MUSEUM OF TELEVISION & RADIO UNIVERSITY SATELLITE SEMINAR SERIES, THE: CREATING JEWISH CHARACTERS FOR TELEVISION {LONG VERSION}
Summary
One in this series of seminars conducted by The Museum of Television & Radio. Moderated by vice-president and Los Angeles Museum director Steven A. Bell, this seminar, held in Los Angeles, features a panel discussion about Jewish characters on television, with questions from universities across the country via satellite.
After screening an introductory tape to the Museum, Bell introduces the following panelists: Marshall Herskovitz, writer and producer of "thirtysomething" and executive producer of "Relativity" and "My So-Called Life"; Carol Leifer, stand-up comedienne, writer for "Seinfeld," and writer and supervising producer of "The Larry Sanders Show"; Jeff Melvoin, co-executive producer of "Northern Exposure" and "Picket Fences"; Jan Oxenberg, co-producer and writer for "Chicago Hope, and writer for "Nothing Sacred" and "Relativity"; and David Marc, professor at the Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. (Panelist biographies immediately follows this summary.)
Next, a highlight tape is screened, featuring prominent Jewish characters from twenty-five years of network television, including clips from such programs as: "The Dick Van Dyke Show," "Bridget Loves Bernie," "Rhoda," "Northern Exposure," "Picket Fences," "Brooklyn Bridge," "Relativity," "Seinfeld," and "thirtysomething." The panelists then discuss the following subjects, among others: whether the Jewish identity of characters like Jerry Seinfeld or Joel Fleischman is central or incidental to story lines; whether Jewish characters should be written by Jewish writers; and negative feedback from Jewish viewers about mixed marriages portrayed on television. The panelists then take questions from universities across the country, including West Virginia University, University of Wisconsin, and the University of Maryland, among many others, where students view the seminar live via satellite. Topics discussed include: the fine line between creating an identifiable Jewish character and a stereotypical one; the reasons Jewish characters and topics have appeared increasingly over the past decade; different reactions to the Jewish humor found on television; the predominance of secular and assimilated Jewish characters; the impact of audience feedback; the history of Jews in the film and television industries; and the potential for future Jewish portrayals on television.
Biographies. Marshall Herskovitz was one of the creators of "thirtysomething." His work on the series earned him two Emmy Awards, a Writers Guild Award, two Directors Guild Awards, a Humanitas Award, the Golden Globe Award, the PeopleÕs Choice Award, and a Peabody Award. He also executive produced the critically acclaimed series "My So-Called Life" and "Relativity" and has directed two feature films.
Carol Leifer recently starred in and executive produced the sitcom "Alright Already." Previously, she served as a writer and supervising producer on "The Larry Sanders Show" and spent three years as a writer on "Seinfeld," earning both Writers Guild and Emmy Award nominations. She has performed stand-up comedy on late-night television and has produced and starred in several comedy specials.
David Marc is a professor at the S. I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University. He is head of the Newhouse SchoolÕs Oral History of Television Project and has written several books on television and American culture.
Jeff Melvoin was a coexecutive producer for the critically acclaimed series "Northern Exposure" and executive producer for "Picket Fences" and "Early Edition." He also served as a writer-producer for "Hill Street Blues" and as producer for "Remington Steele." Previously, he was a correspondent for Time magazine in New York, Boston, and Los Angeles.
Jan Oxenberg is currently a coproducer and writer for "Chicago Hope." She was a writer and executive story editor on last year's Peabody Award-winning drama "Nothing Sacred" and was also a writer and story editor for the series "Relativity." In addition, she has written scripts for several feature films.
Details
- NETWORK: N/A
- DATE: November 11, 1998 Wednesday 5:30 PM
- RUNNING TIME: 1:29:30
- COLOR/B&W: Color
- CATALOG ID: T:54959
- GENRE: Seminars
- SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
- SERIES RUN: N/A
- COMMERCIALS: N/A
CREDITS
- Steven A. Bell … Moderator
- Carol Leifer … Panelist
- Marshall Herskovitz … Panelist
- David Marc … Panelist
- Jeff Melvoin … Panelist
- Jan Oxenberg … Panelist
- Jerry Seinfeld