This thread reminded me of this story from Harlan Ellison’s “The Glass Teat” a collection of his TV column from the LA Freep. Ellison was there for the taping of the pilot episode... as usual, he had something to say about it.*
*I tried sending these images directly to the group, but apparently the files were too large, so I posted them to my podcast Facebook page. https://www.facebook.com/1646952628915360/posts/2931846270425983/?d=n On Sun, Jan 17, 2021 at 8:57 AM PGage <[email protected]> wrote: > Exactly. I was going to write that a week, or even a year, *after* it > premiered people were saying you could not make a show like that. I > remember lots of conversations and arguments at my house among my parents > friends about this. We watched it every week, but my mother fretted about > the kind of people who did take it as a glorification of bigotry. > > But the real reason you could not make a show like that today is not for > fear of offending politically correct liberals. Such a show would > inevitably be about a Middle Aged Trump supporter and his AOC voting > daughter, and perhaps her trans woman lesbian wife, (if I remember my > geography correctly from when my daughter lived in Astoria, a few miles > from Archie’s house). The show could not be done both because of the howls > of protest from Trumpists, and because, unlike Nixon, Trump very > predictably has ended in very unfunny violence and sedition. > > On Sat, 16 Jan 2021 at 10:25 PM Tom Wolper <[email protected]> wrote: > >> On Sat, Jan 16, 2021 at 4:05 PM Marti Lawrence <[email protected]> >> wrote: >> >>> A truly groundbreaking program, and so subtle in exposing ingrained >>> attitudes about racism, sexism, and xenophobia. >>> I remember how "good ol' boys" thought it was hysterical without >>> realizing it was poking fun at them. I don't think you could make a show >>> like that today. >>> >> >> I believe if you did a poll the week before All in the Family or Blazing >> Saddles was released people would say you couldn't make a show or movie >> like that. In a sense you couldn't make a show like that today because the >> show crossed lines and managed to do it in a way that was entertaining >> rather than alienating. The lines aren't drawn today where they were in >> 1971 and there would be no thrill in crossing those lines. >> >> -- >> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups >> "TVorNotTV" group. >> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an >> email to [email protected]. >> To view this discussion on the web visit >> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/CAJE-FiGeGLP-co4zoj5-a%3DdmqGzv%2B7XaTQjU64kRAosoRx81_Q%40mail.gmail.com >> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/CAJE-FiGeGLP-co4zoj5-a%3DdmqGzv%2B7XaTQjU64kRAosoRx81_Q%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> >> . >> > -- > Sent from Gmail Mobile > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "TVorNotTV" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To view this discussion on the web visit > https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/CAKGtkY%2BdNi3e0FWhO0MGTiPO_su%3DtkuBravSjpZwhS8tKuJzsg%40mail.gmail.com > <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/CAKGtkY%2BdNi3e0FWhO0MGTiPO_su%3DtkuBravSjpZwhS8tKuJzsg%40mail.gmail.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer> > . > -- Kevin M. (RPCV) -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "TVorNotTV" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/tvornottv/CAKgmY4BYr8rsLP%3Dgi5765g0VskmKSWxWxWFgjY2KUUJkzZpfug%40mail.gmail.com.
