Funny You Should Ask: Oral Histories of Classic Sitcom Storytellers - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Zoneboy · 04-23-2013, 11:14 PM

Iowa man’s book chronicles the history of sitcom writers

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A central Iowa man has turned his love for classic television sitcoms into a book. Scott Lewellen of Des Moines is author of Funny You Should Ask: Oral Histories of Classic Sitcom Storytellers.

“I would say the main reason that I wrote the book was because I wanted to read it,” Lewellen said.

“I’ve always been interested in sitcom writing and sitcom writers and I didn’t think there was a really good book out about them, so I said, ‘maybe I could write one.’”

Lewellen interviewed 22 comedy writers about how they broke into the business, the process of writing scripts, and what it was like working with some of the top sitcom actors from the 1950s-80s.

“Most of the interviews actually took place in person, although I did some of them by phone because several of these people are scattered throughout the country,” Lewellen said.

“I was able to locate a number of them through the Writer’s Guild. I got turned down for very few interviews, most people were happy to talk about their work as sitcom writers.”

Many of the early TV sitcom writers enjoyed long careers working for multiple shows and a few made the transition to television after writing for radio.

Lewellen said he was especially honored to meet Bob Schiller, who wrote episodes of “I Love Lucy” and “All in the Family.” “I would say All in the Family is probably my favorite TV sitcom because of the way it mixed comedy and drama,” Lewellen said. “It’s just very well acted, very well written, and I think very realistic. They were able to mine humor from everyday situations.”

Any fan of classic TV sitcoms should enjoy the book, but Lewellen suggests it could also serve other purposes. “I think it would have potential use in a college class, not only about television history, but also about television writing,” Lewellen said. “It’s not an instructional book, but just in talking with these people, I know I certainly learned a lot about writing.”

This is Lewellen’s first book, but he hopes to write more about television history. Lewellen is co-founder of Saturday Manufacturing, a marketing firm based in Des Moines.

nectarsis · 04-24-2013, 05:10 PM

A little pricey for it's length, but looks pretty interesting.

episode30 · 04-30-2013, 05:22 PM

Thanks for posting. McFarland keeps the spacing pretty tight in their books so there is quite a bit of material for 210 pages. Lots of shows are covered, both hits and flops. There's also a lot about the actual process of writing sitcoms, especially from the '50s through the '80s.

04-23-2013, 11:14 PM	#1
Zoneboy RIP, I'LL NEVER FORGET YOU :( Moderator Forum Superstar Join Date: Jul 13, 2003 Location: AT HOME WISHING ALL THIS WAS JUST A DREAM AND THAT I'LL WAKE UP FROM THIS NIGHTMARE. Posts: 34,349	Funny You Should Ask: Oral Histories of Classic Sitcom Storytellers Iowa man’s book chronicles the history of sitcom writers Link A central Iowa man has turned his love for classic television sitcoms into a book. Scott Lewellen of Des Moines is author of Funny You Should Ask: Oral Histories of Classic Sitcom Storytellers. “I would say the main reason that I wrote the book was because I wanted to read it,” Lewellen said. “I’ve always been interested in sitcom writing and sitcom writers and I didn’t think there was a really good book out about them, so I said, ‘maybe I could write one.’” Lewellen interviewed 22 comedy writers about how they broke into the business, the process of writing scripts, and what it was like working with some of the top sitcom actors from the 1950s-80s. “Most of the interviews actually took place in person, although I did some of them by phone because several of these people are scattered throughout the country,” Lewellen said. “I was able to locate a number of them through the Writer’s Guild. I got turned down for very few interviews, most people were happy to talk about their work as sitcom writers.” Many of the early TV sitcom writers enjoyed long careers working for multiple shows and a few made the transition to television after writing for radio. Lewellen said he was especially honored to meet Bob Schiller, who wrote episodes of “I Love Lucy” and “All in the Family.” “I would say All in the Family is probably my favorite TV sitcom because of the way it mixed comedy and drama,” Lewellen said. “It’s just very well acted, very well written, and I think very realistic. They were able to mine humor from everyday situations.” Any fan of classic TV sitcoms should enjoy the book, but Lewellen suggests it could also serve other purposes. “I think it would have potential use in a college class, not only about television history, but also about television writing,” Lewellen said. “It’s not an instructional book, but just in talking with these people, I know I certainly learned a lot about writing.” This is Lewellen’s first book, but he hopes to write more about television history. Lewellen is co-founder of Saturday Manufacturing, a marketing firm based in Des Moines.
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04-24-2013, 05:10 PM	#2
nectarsis Member Occasional Poster Join Date: May 24, 2011 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 16	A little pricey for it's length, but looks pretty interesting.

04-30-2013, 05:22 PM	#3
episode30 Member Occasional Poster Join Date: Apr 23, 2013 Location: Des Moines, IA Posts: 16	Thanks for posting. McFarland keeps the spacing pretty tight in their books so there is quite a bit of material for 210 pages. Lots of shows are covered, both hits and flops. There's also a lot about the actual process of writing sitcoms, especially from the '50s through the '80s.