Writing for I LOVE LUCY and Other Funny Stuff: An Interview with Bob Schiller (Past Times Comedy Writing Series) by Jordan Young Page B
Authors: Jordan Young
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2001.
BOB WEISKOPF
Weiskopf (1914-2001) worked in advertising before getting his feet wet in radio with Eddie Cantor. He also wrote for Rudy Vallee before moving on to Fred Allen. Weiskopf largely soloed at the typewriter, until teaming up Bob Schiller in 1953. The pair reached the pinnacle of their partnership writing for I Love Lucy, before scripting The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, The Red Skelton Show , The Carol Burnett Show and The Flip Wilson Show. Weiskopf and Schiller enjoyed a long tenure writing for Norman Lear on All in the Family , Maude , and All’s Fair, which they created .
BOB SCHILLER
Schiller (1918- ) began his career on Duffy’s Tavern with Ed Gardner . After writing for such radio shows as Abbott and Costello, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet and The Mel Blanc Show, he graduated to television, where he wrote for Danny Thomas and Ed Wynn on Four Star Revue , and The Red Buttons Show before teaming with Bob Weiskopf for I Love Lucy . Schiller and Weiskopf earned an Emmy for their efforts on The Flip Wilson Show, and a second for All in the Family . The team also won two Peabody Awards, a Golden Globe, four Writer’s Guild awards and the WGA Paddy Chayefsky Laurel Award during their long collaboration; they retired in 1990.
Writing for I Love Lucy
HAL KANTER
Kanter (1918-2011) wrote for Danny Kaye, Bing Crosby and Amos ‘n’ Andy before turning to television, where he wrote for The Ed Wynn Show, The George Gobel Show , All in the Family, and creating the ground-breaking Julia . Among his films were such diverse credits as the screen adaptation of Tennessee Williams’ The Rose Tattoo, Frank Capra’s Pocketful of Miracles and Elvis Presley’s Blue Hawaii .
I believe Lucille Ball made her first TV appearance on The Ed Wynn Show.
That’s right. And the only reason that she went on the show was that she wanted a job for Desi Arnaz. She said, “If you use Desi, I’ll do the show.” She wanted to keep him at home, ‘cause poor Desi was wandering all over the country trying to earn a living.
Any recollection of Lucy’s first appearance, in terms of how she approached it -- did she seem to have a interest in the technical aspect of the medium?
Did she show any signs that she was going to be a big television producer? I don’t think so. Lucy approached the whole job with enthusiasm, the way she did almost everything else. Once she agreed to do something, she went all out with it. I do know that in order to lure her into doing the show, Leo Solomon and I went out to her house in the San Fernando Valley and described what we had in mind. And Lucy said, “That sounds fine. But just make sure Desi has everything possible that he can do.” Once she agreed to do the show, then she showed up and picked up the script and read it and laughed, and enjoyed herself.
Lucy saw the show as sort of an audition for Desi, to show people what he could do?
I think it was really to show Desi himself what he could do. Lucy wanted him to do something musical, she wanted him to do some talk, she wanted him to get some laughs -- she wanted him to look good.
Lucy in her TV debut with Ed Wynn, on his live CBS show.
BOB Weiskopf
How did you come to team up with Bob Schiller?
We didn’t know where to send our kids to school. We didn’t know how half-Japanese kids would function out here [in Los Angeles]. We heard about UCLA Elementary School; we asked a friend if there was any way we could find out about the school. She put us in touch with Bob Schiller’s wife -- he happened to be a comedy writer. I was looking for a partner, ‘cause I had a commitment for the Danny Thomas television show. I did a couple of scripts myself, but it was more fun working with a partner.
All of your radio work was done apart from Schiller?
Yeah, virtually all of it. We did a radio script for Our Miss Brooks, when Bob and
BOB WEISKOPF
Weiskopf (1914-2001) worked in advertising before getting his feet wet in radio with Eddie Cantor. He also wrote for Rudy Vallee before moving on to Fred Allen. Weiskopf largely soloed at the typewriter, until teaming up Bob Schiller in 1953. The pair reached the pinnacle of their partnership writing for I Love Lucy, before scripting The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour, The Lucy Show, The Red Skelton Show , The Carol Burnett Show and The Flip Wilson Show. Weiskopf and Schiller enjoyed a long tenure writing for Norman Lear on All in the Family , Maude , and All’s Fair, which they created .
BOB SCHILLER
Schiller (1918- ) began his career on Duffy’s Tavern with Ed Gardner . After writing for such radio shows as Abbott and Costello, The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet and The Mel Blanc Show, he graduated to television, where he wrote for Danny Thomas and Ed Wynn on Four Star Revue , and The Red Buttons Show before teaming with Bob Weiskopf for I Love Lucy . Schiller and Weiskopf earned an Emmy for their efforts on The Flip Wilson Show, and a second for All in the Family . The team also won two Peabody Awards, a Golden Globe, four Writer’s Guild awards and the WGA Paddy Chayefsky Laurel Award during their long collaboration; they retired in 1990.
Writing for I Love Lucy
HAL KANTER
Kanter (1918-2011) wrote for Danny Kaye, Bing Crosby and Amos ‘n’ Andy before turning to television, where he wrote for The Ed Wynn Show, The George Gobel Show , All in the Family, and creating the ground-breaking Julia . Among his films were such diverse credits as the screen adaptation of Tennessee Williams’ The Rose Tattoo, Frank Capra’s Pocketful of Miracles and Elvis Presley’s Blue Hawaii .
I believe Lucille Ball made her first TV appearance on The Ed Wynn Show.
That’s right. And the only reason that she went on the show was that she wanted a job for Desi Arnaz. She said, “If you use Desi, I’ll do the show.” She wanted to keep him at home, ‘cause poor Desi was wandering all over the country trying to earn a living.
Any recollection of Lucy’s first appearance, in terms of how she approached it -- did she seem to have a interest in the technical aspect of the medium?
Did she show any signs that she was going to be a big television producer? I don’t think so. Lucy approached the whole job with enthusiasm, the way she did almost everything else. Once she agreed to do something, she went all out with it. I do know that in order to lure her into doing the show, Leo Solomon and I went out to her house in the San Fernando Valley and described what we had in mind. And Lucy said, “That sounds fine. But just make sure Desi has everything possible that he can do.” Once she agreed to do the show, then she showed up and picked up the script and read it and laughed, and enjoyed herself.
Lucy saw the show as sort of an audition for Desi, to show people what he could do?
I think it was really to show Desi himself what he could do. Lucy wanted him to do something musical, she wanted him to do some talk, she wanted him to get some laughs -- she wanted him to look good.
Lucy in her TV debut with Ed Wynn, on his live CBS show.
BOB Weiskopf
How did you come to team up with Bob Schiller?
We didn’t know where to send our kids to school. We didn’t know how half-Japanese kids would function out here [in Los Angeles]. We heard about UCLA Elementary School; we asked a friend if there was any way we could find out about the school. She put us in touch with Bob Schiller’s wife -- he happened to be a comedy writer. I was looking for a partner, ‘cause I had a commitment for the Danny Thomas television show. I did a couple of scripts myself, but it was more fun working with a partner.
All of your radio work was done apart from Schiller?
Yeah, virtually all of it. We did a radio script for Our Miss Brooks, when Bob and
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