TVSquad

When Matt Weiner was a successful sitcom writer -- CBS's Becker -- he had this idea for another kind of show. He couldn't figure out how to pitch it, so he wrote a sample script. The Sopranos' creator David Chase read it and hired him. After copping a couple of Emmys for his work on that HBO drama, Weiner finally got his spec script sold. Now, Mad Men has earned 16 Emmy nominations and Matt Weiner is working on the second season of the show.

Recently, for TV Week, I interviewed Matt about the Emmy nominations. Here are some other thoughts he shared with me about Mad Men:

TVS: What's the show all about to you?

Matt Weiner: A lot of the episodes are about "who am I." A lot of the shows are about what's embarrassing. A lot of it's about denial, about how we juggle our work and our private lives. A lot of the issues that came up in the early 1960s are really hitting us right now.

Here are the new TV DVDs, in stores tomorrow.

• Alvin & The Chipmunks - Funny, We Shrunk The Adults
• Becker - Season 1
• Doctor Who - The Time Warrior and Timelash
• Father Knows Best - Season 1
• John From Cincinnati - Complete Series
• Law and Order: SVU - Season 6
• Martin - Season 4
• Murder, She Wrote - Season 8
• Stingray - Complete Series
• That 70's Show - Season 8
• Tomorrow - John, Paul, Tom, and Ringo

A roundup of people from in front of the camera and behind the scenes who have passed away.

• Anne Pitoniak: She was a character actress who appeared on several TV shows over the years. She had a recurring role as Irene on Third Watch and guest starred on other shows including Law and Order: SVU, Becker, ER (she played Ruth Johnson in the "Good Luck, Ruth Johnson" episode), Cheers, Hill Street Blues, After MASH, and The Equalizer. She's probably best known for her work on stage in night, Mother and Picnic. She was nominated for a Tony Award for each role. She died of cancer in NYC at age 85.
  

I've been pretty damn lucky in my interviewing life so far. Almost all of the celebs I've dealt with have been nice, professional, and a pleasure to talk to. So it's always interesting to read an account of a star I've never talked to. Ken Levine has an entry on his blog about one of the biggest sitcom stars of the 80s, Ted Danson.

Levine worked with Danson on both Cheers and Becker, and says that all stars should take lessons at the Ted Danson School Of Star Etiquette. Levine calls him "forever gracious, professional, on time, supportive, unselfish, makes everyone from guest stars to visitors feel completely welcome."

Wow, I can't even say that about any of my family members.

The reason I bring this up is that Danson's new show, Help Me, Help You, premieres tonight at 9:30 on ABC.

There's always something great to read at Ken Levine's blog, and this past week was no exception. He has a really funny (and really useful) list of situations and scenes that aspiring writers should never include in their TV scripts. My favorite:

Don't hinge your show on stunt casting. I read a "Becker" where former President Jimmy Carter came in for a check-up and offered dating advice. Yeah, President Carter gets his physicals in the Bronx. And yeah, President Carter is always available to guest on a sitcom and advise a character to say whatever is necessary to get laid.

Of course, we've all seen even worse things actually make it on the air, but this is a great list.

While I've always enjoyed both Cheers and Becker, I've never quite been able to make up my mind about Ted Danson. Is he a good actor or just mediocre? I mean, he was good enough that Bruce Springsteen wrote a song about him. C'mon, you all know the words:

You can’t start a fire you can’t start a fire without a spark
This gun’s for hire even if we’re just Danson in the dark....

Well, it's been two years since Becker was canceled, and now our pal Ted is planning yet another return to television, this time for an ABC comedy called Help Me Help You. Danson will play a therapist who leads a therapy group. The show will be about the people in the group, and Ted himself, who, (surprise) has issues of his own.