Saturday Night Live: Equal Opportunity Offender: The Uncensored Censor - Softcover

Clotworthy, William G

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0759600988 ISBN 13: 9780759600980

Publisher: 1st Book Library, 2001

Synopsis

The book is an attempt to put a human face on one of the most maligned creatures in broadcasting - the Censor! Each network has them; unseen, unrecognized, unsung. Well, they're not really a bunch of pinch-faced prudes in green eye shades wielding blue pencils. They're hard working, dedicated professionals trying to make television acceptable to a large and culturally diverse audience and, not incidentally, to keep the FCC and the U.S. Congress off the backs of their employers.And it is not easy, for he (or she) catches it from all sides - the creative community that wants to push the envelope - management that wants ratings and increased profits - special interest groups interested in their image - educators who want a classroom and preachers who expect a catechism. Did I say the censor was also a juggler, balancing those interests without compromising the creativity or diluting the entertainment value?There has never been a book written form the viewpoint of a censor. Until now. The book is semi-autobiographical, based on my forty years in the business (twelve with Saturday Night Live!). Eddie Murphy, Billy Crystal, Gilda Radner, Ronald Reagan, Groucho Marx, Bing Crosby: I knew them all. The book tells about them and about censoring, with hopes that the reader will be entertained, but also acknowledge a deeper appreciation of the standards we were attempting to uphold. Sometimes successfully!

About this title

About the Author:

William Clotworthy recently completed a forty-two year advertising and broadcasting career encompassing the death throes of network radio, the Golden Years of television and today's fragmented market of networks, cable and home video. As an NBC Page, he witnessed programs featuring the legendary Arturo Toscanini conducting the NBC Symphony, the Fred Allen Show and The Voice of Firestone. He was there for the television debuts of Howdy Doody, Sid Caesar, Milton Berle and Perry Como.He moved on to an advertising career in New York and Hollywood as a commercial producer and program supervisor on many family shows, including Your Hit Parade, You Bet Your Life with Groucho Marx, and others starring Bing Crosby, Jack Webb, Johnny Carson and Danny Kaye. He spent six unforgettable seasons with General Electric Theatre and its host, Ronald Reagan. From 1979 through 1990, he was Director of Program Standards ('Censor') for NBC-TV, responsible for Saturday Night Live and Late Night with David Letterman.Mr. Clotworthy's long association with major personalities and successful, sometimes controversial, programs provides an interesting and unusual perspective on the television industry.Mr. Clotworthy, a native of New Jersey, is a graduate of Syracuse University. He currently lives in Asheville, North Carolina.

About this edition

• Publisher: 1st Book Library
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0759600988
• ISBN 13: 9780759600980
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 224