Title:
George Shapiro ACA Oral History, February 12, 2007.
Creator:
Shapiro, George
Creator:
Dana, Bill, 1924-2017
Creator:
Matz, Jenni
Creator:
Emerson College. American Comedy Archives
Record Type:
digital moving image formats
Record Type:
oral histories (literary works)
Date:
2007-02-12
Description:
In his nearly two-hour Archive interview, George Shapiro discusses his early years growing up in the Bronx, where he met his longtime business partner, Howard West, and describes working his way up from mailroom attendant to packaging executive at the William Morris Agency. He talks about his work with 'The Steve Allen Show' and 'That Girl' and details his decision to leave William Morris to form his own management company, Shapiro/West. He speaks at length on working with client Andy Kaufman, on negotiating Kaufman's intricate deal with 'Taxi' and on Kaufman's premature death. Shapiro also comments on client Jerry Seinfeld, explains how 'Seinfeld' got on the air and concludes with thoughts on the art of management and his philosophy on comedy. Bill Dana and Jenni Matz conducted the interview in a joint venture with the American Comedy Archives at Emerson College on February 12, 2007 in Los Angeles, CA. Additional topics covered include: Characters & Catchphrases, Classic TV Series Episodes, Comedy, Pop Culture, and Comedy Series. Other shows mentioned during the interview include 'Cheers,' 'The Merv Griffin Show,' 'Saturday Night Live,' and 'Your Show of Shows.'
Extent:
02:17:22
Subject:
Characters and characteristics on television
Subject:
Comedy
Subject:
Pop culture
Subject:
Television producers and directors
Subject:
Alexander, Jason, 1959-
Subject:
Brillstein, Bernie, 1931-2008
Subject:
Brooks, James L.
Subject:
Bruce, Lenny
Subject:
Burns, George, 1896-1996
Subject:
Buttons, Red, 1919-2006
Subject:
Caesar, Sid, 1922-2014
Subject:
Carrey, Jim, 1962-
Subject:
Coca, Imogene
Subject:
Dana, Bill, 1924-2017
Subject:
David, Larry
Subject:
DeVito, Danny
Subject:
Denoff, Sam, 1928-2011
Subject:
Diller, Phyllis
Subject:
Ebersol, Dick
Subject:
Forman, Miloš
Subject:
Griefer, Ben
Subject:
Karsian, Lee
Subject:
Kaufman, Andy, 1949-1984
Subject:
Lastfogel, Abe
Subject:
Liebman, Max
Subject:
Littlefield, Warren, 1952-
Subject:
Louis-Dreyfus, Julia
Subject:
Martin, Steve, 1945-
Subject:
Michaels, Lorne, 1944-
Subject:
O'Donnell, Rosie
Subject:
Persky, Bill
Subject:
Presley, Elvis, 1935-1977
Subject:
Pryor, Richard, 1940-2005
Subject:
Reiner, Carl, 1922-
Subject:
Reiner, Rob
Subject:
Richards, Michael, 1949-
Subject:
Rock, Chris
Subject:
Schlatter, George, 1932-
Subject:
Seinfeld, Jerry
Subject:
Shore, Mitzi
Subject:
Streisand, Barbra
Subject:
Tartikoff, Brandon
Subject:
Weinberger, Ed
Subject:
Welch, Jack, 1935-
Subject:
West, Howard
Subject:
Williams, Robin, 1951-2014
Subject:
Wright, Bob, 1943-
Subject:
Zmuda, Bob, 1949-
Collection:
Bill Dana Oral History Interview Collection (ACC-MSS 002), 1L
Location:
Emerson College Archives and Special Collections
Rights Restrictions:
This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s) (http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/). For questions about rights statements, or access to the original document please contact the Emerson College Archives and Special Collections at www.emerson.edu/library/archives.
Access Restrictions:
No known access restrictions.
Language:
English
Identifier:
acc_mss002_shapiro_2007_02_12.mp4
