The Writers Panel

A special episode today, as Ben Blacker chats with the creators of Cheers: Glen Charles, Les Charles, and James Burrows. They discuss the TV comedy landscape in 1982 and now, who at NBC didn't get the show, Taxi, Phyllis, discovering the cast's special talents, the pressure following Shelley Long's departure, and lots more.Before that interview, though, an excerpt from Ted Danson and His Friends From Work, a live streaming special that Blacker produced in 2020. The show featured cast reunions of Ted Danson's shows and movies, from Three Men and a Baby to The Good Place, and ended in a 45 minute Cheers reunion, featuring the Charles brothers, Burrows, Danson, Rhea Perlman, Woody Harrelson, Kelsey Grammer, Kirstie Alley, John Ratzenberger, Bebe Neuwirth, and George Wendt, as well as a fan-question from Tina Fey!And before THAT, a short but important conversation with Adam Conover (Adam Ruins Everything), who is a WGA Board Member and is on the contract negotiating committee about who forms the WGA's strategy, what sympathetic execs can do to help (without getting fired), how pre-WGA writers can pitch in, and what gives him hope that the WGA will win this fight,By the way! Les Charles wants you to know that the name of the episode that he couldn't recall in the conversation is "Old Flames," which is episode 7 of season 2 and was written by the late, wonderful David Angell.THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: https://benblacker.substack.comSOCIALS: twitter.com/BenBlackerfacebook.com/tvWritersPanel Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

The WGA is on strike. In today's episode, WGA Board Member and showrunner/creator John Rogers (Leverage; The Librarians) talks about why, what's at stake, how negotiations broke down, and how long this might last.Plus: new WGA member and former Teamster Danielle Nicki has some heartfelt words of encouragement.THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com SOCIALS:https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Andor creator Tony Gilroy (Rogue One; the Bourne movies; Armageddon) discusses on getting hot on a project, writing vivid scenes, the incremental building of a series, his early resume including The Cutting Edge and Dolores Claiborne, and his disparate influences.But first: the WGA is on strike. In the first of many conversations with working writers on strike, Ben Blacker chats with M3gan writer Akela Cooper (Star Trek: Brave New Worlds; Luke Cage) about her hopes, fears, and why we're taking this action.This interview with Tony Gilroy was recorded before the WGA strike began.THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com SOCIALS:https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mrs. Davis co-creator and showrunner Tara Hernandez (Big Bang Theory; Young Sheldon) discusses learning as an assistant, backing into sci-fi, how she and Damon Lindelof pitched the show, and how many Popes is too many Popes.THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com SOCIALS:https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel Special thanks to Jordan Katz. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Perry Mason co-showrunner Michael Begler (co-creator of The Knick) discusses switching gears in his career, working with Team Downey, the fun of noir, working with a room, and what makes Perry Mason Perry Mason.THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com SOCIALS:https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hello Tomorrow! creators Amit Bhalla and Lucas Jansen discuss selling original ideas, taking big swings and throwing things away, and what they learned working for David Milch.THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com SOCIALS:https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Dear Evan Hansen writer Steven Levenson, whose new show is Up Here on Hulu, discusses the building blocks of musicals, finding an angle on existing material, his previous work on Masters of Sex and Fosse/Verdon, collaboration, and more.THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com SOCIALS:https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Chang Can Dunk writer/director Jingyi Shao discusses getting the Disney+ film off the ground, turning a "feel-good sports movie" into a personal story, taking on a studio feature as his first directing gig, the psychology of storytelling, and lots more. THE WRITERS PANEL IS NOW A COMPLETELY INDEPENDENT PRODUCTION.Follow and support the show by subscribing to Ben Blacker's newsletter, where you'll also get weekly advice from the thousands of writers he's interviewed over the years, as well as access to exclusive live Q&As, meet-ups, and more: benblacker.substack.com SOCIALS:https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Scott Neustadter (creator, Daisy Jones & the Six), Liz Tigelaar (creator, Tiny Beautiful Things), and John Enbom (co-creator, Party Down) discuss things you can't control, pushing at the edges of your work, trusting your story choices, and whether or not streamers even needs to make TV anymore. The new season of Party Down is on Starz now! Daisy Jones & the Six is on Amazon now! Tiny Beautiful Things premieres on Hulu on April 7.CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIA https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jay Faerber (Supergirl; Zoo) and Ali Vingiano (The Morning Show) go deep on how we present ourselves in our work, outlining, group writing, how-to books, and why they like writing.Be sure to check out Ali's terrific Substack newsletter Little Things at aliv.substack.com and pick up Jay's new comic Area 510 from Oni Press!CONNECT W/ BEN BLACKER & THE WRITER'S PANEL ON SOCIAL MEDIA https://twitter.com/BENBLACKER https://www.facebook.com/TVWritersPanel  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.