They'll never put that on the air : an oral history of taboo-breaking TV comedy / Allan Neuwirth ; illustrations by Glen Hanson.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Neuwirth, Allan.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Television comedies--United States.

Television comedies.

United States.

Physical Description:

xi, 259 pages : illustrations ; 23 cm

Place of Publication:

New York : Allworth Press, [2006]

Summary:

In the 1950s, Lucille Ball couldn't even say the word "pregnant" on TV. But by the 1990s, Carrie Bradshaw and her posse could say everything there is to say about sex--and demonstrate most of it. How have broadcast standards changed from the dawn of television till today? Through interviews with the creators of landmark shows, author Allan Neuwirth traces that history, revealing how the upheaval of the 1960s led to edgier fare such as The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour; how counterculture baby boomers made Saturday Night Live-style satire possible; how stand-up comedians changed the sitcom landscape; how UPN and the WB raised eyebrows with comedy aimed at minorities; and much more. In this age of FCC crackdowns, They'll Never Put That on the Air is as timely as it is entertaining and informative.

Contents:

Setting the table

and girding for battle

Of course, you realize, this means war!

Sockin' it to us from beautiful downtown Burbank

I am woman, hear me

meow

A sitcom holds up a mirror, and we see ourselves

Birth of a genre: the dramedy

And then there was Maude

Soap bubbles up

and pops in ABC's face

A (densely plotted, intricately layered, tightly structured, smartly written) show about nothing.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 247-248) and index.

ISBN:

1581154178

OCLC:

62430897