PaleyArchive ColorBars TopBanner2

PALEY CENTER FOR MEDIA, THE: AN EVENING WITH BOB NEWHART: A NEWHART CELEBRATION {LONG VERSION}

Summary

One in a series of evenings and special screenings presented at The Paley Center for Media in Los Angeles. This evening celebrates "Newhart," the series of comedies about Dick and Joanna Loudon and their country inn in Vermont, which ran from 1982-1990.

Host Rene Reyes (executive in charge of production, The Paley Center for Media) welcomes Lynette Rice (editor-at-large, Entertainment Weekly) to the stage. Rice introduces Newhart, and their discussion touches on the following topics: why he chose to return to television after the conclusion of his first self-titled series, "The Bob Newhart Show" (1972-1978); the similarities between oddball hotel guests and psychiatric patients, as explored in the first series; setting the show in Vermont in order to explore "peculiar" Northeastern traditions; his characteristic talent for keeping a straight face, sometimes challenged during particularly funny scenes; why Mary Frann, who played wife Joanna, had "the hardest job on television" in following Suzanne Pleshette, Newhart's first onscreen spouse; and a funny story about Tom Poston, who played George Utley, and his World War II-related fib.

Co-stars Julia Duffy (Stephanie Vanderkellen) and William Sanderson (Larry) then join the panel, and the conversation continues onto such topics as: Duffy's original appearance as a one-time guest star in the first-season episode "What Is This Thing Called Lust?", and her eventual addition as a regular character; Stephanie and Michael's (Peter Scolari) shallow, on-off romance; Sanderson's sense of his character and his identically named brothers (Tony Papenfuss and John Voldstad) as "three guys with one brain"; how he created Larry from elements of other "idiot" characters of his; Newhart's early sense that the character of Kirk Devane (Steven Kampmann), a pathological liar, was not connecting with the audience; the live audience's immediate positive response to Larry, Darryl and Darryl's first appearance in the second episode, "Mrs. Newton's Body Lies A-Mould'ring in the Grave," prompting Newhart to bring them back repeatedly; the recent death of Newhart's longtime best friend Don Rickles; various guests in the audience, including the panelists' families, Rickles' widow Barbara Sklar, Dolly Martin, widow of Dick Martin, Steve Lawrence, Peter Marshall and Alex Trebek; Martin's role as director on 33 episodes of "Newhart"; memories of the "unruly" set, filled with laughter and Newhart's "hidden" lines; funny comments from audience members and viewers; Newhart's commitment to not keeping the studio audience late into the night; the show's infamous series finale, thought up by Newhart's wife Virginia Quinn, in which the entire story and its many "inexplicable" elements are revealed to be a dream experienced by Bob Hartley of "The Bob Newhart Show"; and Frann's initial doubts about the reveal, compared to the audience's instant enthusiasm.

Questions from the audience then lead to a discussion of the following topics, among others: why a reboot of the series would be a "death wish" for the 88-year-old Newhart; his views of the current trend of revivals of older television series; why "Newhart" switched from videotape to film in its early episodes; why neither Bob Hartley nor Dick Loudon had children; Newhart's dislike of comedy shows with artificial "laugh tracks"; Duffy's great love of British comedies; Newhart's Emmy-winning recurring role as Arthur "Professor Proton" Jeffries on "The Big Bang Theory," created by longtime admirer Chuck Lorre; references on the 1950s-set Amazon series "The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel" to other comedians stealing Newhart's act, and whether this occurred in real life; and his role as Judson on "The Librarians."

Clips from various episodes of "Newhart" are interspersed throughout the program. Co-star Peter Scolari also greets the audience and panel via pre-taped message.

Details

  • NETWORK: N/A
  • DATE: November 30, 1999 7:00 PM
  • RUNNING TIME: N/A
  • COLOR/B&W: Color
  • CATALOG ID: 133111
  • GENRE: Seminars
  • SUBJECT HEADING: N/A
  • SERIES RUN: N/A
  • COMMERCIALS: N/A

CREDITS

  • Rene Reyes … Host
  • Lynette Rice … Moderator
  • Bob Newhart … Panelist
  • Julia Duffy … Panelist
  • William Sanderson … Panelist
  • Barbara Sklar … Guest
  • Dolly Martin … Guest
  • Steve Lawrence … Guest
  • Alex Trebek … Guest
  • Peter Marshall … Guest
  • Virginia Quinn … Guest
  • Mary Frann
  • Steven Kampmann
  • Chuck Lorre
  • Dick Martin
  • Tony Papenfuss
  • Suzanne Pleshette
  • Tom Poston
  • Don Rickles
  • Peter Scolari
  • John Voldstad