon's Law: 90 percent of everything is junk. Some of these shows may have been popular, but they're not the shows we remember. I happen to think we're in a new golden age of TV drama. But 30 years from now when we remember
Lost,
Buffy,
Friday Night Lights,
The Sopranos, and
Dexter,
we'll conveniently forget
Moment of Truth,
The Swan,
Bionic Woman,
'Til Death,
According to Jim,
Dirt and a host of shows (both popular and unpopular) that are equally forgettable. On a completely unrelated note, thanks for the recommendation of the recent
Great Performances telecast of
Company. I don't always like Sondheim, but this production was terrific. I'm willing to bet more people saw Raul Esparza on that one telecast than did in the entire run of the production. But why isn't there more theater on TV? If we're lucky, there is a show on PBS every three years or so, interrupted by pledge breaks. Why is this the one venue where performances are not immortalized in some way? I'm sure there are millions of people who can't get to New York who would love the opportunity to see these productions.
Answer: Thanks for taking me back to a time when I'm so glad I wasn't yet on the beat. That drumbeat of mediocrity might have made me second-guess my career choice. But you're absolutely right. Almost every era since TV started can be seen as "golden" in one way or another, but there's always a best of times/worst of times element as well. As for your Broadway question: The reason more shows don't make the transfer to TV is complicated, but as usual, it boils down to money. It's not cheap to put these shows on film, there are all kinds of rights issues to consider, plus a number of unions (remember the recent stagehands' strike) to take into account here as well. I'd love to have a TV/DVD library archive of each season's theatrical highlights, but easier said than done.
