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ken levine
House, from another point of view
by Nick Zaino, posted Mar 31st 2009 3:25PM
Writing an episode of a show as literally seen through another character's eyes, a point of view episode, seems like an obvious stunt. That is, unless you can pull it off as brilliantly as House did last night. The episode unfolded mainly through the POV of a man with "locked-in syndrome," played by guest star Mos Def. The big advantage of telling a story that way is, obviously, to get inside the head of one person, and get their insight into everything that's going on. Unfiltered, in real time. Scrubs plays with the point of view all the time, but when you stick with one long enough, it changes the feel of the story. In the first episode of season five, "My Intern's Eyes," Scrubs used the point of view of an intern, Keith, to show how awkward and frightening Sacred Heart could be. That was a great transition as J.D became an attending. We got to see J.D.'s new role, plus get a reminder of how the show began. The best of both worlds.
The Cheers episode Ken Levine's still writing in his head
by Keith McDuffee, posted Jul 8th 2008 1:04PM
One of our writers, Bob Sassone, introduced me to Ken Levine's blog a couple of years ago. Within a couple of weeks I had his RSS feed in my "Must Always Read" category, and there it remains.
If you don't know who Ken Levine is, if you're any sort of fan of television, it's likely you've seen something he's written: His credits include 36 episodes of Cheers, 16 episodes of M*A*S*H, seven episodes of Frasier, seven episodes of Becker, four episodes of Wings, two episodes of The Simpsons ... and a partridge in a pear tree. In short, the man knows how to write; he's won an Emmy for his writing and even sometimes offers a highly-regarded course on comedy writing, called The Sitcom Room.
Levine's blog is filled with stories from his days with the aforementioned shows, and they're sometimes hilarious, always fascinating. As a friend of TV Squad, and to celebrate the all-things Cheers week of Retro Squad, he's taken the time out to share a new story below. Enjoy!
Five biggest Cheers mysteries
by Joel Keller, posted Apr 7th 2008 1:02PM
I was looking over a "Where are they now?" feature our friends at AOL put together on the cast of Cheers, and a few of the mysteries of the long-running sitcom classic came to mind. These were head-scratchers big and small that made me wonder if the writers are the most clever geniuses ever to man a word processor (it was the '80s, after all) or, like in most sitcoms, consistency of story was the first thing to go if a good joke came up in the writers' room.I guess I should just go over to Ken Levine's blog and ask him, since he wrote for the show for many years. But if I did that, I wouldn't get paid for it. So, after the jump are the biggest Cheers mysteries, starting with the biggest and most obvious one:
Back to You -- An early look
by Liz Finn-Arnold, posted Sep 18th 2007 10:41AM
In July, I was at a sitcom writing seminar in which Sam Simon (who helped develop The Simpsons) declared: "the sitcom is dead." Veteran comedy writer Ken Levine (who hosted that sitcom seminar), however, disagrees. Ken believes the traditional multi-camera sitcom might be on a respirator, but still has a pulse. Levine said, "I would amend Sam's statement and say that yeah, the bad, stale, family sitcom with tired rhythms, forced laughs, and bogus characters is dead."I guess if you're trying to revive the dying sitcom, a good way to start is by assembling a top-notch team. And Fox's new Wednesday night comedy, Back to You, does just that.
Out of the Blogosphere
by Bob Sassone, posted Sep 2nd 2007 2:15PM
Do you remember the show Big Wave Dave's? - Best Week Ever gives us The Reverse Savage.
- A lot of people want Tucker Carlson to be fired.
- More nasty news about Andy Dick.
- Singer Chris Brown takes his jacket off at The Today Show, causes a riot.
- Did you know Hugh Laurie was almost picked to host the Emmys?
- BuddyTV has some interesting info about the Jericho season one DVD set.
Ken Levine explains how to write for a medical series
by Adam Finley, posted Aug 5th 2007 11:01AM
If you read this blog on a frequent basis, you know a few of us are fans of TV writer and blogger Ken Levine. The man has written for The Simpsons, MASH, Cheers, Everybody Loves Raymond, Wings, Dharma and Greg and many other popular and enduring series.
In a recent post, Levine explains how to write for a medical series that uses a lot of jargon: ask a doctor.
The Sitcom Room: So you think you can write?
by Liz Finn-Arnold, posted Jul 26th 2007 11:21AM
How many times have you watched a sitcom on TV and thought, "Hey, I could do that?" Last weekend, twenty aspiring writers came together at the LAX Hilton to test that theory.The Sitcom Room, an exhausting, yet exhilarating two-day event, was the brainchild of veteran TV sitcom writer Ken Levine. To me, the event was the ultimate summer camp for aspiring writers and/or TV geeks.
What if Sam Kinison had hosted a game show?
by Bob Sassone, posted Jul 11th 2007 10:02AM
There's a funny post by Ken Levine over at his blog. He talks about how it seems that the goal of standup comics now is to host a game show. Think about it. Howie Mandel, Bob Saget, Jeff Foxworthy, Drew Carey. They've all gone from having sitcoms and dramas and doing standup to hosting network game shows like Deal Or No Deal and Are You Smarter Than A Fifth Grader. Ken wants sitcoms to make a big comeback, so the talents of comics can truly be showcased and not put into that game show personality machine that either makes them annoying or (even worse) lame and bland.But what if Sam Kinison had hosted a game show? After the jump, Ken's very NSFW scene from a Kinison-hosted show.
If the Sopranos were on network TV
by Liz Finn-Arnold, posted Jun 13th 2007 11:03AM
I'll admit I was first "miffled" by most ambiguous ending ever in the history of series endings. But I'm beginning to come around to the the side that sees The Sopranos finale as "brilliant" rather than "lame." David Chase left us wanting more, and that's pretty awesome. Besides, according to Ken Levine, it could have been a lot worse. On his blog, Ken, a veteran sitcom writer, hilariously reminds us just how annoying The Sopranos finale would have been on network television. For starters, a countdown clock would have run across the bottom of our television screens for at least a month leading up to the finale. The two-hour finale would have been preceded by a one-hour clip show hosted by Bob Costas. Janice would have gotten her own spin-off called Widow With Children.
Out of the Blogosphere
by Bob Sassone, posted May 27th 2007 10:31AM
Best Week Ever interviews Michael Emerson (Ben from Lost). - Do all those "Save [Show Name Here]" campaigns really work?
- Another celeb interview: BuddyTV interviews James Kyson Lee (Ando from Heroes).
- Yes, Trump did indeed have something to say about Rosie leaving The View early.
- How many lawsuits have been filed against Brandy anyway?
- TV Guide's Matt Roush calls Hidden Palms "The O.C. meets Hitchcock."
- Here are the May sweeps ratings for the evening news (hint: Katie is still in third place).
- Cracked lists the 15 Painfully Unforgettable Cartoon Theme Songs.
Out of the Blogosphere
by Bob Sassone, posted Mar 17th 2007 1:43PM
Ken Levine has some thoughts on American Idol. - Betty Hutton passed away earlier this week.
- Jim Gaffigan talks about muffins and cakes.
- Best Week Ever isn't too happy that Zarf wasn't nominated for a Daytime Emmy.
- Some people in Hollywood use drugs.
- Will the phrase "Fair & Balanced" make it to the Hall of Fame?
- Maxim picks the 10 best infomercial products. Wait, isn't the Chia Pet ad just a commercial and not an infomercial?
Out of the Blogosphere
by Bob Sassone, posted Feb 27th 2007 9:06AM
- OK, how about one last wrap up of the Oscars? This one is from Ken Levine, and very funny.
- Wait a sec...the Geico caveman went to The Oscars?
- Mary-Kate Olsen writes for The New York Times.
- Kristin over at E! Online has a video interview with Heroes braineater Syler (Zachary Quinto) and has news about the (possible) future of Studio 60.
- TV Guide's Michelle Heller goes behind the scenes at The Late Show With David Letterman.
- Wolf Blizer likes the Situation Room satire they did on Saturday Night Live this past weekend.
- And, here's video of CBS News veteran Bob Schieffer singing a country and western song.
Out of the Blogosphere
by Bob Sassone, posted Feb 21st 2007 8:34AM
Hiccup girl goes on The Today Show, so Good Morning America calls her 57 times for an interview. - I can't tell if Time's James Poniewozik likes Heroes or not.
- Ken Levine was once on The Dating Game?!
- Irwin Handleman gives his opinion on the whole Joe Rogan/Carlos Mencia controversy.
- The original Jill Abbott on The Young and the Restless is in an Hawaiian jail.
- In case you missed it, here's George Takei's answer to Tim Hardaway's rant against gays, from Jimmy Kimmel Live.
- BuddyTV is having an Oscars contest.
- I think Tom Shales is on a wild goose chase here.
Out of the Blogosphere
by Bob Sassone, posted Jan 31st 2007 2:02PM
How can you tell if an actor is funny? Ken Levine has the answer. - If case you haven't heard, Peter Jennings died and Tom Brokaw retired.
- Screech stills wants to do things with his penis, this time on Celebrity Fit Club.
- Aaron Barnhart doesn't think Isaiah Washington is leaving Grey's Anatomy anytime soon.
- Yahoo plans to launch 100 entertainment sites by the end of the year.
- Sienna Miller swore on the Today Show this morning.
- Here's a cool toy for all you Doctor Who fans.
Out of the Blogosphere
by Bob Sassone, posted Jan 12th 2007 8:39AM
Do you want to start watching 24 but you're not sure who's who? Ken Levine has a quick guide. - Aaron Barnhart says Apple TV will change everything.
- Jennifer Aniston: are those real or not-so-real?
- More Friends news: is Courteney Cox not wank-worthy?
- MSNBC and Fox News are having a battle of the clocks.
- Now it's Oprah vs. Barbara.
- Oh, and here's video of a local NBC anchoring falling on her ass because she's so bored with Brian Williams.
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