All language subtitles for Episode 01 Raison on Television

It's a time of enormous turmoil.

Shut up in here.

The '60s are over dad.

Here's Michael at
the foul line, a shot on ehlo.

Good!
Yeah!

Haha!

We intend to cover all the news all the time.

We won't be signing off until the world ends.

Isn't that special?

Any tool for human expression
will bring out the best

and the worst in us,
and television has been that.

They don't pay me enough
to deal with animals like this.

People are no longer embarrassed
to admit they watch television.

We have seen the news and it is us.

Slowly but surely, the 1970s are disappearing.

The 1980s will be upon us.

What a decade it is coming up.

Happy new year!

As you begin the '80s
in the television world,

the landscape was, on any given evening,

9 out of 10 people were watching
only one of three networks.

More than 30 million people are addicted to it.

Social critics are mystified by its success.

What is it?

It's television's primetime,

prairie pot boiler, "Dallas."

A move like that will destroy all of ewing oil,

and it'll ruin our family name.

I assure you, a thought like
that never crossed my mind.

Brother or no brother, whatever it takes,

I'll stop you from destroying ewing oil.

"Dallas" really did establish new ground

in terms of the weekly, one hour show

that literally captivated america for 13 years.

"Dallas" is a television show
which in some ways is rooted

in the 1970's and one of the crazy things

that emerges is this character,
J.R. Ewing as a pop phenomenon.

Tell me, J.R., which slut
are you gonna stay with tonight?

What difference does it make?

Whoever it is it's got to be more interesting

than the slut I'm looking at right now.

He was such a delicious villain.

Everyone was completely enamored
by this character.

At this point so many
people were watching television

that you could do something so unexpected

that it would become news overnight.

Who's there?

The national obsession in 1980
around who shot J.R.

It's hard to imagine how obsessed we all were

with that question, but we were.

Who shot J.R. Is about as ideal a cliffhanger

as you possibly could get.

Who did shoot J.R.?

We may never get the answer to that question.

I mean, the people who produced
that program are gonna keep us

in suspense for as long as they possibly can.

We shot J.R. And then we broke for the summer.

Then coincidentally,

the actors went on strike
and it delayed the resolution.

And it just started to percolate
through the world.

I remember going on vacation
to england that summer

and that's all that people
were talking about there.

Well we know you don't die.

I mean, you couldn't die?

You don't know that.

Well, how could you die?

You couldn't come back next season.

That's what I mean.

I couldn't come back,
but the show could still go.

Oh, but you wouldn't?

What is that show without J.R.?

Well, that's what I figure.

Well, I guess if you don't
know by now who shot J.R.,

you probably do not care.

But last night, some 82 million Americans did

and they watched the muchtouted
"Dallas" episode.

It could become the most watched
television show ever.

Who shot J.R. Is a reflection
of oldfashioned television.

It's a moment that gathers everybody around

the electronic fireplace,
which is now the television set.

Now, about one special
American television program,

a critic said it transcends in popularity

every other American statement about war.

And something special happened today

to mobile army surgical hospital 4077

that will touch millions of Americans.

It was the kind of an event that
would draw the world's press.

Stage nine, 20th century fox studios,

the end of the korean war -

the television version, "M.A.S.H."

It's been an honor and a privilege

to have worked with you.

And I'm very, very proud to have known you.

There were those landmark times

when shows that had been watched

through the '70s and into
the '80s, like "M.A.S.H.,"

had its final episode.

And were all sad to see them go.

I'll miss you.

I'll miss you.
A lot.

All over the country,

armies of fans crowded around television sets

to watch the final episode
and to bid "M.A.S.H." Farewell.

Levine: The finale of "m.A.S.H."
Was unprecedented.

123 million people

watched one television program at the same time.

You know, I really should be allowed to go home.

There's nothing wrong with me.

When we ended the show,

we got telegrams of congratulations

from Henry Kissinger and Ronald Reagan.

The size of the response

and the emotional nature of the response

that we were getting was
difficult for us to understand.

Who shot J.R. And the last episode of "M.A.S.H."

Are the last call for the
precable world of television.

It's like they are the last time

that that huge audience
will all turn up for one event.

All right.
That's it. Let's roll.

Hey...

Let's be careful out there.

Dispatch. We have a 911.
Armed robbery in progress.

When quality does emerge on television,

the phrase "too good for TV" is often heard.

One recent network offering that seems to deserve

that phrase is "hill street blues."

"Hill street" is one of the changing points

of the entire industry in the history of TV.

We had all watched a documentary about cops

and it had this real handheld,

in the moment quality
that we were very enamored of.

Come in!
Come in!

The minute you looked at it, it looked different.

It had a mood to it.

You could almost, you could
almost smell the stale coffee.

We didn't want to do a standard cop show

where, you know, you got a crime

and you got your two cops and you go out

and you catch the bad guy and you sweat him

and he confesses and that's it.

Cops have personal lives

that impact their behavior in profound ways.

Well, what about it?
Is he here or is he elsewhere?

Let's don't get excited counselor.

We're working on it.

How's this for logic, Furillo -

if he's not here and if he's
not elsewhere, he's lost.

We didn't say that, counselor.

You lost my client.

Not lost, per se.
Never in my entire life

have I listened to so much incompetence

covered up by so much unmitigated crap.

Find my client, Furillo,

or I swear I'll have you up on charges.

There'd be these ongoing arcs for these characters

that would play out over five, six episodes,

sometimes an entire season.

And in a way, for certain
stories, over the entire series.

And no one had really done that
in an hourlong dramatic show.

These past four months I've missed you.

I had to find that out.

Come home, pizza man.

I think in the past,

people had watched television passively

and the one thing I think we did
set out to be were provocateurs.

You want an accident report?
You fill it out.

What the hell's the matter with you man?

I'll tell you something.

They don't pay me enough
to deal with animals like this.

The first thing they see is a white face

and all they want to do is do him in!

You listen to me, Renko.

It was a white finger that pulled the trigger,

not a black one!

It was a white one.

It set a trend.

The idea that the audience
can accept its characters

being deeply flawed, you know,

even though they're wearing this uniform.

And I thought that that was important

to finally get across.

Don't do it!
No biting!

We wanted to make a show
that made you participate,

made you pay attention.

And I think that worked pretty well.

And the winner is...

"Hill Street Blues."

We got 21 nominations

and we went on to win eight emmys

and it put us on the map, literally.

And that's when people finally checked us out.

The programming chief of one of the networks

used to say to me about shows like "hill street"

and "St. Elsewhere,"

what the American public wants is a cheeseburger

and what you're trying to give
them is a French delicacy.

And he said, your job is to keep
shoving it down their throat

until after a while they'll say,
"that doesn't taste bad."

And maybe they'll even order it themselves

when they go to the restaurant.

Nice of you to join us Dr. Morrison.

The success of "Hill Street Blues"

is a critical phenomenon,

influenced everything that came after.

And then, of course, you saw
shows like "St. Elsewhere."

Do you know what people call this place?

Not St. Eligius.

St. Elsewhere.

A place you wouldn't want
to send your motherinlaw.

When it first came on,

it was actually promoted
as "Hill Street" in a hospital.

You give your patients the wrong antibiotics.

You don't know what medications they're on.

You write the worst progress notes.

You're pathetic.

Pathetic!

Phil!

What?!

Phil!

What?!

Dr. Moray needs you right away.

I'm sorry.

"St. Elsewhere" broke every rule there was

and then built some new rules.

Bobby, the blood bank
called a little while ago.

They ran a routine panel
on that pint of blood.

Tcell count was off.

They would have tragic things
happen to these characters.

There was real heartache in these people's lives.

And you really felt for them.

I've got aids?

Television at its best is a
mirror of society in the moment.

"St. Elsewhere" challenged people.

It challenged you as an actor

much less the audience, to think.

The stuff they gave you
was extreme and what they did

whether they were dealing with aids

or having one of their main doctor characters

raped in a prison.

They tackled lots of difficult subjects.

"St. Elsewhere" was run by people who were trying

to stretch the medium, and in the '80s,

television producers were encouraged

to stretch the medium.

Okay.
Clear.

A lot of people used to say, "I was there."

Now people say they watch it on television.

There's just a lot of excitement

connected to sports in the '80s.

You used to have to depend on the five minutes

at the end of your local newscast.

There just hadn't been enough, you know?

Give us a whole network of sports.

There's just one place you need to go

for all the names and games
making sports news -

"ESPN sports center."

What happens in the 1980s
is sports becomes a TV show

and what are TV shows built around?

They're built around characters.

You can't be serious, man.
You cannot be serious!

You guys are the absolute pits
of the world, you know that?

Mcenroe, the perfect villain.

The new yorker that people loved to hate.

Borg the cool Swede,
never giving any emotion away.

What tennis really wants
is to get its two best players

playing over and over again in the final.

Whether there's John Mcenroe and Bjorn Borg

or Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova.

That's what we want to tune into
over and over and over again.

Oh, could this be?

Net court at three match points
to martina navratilova.

Know that this man has a smile

that lights up a television screen

from here to bangor, Maine.

And then there is magic Johnson,

this urban kid from Michigan

and Larry bird, this guy
who worked carrying trash.

One plays for the Los Angeles Lakers,

the other plays for the Boston celtics.

It's a great story.

Off the back.

Lakers had several chances

and here's Larry bird dunking down the court.

Magic Johnson leads the attack.

Look at that pass.
Oh, oh! What a show!

What a great play!

Oh!
What a show!

When those championship games
are in prime time

and people are paying attention to that,

television feeds into those rivalries

and makes them bigger
than they've ever been before.

Every Mike Tyson fight was an event

because every fight was like an ax murder.

When he fought Michael Spinks,

the electricity, you could just
feel it watching it on TV.

Here comes Mike, Spinks in!

He leads with a right hand!
Down he goes!

Tyson was made for TV because there was drama.

It's all over! Mike Tyson has won it!

Not a lot of junior high school kids can dunk,

especially at five feet.

But everybody tries now.
Everybody tries.

I bet now.

I think that he is starting
to transcend just his sport.

He's becoming something of a public figure.

Michael Jordan becomes the model

that every other athlete wants to shoot for.

They want to be a brand.

And that's what television does for these athletes.

It turns them into worldwide, iconic brands.

The inbound pass comes in to Jordan.

Here's Michael at the foul line.
A shot on ehlo.

Good!
Yeah!

The bulls win!

Athletes in the '80s became part of an ongoing

group of people that we cared about.

We just had an enormous, pentup demand for sports

and the '80s began to provide.
Thank goodness.

Cable television is continuing to grow.

It's estimated that it will go into

one million more U.S. households this year.

With cable television suddenly
offering an array

of different channel choices,
the audience bifurcated.

That's an earthquake.

I want my mtv!
I want my mtv!

I want my mtv!

I want my mtv.

I want my mtv.

A new concept is born -

the best of TV combined with the best of radio.

This is it.

Welcome to mtv, music television -

the world's first 24hour,
stereo, video music channel.

Music television, what a concept.

Mtv was, pow!, in your face.

You were not gonna turn us off.

Mtv did nothing

but play current music videos all day long.

So let me get this straight -

you turn on the TV and it's like the radio?

I'm Martha Quinn.

The music will continue nonstop
on mtv music television,

the newest component of your stereo system.

When mtv launched, a generation was launched.

18 to 24yearolds were saying,
"I want my mtv."

I want my mtv videos.
I want my mtv fashion.

Yo!

Mtv was the first network

really focused on the youth market

and becomes hugely influential

because they understand each other,

the audience and the network.

Mtv had a giant impact visually and musically

on every part of the TV culture that came next.

Freeze!
Freeze!

Miami vice.

Friday nights on nbc are different this season,

thanks to "Miami vice."

It's a show with an old theme,
but a lot of new twists.

Described by one critic

as containing flashes of brilliance, nonetheless.

Shot entirely on location in south Miami,

the story centers around two undercover vice cops.

I don't know how this is gonna work tubbs.

I mean, you're not exactly up my
alley style and persona wise.

Heaven knows I'm no box of candy.

Television very much was the small screen.

What was interesting

about Tony yerkovich's pilot screenplay

for "Miami vice" is that
it was exactly not that.

Very much the approach was,

okay they call this a television series,

but we're gonna make onehour
movies every single week.

Okay, here we go.
Standby.

Action!

Police!
Police!

You were just describing the show

as sort of a newwave cop show.

Yeah, it's a cop show for the '80s.

I mean, we use a lot of mtv images

and rock music to help describe the mood

and feeling of our show.

In a lot of ways,

you don't get "Miami vice" without mtv

because in a lot of ways,
"Miami vice" was a long video.

The music was such a big part of that show.

There was an allure to using great music

that everybody was listening
to as opposed to the routine

kind of TV scoring of that period.

Not only was it not afraid
to let long scenes play out,

it would drag - a car
going from point a to point b

could be a fourminute Phil Collins song,

you know, and it was.

Being able to take a television series

like "Miami vice" and let's
really kind of rock 'n' roll

with this until somebody says,

"stop, are you guys crazy?
You can't do that."

And nobody ever did.

Go!

Freeze! Police!

Thomas Magnum?

Marion Hammond?

The private investigator?

Oh

you're probably wondering about the goat.

Um, just let me drop off
my friend, and then we'll talk.

When we entered the '80s,

a lot of onehour dramas that were light hearted,

like "Magnum, p.I.,"

were very popular.

After "m.A.S.H."
Went off the air,

the next season there wasn't
a single sitcom in the top 10.

First time that had ever happened in TV history.

The prevailing feeling was that the sitcom was dead.

Brandon tartikoff, nbc programming chief,

says reports of the sitcom's
death were greatly exaggerated.

Time and time again,
if you study television history,

just when someone is counting a form out,

that is exactly the form of programming

that leads to the next big hit.

So 1984, "the cosby show" comes on.

Now, bill cosby's not new to TV.
He's had other TV shows.

But "the cosby show" is very different.

It stands apart from everything else he's done.

Mom, I wanted my eggs scrambled.

Coming right up.

They talked about parenting.

Previous to that, on television

the kids were cool and the parents were idiots.

And then cosby says the parents are in charge

and that was something new.

Instead of acting disappointed
because I'm not like you,

maybe you can just accept who I am

and love me anyway because I'm your son.

That's the dumbest thing
I've ever heard in my life!

You know, it helps,

the casting of anything helps a lot in television.

And the kids were just great.

If you were the last person on this earth,

I still wouldn't tell you.

You don't have to tell me what you did.

Just tell me what they're gonna do to you.

Unlike every other show on TV,

it's showing an uppermiddleclass black family.

This wasn't "all in the family."

They weren't tackling, you know, deep issues.

But that was okay.

The mere fact that they existed
was a deep issue.

The decade was waiting for something real.

In other words, unless it's real

it doesn't seem like it moves anybody.

If someone's feeling something,

you get to the heart, you get to the mind.

And if you can hit the hearts and minds,

you got yourself a hit.

How was school?

School, dear?

I brought home two children
that may or may not be ours.

Cosby's show brought
this tremendous audience to nbc.

And that was a bridge to us.
I mean, our ratings went way up.

Even the theme song to "cheers"
put you in a good mood.

Evening everybody.

Norm!

Norman.

What's shaking norm?

All four cheeks and a couple of chins, coach.

By the end of the "cheers" pilot,

not only did you know who everybody was,

but you wanted to come back
and see what was gonna happen.

It's like all you have to do is watch it once,

you're gonna love these people.

These are universal characters

and the humor worked on so many levels.

Last night I was up till 2:00 in the morning

finishing off kierkegaard.

I hope he thanked you for it.

You have to create a community

that people are identifying with.

And "cheers" gives you that community.

Boy I tell you, I've always wanted to sky dive.

I've just never had the guts.

What did it feel like?

Well, imagine it's a lot like sex, Sammy.

Not that I have to imagine what sex is like.

But I've had plenty of sex,
and plenty of this, too.

What don't you just get off my back, okay?

Long: In the first episode,

there was a rather passionate annoyance.

I was saying, uh, something's going on here.

A really intelligent woman
would see your line of b.S.

A mile away.

I've never met an intelligent
woman that I'd want to date.

On behalf of the intelligent
women around the world,

may I just say, phew!

When we saw what
Ted and shelley had together,

we said, "oh no, we gotta do this relationship."

Ted and I understood what
they were writing right away.

If you'll admit that you are carrying

a little torch for me,

I'll admit that i'm
carrying a little one for you.

Well, I aam carrying a little torch for you.

Well,

I'm not carrying one for you.

Diane knew how to tease Sam.
Sam knew how to tease Diane.

And I guess we knew
how to tease the audience.

This incredible chemistry

between the two of them ignited the show.

And that's what drove the show
for the first five years.

Oh, I'm devastated.

I need something expeditious

and brutal to numb my sensibilities

and blast me into sweet oblivion.

How about a boilermaker?

Make it a mimosa.

We had the luck to be able to rotate cast

and every time we put somebody
in, there were explosions.

Bwah!

There was something
very special about that setting,

those characters, that I never
got tired of writing that show.

Sophisticated surveys, telephonic samplings,

test audiences, all of those things

help to separate winners from losers

and make midcourse corrections.

But you can't cut all comedies
from the same cookie cutters.

All you can hope is that every
night turns out like Thursday.

Yo, Angela!

Larry, Larry.

Next...

How rude.

He's quick, I'll give him that.

All of television said,

"oh, well, maybe the sitcoms are alive again."

And that's all that it took.
It took one success.

A few years from now,

something new may tempt the people

who pick what we see.

But it's a very safe guess
that whatever gets hot

for a season or two,
the men and women who create

good television comedy

will be laughing all the way to the bank.

This is my last broadcast

as the anchorman of the "CBS evening news."

For me it's a moment
for which I long have planned,

but which nevertheless comes with some sadness.

For almost two decades after all,

we've been meeting like this in
the evenings and I'll miss that.

And that's the way it is,
Friday, march 6, 1981.

I'll be away on assignment

and Dan rather will be sitting
in here for the next few years.

Good night.

Uncle Walter had dominated certainly CBS,

but in a way the country.

People used to say

that he was the most trusted man in the country.

Once Walter cronkite retires,

all three network news anchors

within a period of a couple of years

switch over to a new generation.

The '80s may have been the last gasp

where people watching the media
liked and trusted the media.

Nuclear arms and how to prevent
global destruction

are expected to be the major topic

of President Reagan's news conference tonight.

That conference will be nationally televised

within the hour.

Lesley stahl is at the white house.

The white house is hoping that tomorrow's...

In the '80s, women came into the newsroom.

When I first joined, it was '72
and there were very few.

By the '80s, there were more and more.

The decade of the '80s

was still a time of sink or swim.

You had to be resilient in your own way

to survive in a period
when you were going up against

a lot of people who still didn't
think women had what it took.

These are some of the most
famous faces in broadcasting,

all of whom happen to be women.

The best producers, I'm gonna get fired -

the best producers at CBS news are women.

And they are at the level of taking hold

and making decisions about individual pieces.

They're not yet executive producers

of all the news shows, but they will be.

For the past 24 hours,

Christine craft has taken her cause

to many of the nation's news and talk programs.

I didn't set out to be Joan of arc.

But I think that what happened
to me deserves some attention.

Christine craft had a very successful career,

but there she was in her late 30s

and the TV station said to her,

we're taking you off the air
because you've gotten older

and you're not as attractive as you once were,

which was outrageous.

And she decided to make an issue of it.

She filed a lawsuit

and it became a huge
national topic of discussion.

A jury said she got a raw
deal because she is a woman.

And so women in television news
everywhere were asked,

what do you think about Christine craft?

I think unfortunately in recent years,

the emphasis has been increasingly

on physical appearance
and to the extent this decision

helped swing the emphasis back to substance

and to good journalism,

I think we've got something to be happy about.

It was important to make
the point that what mattered

was what kind of reporter are you?

But it took the Christine craft incident,

I think, to bring that
conversation out into the open.

This coming Sunday,

a new television network
opens for business - CNN.

Cable news network.

You're throwing all the dice on this one?

Why not? Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Faint heart never won fair lady.

Well on that original point, Mr. Turner,

thank you very much indeed.

I wanted to see what was going on in the world.

And there was no way that you could do it

watching the regular television stations.

The news only comes on at 6:00 and 10:00.

But if there was news on 24 hours,

people could watch it any time.

We sign on on June 1
and barring satellite problems

in the future, we won't be signing off

until the world ends.

There was a widespread belief

this was a fool's errand.

How can this possibly find an audience?

Well, he did.

Ready camera three.
One center up.

Good evening.
I'm David Walker.

And I'm Lois harp.
Now here's the news.

President Carter has arrived...

Television news before this was
stuff that had already happened.

For the first time,

CNN brought the world to people in real time.

CNN - the world's most important network.

I didn't do cable news network

because somebody told me it couldn't be done.

I figured it was a very viable concept

and I went ahead and did it.

It was after we announced
that we were going to do it

that the detractors showed up.

Is cable news network just gonna be a new means

of delivering the same kind of fare?

No.

It already does provide different fare

and cable news network is a perfect

and maybe the best example of that.

People love news and we had lots of it.

And the other guys had not very much.

So choice and quantity won out.

New York City, hello.

A major catastrophe in america's space program...

I'm Lou dobbs along with
financial editor myron kandel.

Jessica mcclure trapped for almost three days now

in a dry artesian well.

The iron curtain between east Germany

and west Berlin has come tumbling down.

Good evening I'm pat Buchanan
the conservative in "crossfire."

The American people
appreciated the new television.

They certainly came to -
came to CNN in droves.

Mr. Gorbachev and I both agree
on the desirability of freer

and more extensive personal
contact between the peoples

of the Soviet union and the United States.

We began to realize that the best way

to get a message to a foreign
leader was to have the president

go in the Rose garden and make a statement.

Because everybody was watching CNN.

CNN was a breakthrough.
It changed the whole world.

It changed quickly, the network news business.

That business that we weren't the only ones.

And it was hard, you know.

It's hard to be on the top little perch

and have to come down off it.

A special segment tonight, the network news.

The first in a twopart series
on the profound changes

taking place in television news.

Changes being brought about
by business, competition,

and technology.

There are a variety
of reasons why people who worked

at the broadcast networks
were freaked out in the 1980s.

One of them was CNN and the rise of cable.

Another was being taken over

by foreign entities in corporate america.

New owners spent billions
buying the networks recently,

and all of them want their money's worth.

People began to find out that
news could be a profit center.

And that focused a lot of attention on us.

A lot from people in wall street, for instance.

If you think about the news
divisions of CBS, nbc and abc,

they were part of a really proud tradition,

a journalistic tradition that really matters.

We serve the public.

This is not about profit and loss.

And the people who worked at those news divisions

were totally freaked out by what it meant

that they were now owned by
these larger corporate entities.

If the television news
isn't profitable at some point,

there won't be any more
television news on the networks.

I worry about people
who are interested only in money

and power getting ahold of television.

It has higher purposes than that.

We have seen the news and it is us.

Sometimes ambition in a woman

is considered to be a dirty word unfortunately.

I don't hear a lot of female voices

reverberating in the halls
of power in this business.

Well I'm surprised there aren't
more shows about women

that are talking about who they are.

Directing seems to be an area

that is almost impossible to break through.

I think the '80s were the era

when women were being looked at

with a little skepticism,

but definitely with more acceptability.

You could see the door opening,
but it wasn't wide open.

"Cagney & Lacey" was huge.

That there would be two women
and they had a serious job

and they solved crimes and they
were out on the streets.

They were tough.

That was emblematic or maybe out in front a little

of what was actually happening in the country.

So, we're a terrific team.
This is true.

What do you say we go out and
celebrate how terrific we are?

There had been by that point
hundreds of buddy cop shows,

but these buddies were women.

That had never been done before.

I didn't go after this job

because I couldn't find anything else.

All right? I did not come here
because I needed

some kind of work to help pay the orthodontist.

This means something to me.

What the hell are we talking about here?

We didn't even realize that this was gonna be

such a big deal, and strangely,

all these guys would say to us,

"well yeah, I mean, it's a good script,

but who's gonna save them in the end?"

All right, come on.
We're taking you out of here.

Come on.

You're taking my wife?!

You don't take one step.
You understand me?

Sergeant Nelson, you have
until 8:00 tomorrow morning

to turn yourself into iad.

Phyllis!

If you don't, I will.

It was a time where you
really saw an emergence of women

on television who were not necessarily

just 20 and blond and had a small role.

But women who had substantial roles.

It was unpredictable that an audience,

a young audience, a not so young audience

and lots in between could relate
to those older ladies.

Ma, if you couldn't see,

why didn't you call me to come get you?

I tried to but every time
I put in a dime and dialed,

a condom popped out.

I got five in my pocket.
Here Dorothy.

A lifetime supply.

She was recently named

along with Norman lear and Jim Brooks

as one of television's
most gifted creator/writers.

And when you look back
at the past women role models

on television, well it's easy
to see Susan Harris' impact.

Susan Harris was the
greatest writer, in my opinion,

of her generation, of that time.

Singularly, so, you know,

all credit to her for coming up
with so many iterations

of something so amazing.

Do you think there is
a woman's voice as a writer?

Woman's voice - well generally
they speak higher, softer.

I should have known not
to ask that of a writer.

Yes, of course, there's a woman's voice.

Women have a different perspective.

Women laugh at different things.

So yes, they're very definitely
is a woman's voice.

Oh, do you know how
many problems we have solved

over a cheesecake at this kitchen table?

No, Dorothy, exactly how many?

147, Rose!

Oh.

Hi Bryant.
It's cutthroat prime time time this fall

as some 23 new shows compete

in one of the hottest ratings races in years.

Here's one just about everybody
predicts will be a big hit.

"Designing women" on CBS.

Four femmes forming
an interior decorating business

and giving each other the business.

Suzanne, if sex were fast food,

there'd be an arch over your bed.

Linda bloodworththomason
created one of the funniest,

most unusual shows in "designing women."

They were a different group of women

than you really saw on television.

They were feisty, they were sexy,

and Linda's voice came through shining.

A man can get away with anything.

I mean, look at Reagan's neck.
It sags down to here.

Everybody raves about how great he looks.

Can you imagine if Nancy had that neck?

They'd be putting her in
a nursing home for turkeys.

They'd given me this 23 minutes

to address whatever topic I want.

And it's such a privilege.

It's more than the president
of the United States gets

and it's kind of thrilling
to have that every week.

I would lying if I said I didn't
put my opinions in the show.

Excuse me, but you lovely ladies
look like you're in need

of a little male companionship here.

Trust me when I tell you
that you have completely

misassessed the situation at this table.

All right.
Moving onto scene b.

I am a woman and I am a writer,

but I don't really enjoy
being called a woman's writer.

I think labels are harmful to us.

With "Murphy brown,"

just about everything about that program felt new.

The civil rights movement and the women's movement

had just begun to sort of be
reflected in the programming

that you saw on television in the '80s.

Murphy, you know the dunfries
club is for men only?

And they have great dinners
with great guests

and I don't get to go for
one reason and one reason only.

And it has to do with something
you've got and I don't.

A tiny, pathetic, little y chromosome.

"Murphy brown" was sea change
because she was so popular

and such a strong, independent, tough woman.

No matter what you think
of a guest or their views,

you are obligated to ask the
questions in a dignified manner.

Jim, she was unprofessional, am I right?

Well, I, uh...

Do you believe this Jim?

He thinks it's neat that
his office chair swivels

and he's calling me unprofessional.

You are in a good mood tonight.

And I tell you, we have put
a great show together.

It'll be on a week from Thursday.

Johnny Carson in the
'80s is making the transition

from being the king of late night

to being a national treasure.

He was a throwback to that old show biz stuff.

I haven't been on with you for some time.

You, you've been...
It's been a long time.

Yeah, well, you've been busy with other things.

That's -

The tide is starting to turn in terms of

where latenight television is gonna go.

But Johnny is kind of holding out.

He was not necessarily of his time in the '80s.

But he did sustain a certain timelessness.

He's the king.

On your chair.

Whoa!

Hyah!

He's all right.
He's just playing.

Playing my

my next guest not only has a college degree,

but he also has a highschool degree.

That's right, I do.

As well, unhuh.

Yes.

He's hosted "the tonight show"
practically as often

as Johnny Carson and now
he has his very own show,

weekday mornings at 10:00 on nbc.

Ladies and gentleman
what you're witnessing here

is a good idea gone awry.

Yes, and a funfilled surprise

turning into an incredible
screw up right here.

David letterman originally
had a onehour daytime show.

And nbc, after like 13 weeks, decided to cancel it.

Today is our last show on the air.

Monday, Las Vegas.

Have these people been frisked before they...

It was a dismal failure
in terms of the ratings.

But not in terms of introducing us to letterman.

David, thank you for being with us tonight.

Thank you very much for
having me, I appreciate it.

And in spite of all this nonsense

that goes around in
the background, stay with it.

Don't give up. And stay with us
here in New York.

We like having you.

I like being here.
Thank you very much.

Dave is back in New York.
You're going to host

a latenight television program
that premieres Monday night.

What are, what are critics
likely to say Tuesday morning?

I don't much care because I
found a way to deal with that -

pills and whiskey.

You're on.

Oh, I'm on. I'm sorry, I was
enjoying listening to you snort.

They gave him the "late night"
show after "the tonight show,"

and at the time, people thought,

who's gonna watch television at 12:30 at night?

Who's up?
I'll tell you who's up.

Young people.
College people.

Is it going well?
I know this is the first show

and I think this guy
needs a little support.

Dave letterman.

He was antiestablishment at his core.

He was thumbing his nose to
any existing social structures.

Who are those women out there, by the way?

Neighbors.

I'll get rid of them.
Hey, excuse me.

Just keep it moving, come on.

He kind of spoofed
the whole notion of talk shows.

It's the "late night" guest cam.

Please say hello to Tom Hanks.
Here he is.

No one can go on the "David letterman show"

and try to steer it towards a point of view

or push something in particular.

He just wouldn't stand for it.

You're on to do one thing and one thing only -

be as funny as the rest of the show.

You know, we could get in
a two shot here, Dave.

We could actually send
the crew home, couldn't we?

You know, as a comedian,

you want the biggest audience
that you could get.

For Dave, he knew a lot of things

that he would do were gonna alienate people.

And he didn't care.

He wanted his thumbprint out there

and that's the most important thing.

It's time for "small town news."
Paul?

Excuse me. Paul?
Do you have any -

do you have any accompanying music here

for "small town news"?

Paul shaffer, ladies and gentlemen.

The show making fun
of itself and turning itself

inside out that way was something kind of new.

I mean, don't we look like guys

that you'd see hanging around together?

Absolutely.

Would you like to hang around with me?

Absolutely.

Would you like to hang around with me?

Nope.

I've said it before and I'll say it again.

This is the stupidest show I've...

I thought that I would never
want to do this show with you.

Now why?

Because you thought I was a...

An

there's one rule I keep trying to abide by

and unfortunately I only get
to it about 12% of the time.

And that is, it's only television.

We're not doing cancer research.

If the 40 yearodd history
of commercial broadcasting

has taught us one thing, there's
nothing sacred about television.

All right.
Steven is upstairs.

Hey Dave, I was just curious,

is there any way I can get mtv on this...

Actually, Steve, that's a -
that's just a monitor

and all you can get on that is our show.

Oh.
That's okay.

There was a degree of cynicism

that was needed in the art form at that time.

And it's a cynicism

that just became common sense after a while.

Because it never got old.

I've watched Johnny Carson,

and you are no Johnny Carson.

Good day, welcome to the great
white north Canadian corner.

I'm Bob McKenzie, this is my brother Doug.

And today we got a real big show
'cause we got a...

There was a second city Chicago company,

there was a second city Toronto company.

The Toronto one is the one
that fueled the sctv series,

which originally was syndicated
and got to the states that way.

Hail Caesar!

Hail, hail.

Thank you very much for
that marvelous reception.

I particularly want to thank
my supporters over there

in the caesarian section.

It's healthy to be an outsider,
you know, as a comedian.

And Canadian are always outsiders

but they're looking at the other culture,

which is right next door to them.

I love you Sammy maudlin!
I want to bear your children!

It was the type of comedy
that had only been accessible

if you could have gotten into
the improv clubs

in Chicago or Toronto.

I had never seen anything like second city TV.

James bridgeman, parkdale.

Sorry, no, never mind.
I'm sorry.

It was far more conceptual in its humor

because it didn't have to be performed

in front of an audience.

And there was also just the idea

that it was this sort of lowrent thing.

It was this sort of by the seat of their pants

kind of operation that gave it an authenticity.

Now that our programming day has been extended,

I'm gonna be spending a lot...

Where do you want me to
put the kielbasa Mrs. Prickley?

Put it in the fridge, butch.

You were rooting for the show

and the characters that they had created.

There was just something that you got behind.

Whereas, you know, "snl" right from the -

from the gate and through the '80s

was this big enterprise.

After five golden years,

lorne decided to leave
and so did those close to him,

including me, al franken.

So nbc had to pick a new producer.

Now most knowledgeable people,
as you might imagine,

hoped it would be me, al franken.

There was a real question

of whether "Saturday night live"
would continue at all

or whether it would just die.

The press hasn't been overly kind.

Yeah, I read that stuff.

"Saturday night live" is Saturday night dead.

Oh, man, come on. Geez.

From yucks to yech.

My favorite, though, is "vile from New York."

Please, bill, come on.

It's funny, it's funny.

They were having a hard time

and then came the man that saved
the show, Eddie Murphy.

There was buzz about him so you tuned in

and there was this kind of explosion of talent

in front of your eyes.

Hey!
Too hot in the hot tub!

Burn myself!

It really kind of rejuvenated the show.

I am gumby, damn it!
You don't talk to me that way.

After a while,

the show regained its status and its clout

and became even more of
an institution than it had been.

Hey Bob.

Hey, penis looks great today.

Listen, Harry, if you're unhappy
with my work, tell me now!

You're through, do you hear me?

Through!
You'll never work in this town again.

Don't leave me hanging by a thread!

Let me know where I stand!

We were a little worried at
first because we had a new cast,

but everyone loves us.

You guys have been so nice
to us during our stay.

Isn't that special?

I am hans.

And I am Franz. And we just
want to pump you up!

A lot of things that they could do

on "Saturday night live"
they couldn't do on a sitcom.

The humor was more daring and more satirical.

And it was political.

You still have, uh, 50 seconds
left Mr. Vice president.

Well let me just sum up, on track,

stay the course, a thousand points of light.

Stay the course.

Governor dukakis, rebuttal?

I can't believe I'm losing to this guy.

I'll get it.
Oh, geez.

It's garry shandling's show.

People were taking all
the old principles of comedy

and trying to turn them
into something new.

We spent years and years
watching sitcoms and dramas

and talk shows by then.

We knew them by heart that if somebody

played on that and parodied it,
we got it instantly.

Yeah, I appreciate you coming in
under these conditions Lewis.

I really do. You want to hold the credits.

Okay.
Now, see, we were gonna show the credits

and you screwed that up, okay?

'Cause you're late.

"The garry shandling show"
was aware of the fact

that it was a situation comedy.

It highlighted the cliches in funny ways.

Are you looking into the camera?

No.

No, I didn't.

Don't - don't look into the camera.

I didn't.

Don't.

I didn't.

You don't come in here
and look in the camera.

I didn't.

I'll bop you.

I will, if I see a tape of this show...

...and you're looking into the c-

well, it's about that time.

"Peewee's playhouse" on CBS,

a socalled Saturday morning kids show

that adults could watch and wink at each other

as they were watching it.
It was very clever.

Haha!
Morning conky.

What's today's secret word?

Today's secret word is good!

It was a show certainly for kids

and it was for stoned baby boomers

who were totally wasted on Saturday morning

and watched "peewee's playhouse"

and saw god.

I sure had a lot of fun.

See you all real soon.

Until then, everybody be good!

Haha!

1968, the summer before junior high school.

And I don't mind saying I was
a pretty fair little athlete.

"The wonder years"
was a guy in modern times

looking back on his childhood.

That in itself is not new,

but "the wonder years" did it
with a wit and with the music.

It was a brilliantly written
show and a great performance

by that entire young cast.

Hey, Steve.

It looks like my baby brother

and his girlfriend have found each other.

She's not my girlfriend.

Kevin Arnold has to cope
with all the timeless problems

of growing up during
one of the most turbulent times

that we have known.

Kevin Arnold is just like a regular kid

except in the 1960s.

And he's not really aware
of many of the events.

Like in one of the episodes,

the whole family's watching
the Apollo 8 take off.

But I'm just sitting there
trying to call a girl.

The first episode
of "the wonder years,"

anybody who saw it remembers the ending

where, you know -
the first kiss

with winnie and Kevin Arnold.

The song that they play
is "when a man loves a woman."

That moment seemed so pure and so real.

The tone of the baby boomers
of the 1960s is about rebellion,

about being students.

By the 1980s, it's time to grow up.

And so they shave their beards,

give up their dashikis,
and they put on power suits -

a whole new notion.

Ah, the yuppies.

Last year the politicians

were all talking about winning their votes.

Now those young, urban professionals

and the rest of their baby boom generation

are being wooed by advertisers
and their agencies.

By the '80s,

it was pretty clear that the generation

after the generation of the '60s

may be embodied by Alex Keaton
on "family ties."

Soon to be a lot more interested
in the corner office

than the new Jerusalem.

You're a young man.

You shouldn't be worried about success.

You should be thinking about
hopping on a tramp steamer

and going around the world.

The '60s are over, dad.

Thanks for the tip.

You weren't laughing
at Michael j. Fox's character

for being too conservative.

You were actually laughing at the parents

for being too hopelessly liberal.

What is this?
I found it in the shower.

That's generic brand shampoo.

Ah!

This is him. This is the guy
I've been telling you about.

This is everything you'd want in a president.

The genius of "family ties" is it allows

a kind of youthful reaganite to emerge

that's focused more on the future,

that's focused more on
the a critique of the '60s.

Michael j. Fox as Alex Keaton

really became the center of the show.

And writers were smart enough to see

that they had something special
and they wrote to that.

It's not fair, Alex.

Yeah.

There's nothing you can do about it, Jen.

My advice to you is that you just enjoy

being a child for as long as you can.

I know I did.

It's the best two weeks of my life.

Alex is a little bill Buckley.

He - the wall street journal is his Bible.

He has a tie to go with his pajamas.

He's very conservative
and a very intense 17yearold.

Now the first thing your teacher's gonna ask

is what you did over the summer.

Now, a lot of kids are gonna
say, I went to the zoo.

Or I went to the beach.
Or I went to a baseball game.

What are you gonna say?

I watched the Iran contra hearings.

If mom and dad thought this generation

was going to the dogs, think again.

This is the generation

that has discovered hard work and success.

American culture is changing in the '80s.

And in terms of television,

there's a whole notion
of demographic segmentation.

Networks were beginning to not be afraid

to appeal to a very specific demographic.

Hi, handsome.
Look at that shirt.

Is that a power shirt or what?

Nice suit Ellen, good shoulder pads.

You looking to get drafted by the eagles?

"Thirtysomething" said,
we're not gonna have cops,

lawyers, or doctors.

We're just gonna be about people.

What are we doing here?
Why did we start this business?

To do our thing.

But right now we got two wives,

three kids, four cars,

two mortgages, a payroll.

And that's life, pal.

You be the breadwinner now.

Is that what I am?

"Thirtysomething" is a very important show

as you're going into this era of television

being more introspective and more emotional.

And some people weren't buying it.

But for other people, when they
were talking about things

like having kids and who
was gonna go back to work

and some of these issues
that hadn't been talked about

a whole lot, it was important to people.

I was so looking forward -

I was so looking forward to doing this,

to be a grownup for just an hour.

In the beginning,
there was talk of this being

the yuppie show
and you mentioned it tonight.

Youyou said
that if there were a category

for the most annoying show,
this might win as well.

No, what some people
perceive as annoying

has nothing to do with yuppie.

I think yuppie is a word
made up by demographers

and advertisers to sell soap.

I don't think it has anything
to do with what the show is.

"Thirtysomething" was not a giant hit.

But it was a niche hit.

It attracted an enormously
upscale group of advertisers.

The network cared who was watching,

not how many were watching.

And that was more and more
catching on in the '80s.

The prosecution will
ask you that you look to the law

and this you must do.

But I ask of you that you
look to your hearts as well.

Thank you.

"L.A. law" was partly a classic lawyer show.

But it was intertwined
with their personal lives

and different lawyers
who were sleeping together

and trying to get ahead.

The reality level on that show

was like a foot or two off the ground.

And you were willing to go with that

because it was a whole new spin
on a law show.

Unhunh, tell the truth.

If you had to do it all over again

and she walked into your office and she said,

take my case, would you?

Well...

Of course you would, because it
is juicy, newsy, exciting stuff.

It was really fun

to take the "hill street blues" format

and use it to frame

an entirely different
social and cultural strata

with vastly different results.

I wonder if I might engage
with my client privately.

Certainly.

What are you doing for dinner tonight?

I was planning on having you.

In that case, skip lunch.

The formula had gotten established

of how you can do a dramatic show

and yet still have an awful lot of fun.

We didn't used to be able
to accept that very easily

in a TV hour.

And even before the '80s are out,

it's like, "oh, okay, I get it.

You know, so it's like, all
right, what are the rules now?"

What are you doing?
I'm doing what I

should have done all along.
...Should have done all along.

What I wanted to do originally.
...Do originally.

What I should have done

last night.

...last night.

Stop that David!
Stop that David!

I'm calling the police, David!
...The police, David!

Hello, police?

The networks realized there was an audience

looking for something less predictable

than traditional primetime fare.

"Moonlighting" was another of those shows

that said, "okay, I see the formulas

that we've had up to here.

Let's do different things.

Hello.

Hello.

We're looking a little
"pale" today, aren't we?

And who have we here?
I don't know.

Moonlighting was a really
experimental show.

They had a Shakespeare episode.

They had a black and white episode.

They did a musical episode.

They tried a lot of different stuff.

I don't give a flying fig
about the lines in my face,

the crow's feet by my eyes,
or the altitude of my caboose.

Well, I'm at a loss.

I don't know what a flying fig is.

That's okay, they do.

There's no trouble on the set.
There is no trouble on the set.

Well, we have a very volatile relationship.

There is a hate/love element to it.

Easy come, easy go!
Ha!

The flirtations were great,

and Bruce and cybill were great.

Glenn caron kept them apart
for a long time.

And bravo to him.

What they did was they took
the Sam and Diane dynamic

from "cheers" and escalated it.

"Cheers" was,
"will they or won't they?"

"Moonlighting" was, "do they even want to?"

Stay away from me.

Here I come.

But I don't want you.
I never wanted you.

Yeah, right.

Does entertaining mean
at some point stopping the tease

of Dave and maddie?

I mean, do they get together at some point?

I hope so. Well, that, that's
gonna be resolved this year.

We like to think of it as two
and a half years of foreplay.

People who had been watching

"moonlighting" for years
were waiting for this moment.

And your emotions are already there,

built onto the emotions that
you're seeing on the screen.

So when "be my baby"
by the ronettes starts playing,

it's like a perfect storm of romance.

In recent years, it seems
that television has become

a kind of an electronic confessional

where guests are willing to expose painful

and sometimes embarrassing
aspects of their lives

quite readily to millions of viewers.

At the beginning of the decade,

we get the dominance of Phil donahue.

And that's sort of a maturation of women's issues.

And he seemed to talk to them, in the audience,

he seemed to talk to them through the TV screen.

I'm glad you called.
Kiss the kids.

We'll be back in just a moment.

If you look at the body of work we've had,

you know, you're gonna see the '80s there.

I'm not here to say you're wrong,

but let's understand this.

When you bring a moral judgment
without knowing them,

against them for the way that they look

they feel that confirms
the reason for their rebellion,

if that's what you want to call it.

He really believed that daytime television

needed to talk about the ideas
we were thinking about,

the issues we were concerned about.

I don't want to characterize his question,

but why don't you get this fixed

instead of doing this screwy stuff?

There's not a single recorded case

in history of any transsexual, that ever,

through psychological treatment, changed.

It has never happened yet.

We were putting very important
people on the program.

All kinds of people.

Gay people.
People going to jail.

People running for office, you know?

Sometimes the same people.

It was a magic carpet ride.

You really do paint a very, very grim, picture

of the sitting president of the United States.

Let me just say this -
I think he's probably

the laziest president that I've ever seen.

The audience for Phil donahue
built and built and built

and built and led the way to "Oprah."

Whoo!

Hello, everybody. Hello!

Oprah has a particularly magical combination

of her own background, her own experience,

her own incisive mind, and empathetic spirit.

Thank you. I'm Oprah Winfrey

and welcome to the very first
national "Oprah Winfrey show"!

I was surprised at the rocket pace

that "Oprah" took off
because it took us a lot longer.

The donahue show rearranged the furniture,

but Oprah remodeled the whole house.

There are a lot of
other people who are watching

who really don't understand
what you mean when you say,

well, you know, we're in love.

Because I remember questioning
my gay friends saying, you mean,

like, you feel about him
the way I feel about...

It's kind of a strange concept,

you know, for a lot of people to accept.

Oprah was connecting with people in a way

that no one had on TV before.

And it was really special to see.

Well, did you know
that for the longest time,

I wanted to be a fourth grade
teacher because of you?

My, I was not aware of inspiring anyone.

I think you did exactly what
teachers are supposed to do.

They create a spark for learning.

That's the reason I have a talk show today.

Oprah Winfrey now dominates
the talk show circuit

both in the ratings and popularity.

I want to use my life as
a source of lifting people up.

That's what I want to do.

That's what I do every day on my show.

You know, we get accused
of being tabloid television

and sensational and so forth,

but what I really think we do
more than anything else

is we serve as a voice to a lot of people

who felt up until perhaps
my show or some of the others,

that they were alone.

This is what 67 pounds of fat looks like.

I can't, I can't lift it.

It is amazing to me
that I can't lift it,

but I used to carry it around every day.

There's nothing more endearing to an audience

than to have that kind of
honest and humility and courage

on the part of a host.

And that, I think,
has a lot to do with her power.

It feels like I can do some good here.

And I really do think that
the show does a lot of good.

American television is drowning in talk shows.

But it's never seen anything
like Morton downy, Jr.

I want to tell you this story -

sit down and shut up!

Other competitors come

and take the television talk show

into two different directions.

So you start seeing the phenomenon

of daytime television shows

becoming less tame and more wild.

The '80s brought a lot
of belligerence to television.

Whether it was Morton downey, Jr.

Being the offensive,

caricatureish person that he was,

or Geraldo.

He did his own outlandish things.

Stay with us ladies and gentlemen.

We're gonna get into the mind
of another all American boy

who came under the influence of satanism

and took part in a crime
without passion or motive.

Geraldo Rivera takes the power

of the talk show to a whole other level,

trying to put people on stage
who hate each other,

who are gonna fight.

In the case of the temple
of set and the church of Satan,

we have not had any problems
with criminal behavior.

Yet when you hear story after
story after story of people

committing these wretched crimes,

these violent crimes in the devil's name?

The more tension there is,
the more conflict there is,

the more violence there is,
the more the ratings go up.

And the American people
love to complain about it,

but they also love to watch.

Geraldo Rivera is back
in a controversy tonight.

Rivera drew sharp criticism

with his recent television
special on devil worship.

But today he found himself
in a real free for all.

I get sick and tired of seeing
uncle Tom here, sucking up,

trying to be a white man.

Go ahead, Troy, go ahead.
Now, let me tell you -

sit down, man.

Hey!

Come on.
No.

You got it coming.
You got it coming.

Dude...

Get up and get it.

Nah.

Hey, hold it!

Nah.

Hey, hold it!

Hold it!

Sit down!

Rivera suffered a broken nose

but he says the show will be broadcast

later this month in its entirety.

Well, that's not something,
you know, I would have done.

But there was a lot of hypocrisy.

One of the major magazines
put the picture of Geraldo

getting hit with a chair on the cover.

And the article said, "isn't this awful?

Look what's happened to television."

And yet they couldn't wait to use it

to sell their own magazine.

Let's go to the audience, all right.

I want to speak to you guys.
You guys are...

Over the years, broadcasting has deteriorated.

And now in this era of deregulation,

it's deteriorating further.

Give people light, and they will
find their own way. Relax.

America will survive the talk shows.

A big thing that changes in the '80s

is the number of hours spent
watching television.

Goes up.

The number of hours spent

talking about television goes up.

One of the symbols of this phenomenon

is "entertainment tonight."

Hi, I'm Tom hallick and welcome
to our opening night,

the premiere edition
of "entertainment tonight."

All of the critics were kind of unanimous

in that they said,

"it'll never last

because there simply isn't
enough entertainment news

to fill a halfhour every night.

"Entertainment tonight"
has surveyed TV critics

in the United States and Canada

to find out which television
shows had the most impact

on viewers over the years.

Now, up until this time, nobody
had done television like this.

Nobody.

Burt Reynolds, the hottest actor in Hollywood.

I'm surprised to see you here.

Well, I'm glad to see you.

Well, thank you.

We can meet here every night if you'd like.

Thank you.
I'd love it.

A lot of what makes

successful television programming

is being in the right place at the right time.

And it was the right time.

Entertainment journalism evolved

as the audience got more curious
and had more access.

Until that point,

the entertainment business
had been something

that we didn't know all that much about.

We could go behind
the scenes in our effort

to really give an insider's look.

The crafty old j.R. Of "Dallas"
fame was with his mother,

actress Mary Martin
as he was presented with a star

on the Hollywood walk of fame.

It was very honorific of the industry.

They would do serious coverage of it.

It wasn't salacious and you would see actors

speaking as actors instead of
on a Johnny Carson show.

What are you like off camera?

I'm like this.
Oh, this is on camera.

This is on camera.

It was the beginning
of a lot of money being made

talking about entertainment
and celebrities.

Robert redford plays
the good guy in the movies,

but don't tell that to
his neighbors in Utah.

They are still bitter

and redford is the target of their ire.

The audience grew and grew.

And that was showing us that the appetite

for celebrity news was big.
It was big.

Get ready for "lifestyles
of the rich and famous,"

television's most dazzling hour
of excitement!

Hi, I'm Robin leach in Monaco,

the glittering gem of the riviera.

And you've got a vip ticket to
prince rainier's private party.

Your Sunday newspaper is still delivered

with the comics around the news.

And that was what I always
thought "lifestyles" was.

We were the comic around the news.

Except we did it as seriously
as they did news.

Finally in the driving seat
of his own career,

he burned rubber in a new direction.

David Hasselhoff - rock idol.

It was a time where
pushing the limits with wealth

and ostentatiousness in a lot
of cases was very comfortable.

One of the earliest stories
that we presented to you

on "lifestyles" was about
the amazing realestate wizard

Donald Trump.

If he didn't shock and surprise
you back then,

he's had plenty of time since.

With all of this costing
billions, not millions,

do the figures ever frighten you?

The answer is no.
It's my business.

It's my life.
It's my lifestyle.

I love it.
The good, the bad.

Does this bring with it
political aspirations?

No political aspiration.

Your show has gotten a lot of ridicule.

There are people who say
it's nothing more than trash.

That doesn't upset me because I think

it's the best trash there is on television.

I am not in the business of brain surgery.

I am in the business of fluff.

It's the fantasy element

at a time when the access is possible.

It's escapism and it's aspirational.

You want to stand in a hot tub
with a glass of champagne?

Rock on!

We'd never seen that
kind of wealth ever before.

We didn't mock it,
we didn't say it was right,

and we didn't say it was wrong.

We were just through the keyhole.

Sometimes, you know,
it absolutely amazes me.

I walk away from a shoot and I
think, "well, we did it again."

There was more of everything
in TV by the '80s.

Your opportunities for watching
stuff is increasingly vast.

Nbc presents "real people."

My name's Michael B. Wilson.

The thought dawned on me that the application

of a small motor on a pair of roller skates

might really be a great thing.

Somebody once said that each one of us

will be a star for 15 minutes.

And I think that that's
probably going to happen.

American culture used to
be a culture that celebrated

privacy and in the 1980s
as we're watching celebrities

sort of play out onstage,
"hey, I want to join, too."

All the world becomes a stage
and you start seeing shows

like "real people" or "the people's court."

The people's court -

where reality television
is taken one step further.

To see more TV, producers had to come up with

new and different ways
to give them television.

Don't be stupid.

Carl, get over here!

I told you not to be stupid!

What "cops" did
was it took away the script

and just brought the camera
people and the crews on location

to try and catch actual things happening.

Cocaine...

Possession of a stolen firearm no less.

What else are you gonna do?

With this ring...

With this ring...

I thee wed.

I thee wed.

With my body...

With my body...

I thee bond.

I thee bond.

The biggest television event of the 1980s

is the marriage of Charles and Diana.

It's like the world stopped
when that happened.

I mean, that was, like, just massive.

This was the final act of a spectacle

that may never again be seen
in this century, if ever.

The archbishop of canterbury called the wedding

of prince Charles and lady Diana Spencer today

the stuff of fairy tales.

Good evening.
The royal couple at this hour

is off on the honeymoon,

while a lot of people
here in London tonight

are still talking about
the events of the day.

When you have great
moments like the royal wedding,

they're a part of history
and it's done beautifully

and everybody has a chance
to watch it all on television.

Everybody just wants to drink
a toast to Chuck and di.

A Princess who must
now be aware as it was

on this day that every single
move she makes in public

will be recorded and observed.

A very difficult life indeed.

We'll be back in just a moment
with some closing observations

and one final look at
what has justifiably been called

the wedding of the century.

By the authority of the state of New York,

I pronounce that they are husband and wife.

You may kiss the bride.

Your wedding was seen by an
astonishing number of people -

16 and 19 million viewers.

How do you account for
that kind of popularity?

Oh, I can't.
I can't.

The way it's grown, it's just -
it's amazing to me.

It did appear in
the '80s that it was a good time

for daytime soap operas,

especially for a show
like "general hospital,"

which had that huge success
with Luke and Laura's wedding.

I remember when Luke and Laura got married

because it was nighttime newsworthy.

The soap opera discovers
the blockbuster mentality,

the sweeps month mentality.

Like, what can we do to get
even more people watching.

You have a wedding.
You have a kidnapping.

You have an evil twin.

And prime time stole from daytime.

After "Dallas" proved
that ewing oil was better

than real oil for CBS,

the networks rushed to give the public more.

The great primetime
soap operas of the 1980s.

"Dallas," "dynasty."
They're all about excess.

This is about being over the top,

stabbing each other in the back,

going for the gusto, and having fun.

I know what's wrong with you.
The empty armed Madonna.

Mourning the baby that she couldn't have

and the baby that she almost got to adopt.

That is it, isn't it?

Oh, you miserable bitch!

There was a bigness to the stories.

And that they could afford
to do on a network,

if you're doing one episode a week.

Now you can't do that
if you're doing five episodes

a week for a daytime show.

So just the production value
gave it that pizzazz.

If you can't have it,
watch other people with it.

Or so say the three networks
who are programming

nearly 40% of their primetime fare

with series about the very rich.

And the public is devouring it at such a rate

that make believe money has become ratings gold.

The characters were larger than life.

They were more evil and more
cunning and manipulative.

And more gorgeous.
I mean, really.

Look at the way they were dressed.

Look at the way they lived.
Everything, it was fascinating.

Alexis?
Yes.

I didn't thank you for your present.

It's he you should slap, dear, not I.

We all wanted to live like, you know,

we were on "dynasty," like the carringtons.

And it all just ended up
being a wonderful picture

of fun and debauchery.

Greed was encouraged in the '80s.

There was a sense of conspicuous
consumption as being okay.

And those shows kind of exploited that.

Primetime families like the carringtons

who live here in luxury
on the "dynasty" sound stage

are not the only rich folk on TV.

In the last five years,

more than half of all new shows
have featured the wealthy.

10 years ago, that figure was zero.

There was an accident.
Your father's dead.

Falcon crest was a wine family.

There's Lorenzo lamas

and there's Ronald Reagan's first wife,

Jane Wyman is on that show.

Emma is pregnant.

I know a doctor who can
take care of it right away.

That will never happen.

All of those shows were,
"oh, my god, what's next?

What's gonna happen with that?
He can't get away with that."

And then you tune in.
It was appointment television.

What will become of the missing twins

on knots landing?

What?

They all had spinoffs.

"Dallas" had the spinoff "knots landing."

"The Colbys" was the spinoff for "dynasty."

They were seeing how much
they could Max this stuff out.

'Cause it was really successful.

Where's your son miles?

Isn't he going to be a part
of this venture,

or is he just playing Polo as usual?

The Colbys can always find room
for another trophy.

You had these people fighting over oil

and mansions and it was fantasy,

but in a kind of so over the top way

that it was fun.

There's nothing devious
about using your femininity.

These shows took themselves

so unseriously that they were camp.

But that was okay with the central audience

that was loving them.

It was entertainment.

We weren't trying to do high drama.

We were there to entertain.
We were glossy.

There was no getting around it.

We knew what we were there for
and we did it as best we could.

Australia's most important export

may be neither its animals
nor its beer nor its films.

Could in fact be one Rupert Murdoch.

55 year old Mr. Murdoch
is in the midst of building

what Forbes magazine says is
the most extensive media empire

in history.

A huge development in television.

The gemini of the three broadcast networks

was presumed to be complete
and Rupert Murdoch

having disrupted the newspaper
business in Australia,

the television business in britain.

He arrives in america and basically says,

I don't really see why there should only be

three broadcast networks.

I'm gonna make another one.

This was a big, bold bet.

Meantime, he will have to become

an American citizen if he
is to own TV stations here.

Something Murdoch says he is willing to do.

There are some people who are saying

that it'll take you 20 years
to get your fox network

on a par with the big three.

Are you prepared to wait that long?

Sure, I certainly intend
to live that long.

But I don't believe in the 20 years.

The reaction to Murdoch's idea

for a fourth network was similar
to the reaction at Ted Turner

starting CNN.
It's ridiculous, you know.

What does he know about television?

We don't think of ourselves
as abc, CBS or nbc.

We don't have to reach everyone.

There's no question we have an inferior lineup

of stations to our counterparts.

That means we'll all have to work harder

to get ourour message across
and get shows sampled.

They had an idea that, "in order to succeed

we have to differentiate
ourselves from the networks.

We have to do things they would not do."

Fox started throwing anything
against the wall,

not knowing what was gonna go.

First shows were things like
"21 jump street"...

What exactly are we looking for here?

...Joan rivers in terms of late night...

We have been banned in Boston,
which I think is wonderful.

Wxne, so pick a finger wxne.

...And "the Tracey ullman show."

Oh, Polly!

It was a sketch show

and they needed something
to go between the sketches.

And again, they were looking
for something different.

I gotta have those candy bars.

You better not be thinking
of stealing those candy bars.

That's it!

"The Simpsons" would never have come along

had it not been for "the Tracey Ullman show."

Ultimately, crime hurts the criminal.

But that's not true mom.
I gotta free ride home didn't I?

Bart!

Fox was thrilled

that it was different.

They said, sure, be experimental.

Do whatever you want.

We're just happy to have a show on the air.

I'm home!

"Married with children"

was their first big, big hit

in that way that said
if all the rest of television

is going this way, we're going that way.

Bud, Kelly, you want to come
down and help me in the kitchen?

There, that should buy us
about 10 minutes.

7 more than we'll need.

The title of "married with children"

on the script was "not the cosby show."

How great. I mean, you know,
you have to love that.

They just were taking the piss
out of American families.

Fun, great fun.

Hurry up bud.

Never wanted to get married, I'm married.

Never wanted to have kids, I got two of them.

How the hell did this happen?

The bundys were almost like
a purposeful reaction

to the perfection of the huxtables.

And it was funny because, you know,

you had this wonderful, perfect black family

and these horrible, miserable white people.

And each show worked on its own terms

because you could find things
to relate to in both.

Howdy neighbor.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

I hate these people.

Why don't we sit down?

There was a lot of fun to be had
in, you know, al and peg Bundy.

After fox introduces "married with children,"

it does very, very well, then back on abc,

they came up with another major hit, "Roseanne."

You think this is a magic kingdom

where you just sit up here on your throne.

Oh yeah?

Yeah!
And you think everything gets done

by some wonderful wizard.

Oh, poof, the laundry's folded.

Poof, dinner's on the table.

You want me to fix dinner?
I'll fix dinner.

I'm fixing dinner!

Oh, but, honey, you just
fixed dinner three years ago.

Typical American families

weren't on television for the longest time.

The Donna Reed days, you know, the early days,

the "father knows best," hardly
anybody really lived like that.

That was the way advertisers wanted you to live.

I know what just might make me feel better.

Me too, but I bet it's a different list

than what you got.

The ideal situation is if you can subvert

whatever common stuff is said about families

and about parenting.

What's in this, lead?

Oh, I got you kids new leg irons.

Her loudness and her unfilteredness

were key to why we liked her.

She was saying stuff about working class people,

she was saying stuff about men and women.

So it was about marriage
and about raising kids

and about how hard it is.

Oh, great, I'm just gonna
look like a freak, that's all.

What else is new?

Shut up!

This is why some animals eat their young.

TV in the '80s was a big decade
for the evolution of comedy,

for the evolution of drama.

It just pushed everything forward.

Do you think perhaps this generation

are paying more attention to the dialogue,

to the relationships
that they see on television

than in years previous?

Well, clearly the people
that are watching our shows are.

And "Thirtysomething"

and "Cheers" and "St. Elsewhere."

These are shows that are smartly written.

It's their words that define them.

And I think that's what people like.

What we're supposed to be here

is the one thing people can trust.

If you go out there
like a bunch of night riders,

what the hell are you but just
another vicious street gang?

That decade spawned an extraordinary number

of shows that really carved out
a unique niche for themselves.

We began to turn television into an art form.

And for the first time,
people were proud to say,

"I write for television."

Up until that point,
television was second class.

In the '80s, it was something else entirely

and it was new and it was
kind of interesting.

It's like everyone in the '80s

starts to want to tell their stories.

That's what really changes things.

The unexpected was more welcome in the '80s.

Predictability lost its cache.

Television has an impact
on every era, every decade.

Television still shapes
the thinking of america like

no other element in our country.

Sometimes for the better,
sometimes for the worse.

It gave rise to people pursuing artistic content

in a way that I think has raised
the bar in television production

exponentially.

I love you guys!

There's a shift in the '80s from just wanting

to placate the audience to wanting to please

and challenge the audience.

And that's the decade when it happened.

We had one hell of a run.
Didn't we partner?

Yeah.
We sure did, Sonny.

I'm gonna miss you man.

I'm gonna miss you, too, Sonny.

Can I give you a ride to the airport?

Why not?