we had a whole new television world that could take us any place we wanted and even places we had never imagined. >> was that the oven timer? >> that's right, my friend. >> it's time for. >> baywatch. >> oh, can you believe they gave stephanie skin cancer? >> i still can't believe they promoted her to lieutenant. wow, you're just saying that because you're in love with yasmine bleeth. well, how could anyone not be in love with yasmine bleeth hey, hey, they're running. >> see, this is the brilliance of the show. >> i say always keep them running. all the time. running? run! run, run, yasmine, run like the wind.

on hbo did a lot of its best work when it was bending a genre. >> take something that's familiar and give it some chili pepper. >> advertising is based on one thing. happiness. >> diddy is there any taboo that you wouldn't break? not if there was a funny idea. >> what is wrong with you? >> there's so much different storytelling and so many different stories being told about so many different people. >> i don't think dramatic series television has ever been stronger. >> there is no longer this theory of what popular entertainment must be incoming. >> who are the heroes? >> the people who watch this show?

>> this is the week when the major broadcast networks unveil their fall lineup of shows, and every executive in hollywood knows how well the sopranos is doing on cable, which is a network problem. >> i think hbo altered everything for this reason alone is there were no commercials. >> we are dependent on sponsors. there is so much we can do in terms of language, in terms of violence, and in terms

of sex. >> to a large degree, a lot of executives were just sanding off the edges of what was interesting i think hbo is looking at the world and going, okay, how can we matter? >> for quite a long time, movies and boxing were the bread and butter of hbo. >> people watch your show because you're partly an. >> and i think what we've learned through shows like the larry sanders show or oz is that we could do series television. there's something in the air and it ain't love. >> oz was cutting edge in what it was willing to share with the audience. >> hit me, hit me, hit me in the face, brother. >> complicated characters, complicated issues, and the way it was presented was so, uh, unique sentence. >> nine years up for parole in

six. >> what they were doing at hbo was exactly what the network wasn't doing. they were breaking barriers. you get to the sopranos, and all of a sudden the villain is the hero. >> hey, some eggplant. >> i told you, i'm not hungry. >> now you won't even accept food from your own mother. the sopranos was david chase's invention. about this mob family something that people hadn't seen before. the idea that a mobster is seeing a therapist. >> whatever happened to gary cooper? the strong, silent type that was an american. he wasn't in touch with his feelings. he just did what he had to do. see, what they didn't know was once they got gary cooper in touch with his feelings, that they wouldn't be able to shut him up. and then it's dysfunction this and dysfunction that and dysfunction. my fran gull you have strong feelings about this every decade you get somebody like peter falk as columbo or carroll o'connor as archie bunker or somebody you just

can't imagine anybody else afterwards. >> and james gandolfini is that in tony soprano? >> i think it's supposed to be a mafia story, but i mean, it's about everyday life. >> did you know that an italian invented the telephone? >> alexander graham bell was italian. you see? >> you see what i'm talking? antonio meucci invented the telephone and he got robbed. everybody knows that who invented the mafia what? >> the sopranos kind of took the mystery out of being a mobster. i'm a fool to do your dirty work. >> go. yeah. >> and it was somehow more mundane than we guessed it would be. and yet, every bit as riveting as the godfather. >> you're like a brother to me. to all of us. >> the debate raged at hbo about whether you could have a guy like this as your lead. and david chase was adamant that

you have to. this is who he is. and he was right. >> can you assure me that tony soprano isn't going to become a sensitive, nurturing, mellowing man? oh, good. >> yeah. oh my god, man, it's all right. >> i'll be home in a couple of hours. don't worry. >> i'm graduating tomorrow. >> carmela was a wife and a mother. i think first and foremost, i think as long as she kept going to church, she felt like, all right, i'm taking care of my soul. >> where's the rest of the money? >> it's everywhere. she goes home to her husband who's got blood on him. you know, there was no way to reconcile the two things. >> towards the end, where their marriage is falling apart. >> i used the your husband. >> oh. >> you have made a fool of me for years with these her performance in that fight is stunningly good because she's jealous. >> why are you let go of me! >> it mattered to people what

this couple was going through. and i remember feeling a real sense of responsibility about that and giving the weight to the scene that it deserves. >> what you know what i don't understand, tony? what does she have that i don't have? >> suddenly? here's this tv show that everyone's talking about. but you have to pay to watch it. you know, that's how good the sopranos was. people were paying just to see that show. >> the sopranos came along and completely reestablished what the bar was. i honestly couldn't quite believe that that television was communicating something that you might only see in the darkest moments and accurate moments in in cinema. >> when you look at the year that american beauty won the oscar, which is also the year

that the sopranos debuted, and almost immediately after that, the two mediums diverged. >> i know what i must do, but i'm afraid to do it. >> movies became much more focused on big tentpole things that can bring in as much of an audience as you possibly can. meanwhile, tv, which had always been a big tent medium, started going smaller and more interior and saying, all right, we want to tell stories for grownups that maybe don't get the biggest audience, but get a really passionate one. only home for christmas. >> i had an idea of doing a show about death. >> are you smoking? >> nope. >> yes you are. i heard you. >> i'm not. no i'm not. >> look, forget you'll give yourself cancer and die a slow and horrible death. you should not be stinking up that new hearse. >> i met with carolyn and she said i'd like to do a show about a family that runs a funeral home. and something in my head just went click. i thought, what a brilliant idea.

>> i'm quitting right now. i promise. >> okay, i'll see you tonight. i be home for. christmas. >> alan ball comes up with a show with a perfect structure. each episode starts with the death of a character, and then that character's death is dealt with in a local family funeral home, mortuary. excuse me? >> this was one of my first, and maybe it was my first binge show, which was long enough ago that it was all on somebody who had recorded it on vcr. >> have you been watching mrs. romano? >> yeah, i've been watching her

all night. are you thinking what i'm thinking? casket climber i want to go with you. romano. >> romano, with you. >> it was a whole new level of something going on on television. it was grittier than most shows you'd ever seen before. and yet, something magical about it. >> i think what our strategy at hbo was in terms of audiences, not everybody has to watch a show. but if we have different shows for different people, there is something that makes you want to come back and sign up month after month. maybe you don't watch sex and the city, but you watch entourage entourage was originally based on mark wahlberg's life, and the appeal of the show is not so much about show business. >> it was these four guys who were like lifelong friends who could with each other and say horrible things to each other that be tight and be good

friends. >> they want to throw 4 million at you. >> you're kidding. are you smiling? yeah, yeah. i'm smiling. >> can you hear me smiling? listen, you got my balls tingling, man. they drive that way in tiananmen square. >> ari gold suddenly became the breakout character, willing to be ruthless, yet also a family man with a line in the sand. and you don't really know where that line in the sand is, which makes him a morally much more interesting character. >> i just read an article in the times, the new york times, not the they got out here. >> you read the times, huh? yeah. you read the new republic? >> i've heard of it. >> well, i was reading that, and it's interesting because what it says is that you don't know what the you're talking about. >> 2024 was a wild ride. >> it was like the craziest roller coaster ride i've ever been on in my life. >> that was an whooping. tom foreman and special guests look back. all the best, all the worst. 2024. thursday at 11 on cnn. >> liberty mutual customized my car insurance, so i saved hundreds.

>> with the money i saved, i thought i'd get a wax figure of myself. cool, right? look at the craftsmanship. >> i mean, they even got my nostrils right. >> it's just nice to know years after i'm gone, this guy will be standing the test of time. >> ah, he's melting. oh, jeez. >> no. oh, god. >> only pay for what you need. >> liberty, liberty, liberty, liberty. >> my moderate to severe crohn's symptoms kept me out of the picture. now i have skyrizi. i've got places to go. >> and i'm feeling free. controlled by crohn's means everything to me. is everything to me. >> and now i'm back in the picture. feel significant symptom relief at four weeks with skyrizi, including less abdominal pain and fewer bowel movements. skyrizi helped visibly improve damage to the intestinal lining, and with skyrizi, many were in remission. at 12 weeks, at one

year, and even at two years. >> don't use if allergic. serious allergic reactions, increased infections, or lower ability to fight them may occur. before treatment, get checked for infections and tb. tell your doctor about any flu like symptoms or vaccines. liver problems leading to hospitalization may occur when treated for crohn's. >> now's the time to take control of your crohn's. >> control is everything to me. >> ask your doctor about skyrizi, the number one prescribed biologic and crohn's disease. >> transform your website into an immersive 3-d experience with infinite reality. >> you can tap the power of the spatial and social web. unlock valuable data, and take your brand to the next level. it's time for better shopping. bolder entertainment, and bigger sports. it's time to up your web game. infinite reality.

>> you make good choices, always planning ahead. like to not just chase a career, but one day. follow your heart. with ambition like that, you need someone who elevates advice to a craft. at ubs, we match your vision with insight and expertise to shape a unique outcome for you. advice is our craft. you someone need a hug? >> sing. >> bah, humbug somewhere inside every lost grown up is the kid they once were. >> seems to me they need us now more than ever. >> i'm enchanted. talk to the world. >> joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea. wow, joy to you and me, andy. >> it has been one wild year.

>> i know that whole new live stream was crazy. what you have been following actual news, right? oh, boy. >> new year's eve live with anderson and andy. live coverage starts at eight on cnn and streaming live on max. >> who could have possibly guessed a show about a bunch of backstabbing people with body odor on an island off borneo would become the tv hit of the summer. >> survivor was really the first truly competitive reality format go. >> i started to really understand what the show was going to be about the first 20 minutes into day one. >> let's see what we got first before we make any decision. let's see what we got. >> oh boy. there might be a blowtorch in there. >> oh, we need a bathroom. are you guys all done talking? >> huh? >> richard hatch was sitting in a tree lecturing about what they should do as their group. >> nobody's working toward a particular goal. >> not the silly little stuff about, oh, who's going to

sleep? where or what are we going to do? but why are we here? >> and underneath him was this woman, sue hawk, a truck driver. >> i'm a and i don't know corporate world at all. and corporate world ain't gonna work out here in the bush. >> that was a show. >> he walks around naked quite a bit. i think it probably bugs some of the guys. >> whatever it takes to win. here is the point. it's a game and call it machiavellian. >> sure, we had no idea that richard hatch would be the best thing to ever happen to survivor. >> all around the country, people were on the edge of their seats waiting for the final vote to be announced. >> the winner of the first survivor. competition is. >> survivor. sort of legitimized the genre simon fuller came into my office and his vision was one long audition.

>> like virgin. touch for the very first time. i've never, ever heard anything like that in my life. she bangs. >> she bangs. thank you. thank you. it's gonna be. what was that? >> and that is what you think we're looking for. >> the network was saying we don't think we can put simon on the promos. >> no no no no no no no no no. >> he'll scare little girls. and we think that's our audience. >> it's one of the worst auditions i've ever heard in my life. >> i'm like, well, that's the whole show. >> so, you know, without him that's not going to work. >> and it was a big fight internally. and of course we got him on. and of course, that is what sparked the show. well, here they are. >> the judges have made their choices now. >> america, it's all up to you. >> american idol reunited the family audience in front of the tv. r-e-s-p-e-c-t find out what it means to me. nine year olds

to 90 year olds could root for somebody on american idol. it's not like it hadn't been done before, but the way that the producers of these shows could manipulate drama, the way they could find stories, that was the core of making those shows successful. >> this is the weakest romance i've ever seen. >> this romance is pathetic. >> was there a romance? >> well, i think we just decided we were meant to be very close friends. >> very close friends? >> that's right. >> i've had some very close friends tell me to. >> me too. it cost me a lot of money, i'll tell you that. >> the apprentice has its lasting effect. even today, donald trump becomes a star. you're fired. all of it. kind of reality show. fake people who worked on it have come forward and said, you know, we kind of made the whole thing up, and yet it sells. >> and then there's just this explosion. are you interested in tattoos, weight loss, plastic surgery,

breast augmentation, tummy tuck, facial surgery? >> i don't look like me. >> porter's substance abuse. flipping your house. that's a big one. like there's literally a reality show for everyone. >> now, the networks would be out of business without reality tv. if you have to fill 40 hours of television with scripted shows, it costs you an arm and a leg. >> you'll be out of business because those scripted shows most likely will do no better, and probably worse than the reality show did. >> oh my god. >> bravo starts doing things aimed at gay viewers and women. and so, you know, you have like queer eye for the straight guy, bad taste kills and project runway. >> this is a search for the next big fashion designer. >> project runway was not an instantaneous hit. >> we sort of had this crisis where like, is anyone going to want to sit around watching people? >> so i am feeling the race against time now. yes. >> bravo played like 3 or 4 episodes over the christmas

holidays, and all of a sudden it just caught on like wildfire. make it work. people have come into runway and top chef, and they know that this can change their lives. >> one of you is about to win the title of top chef rock and roll. >> mtv had the osbournes, and it was fun because, you know, the whole idea of, you know, the guy who bit the heads off of bats, you know, being domestic and his wife and his teenage kids going to get drunk or get stoned tonight, that sort of sparked this movement of, we can put celebrities on tv and just let them do what they do. >> i've always heard that people hang out at walmart. why? i don't know what is walmart? it's like they sell wall stuff. >> no. what is it? >> it's like, of course, that reaches its peak or nadir, depending on your opinion. >> with the kardashians. >> i hate you all. >> welcome to my family.

>> there's something about watching someone who's maybe slightly like yourself, but more obnoxious, so evil. >> there's a lot of baggage that comes with us, but it's like louis vuitton baggage. you always want it, or they're, you know, more of a disaster. >> prostitution. you are engaged. >> 19 times. you stupid. hey, around. coming to my ted talk. when you're happy, you're a. >> there's something about watching that and going, yeah, god, at least i'm not that. >> i look over and i see, like, hair being pulled and all that. i'm like, oh, my god. like, how do i get in? >> i used to get the critics asking me about dumb. well, why are people watching that reality show? i'm like, well, why are they watching the show? because they're entertained. you are never going to meet someone that's going to say to you, you know, i was watching the bachelor last night. i loved it, but i wish i was watching a great drama. >> karen, i thought you'd never ask you don't need to call it a

guilty pleasure. >> just call it a pleasure. >> it's something you love watching. >> it could be a reality show. it could be a drama. it could be a sitcom. it could be a documentary. whatever it is. you know, i think great tv comes in many forms. >> you only come across an artist like luther vandross. >> once in a lifetime. >> he was a boss from the beginning. luther said. i have a sound in my head. i got to get it out. you are my shining star. my god, it was the most exciting time in the world. his life had extremely joyful moments and some really difficult moments. if we were to be able to talk to luther as fans, we'd be able to say. we just love you, luther. >> never too much new year's day at eight on cnn today, my friend. >> you did it. >> you did it. >> pursue a better you with centrum. it's a small win toward taking charge of your health. so this year you can say

i did it. >> wait. >> new house year p1 meds. >> now noom, the psychology based weight loss company. >> yes. >> noom combines medication and behavior change so you can lose the weight and keep it off. >> and it starts at just $149. >> noom the smart way to lose weight. whoa! >> yes. >> how do you sleep at night on a mattress from mattress firm? >> i sleep at >> save up to $500 on tempur-pedic. get matched at mattress firm. sleep at night, long after guests leave viruses and bacteria linger. >> air fresheners add a scent, but only lysol air sanitizer helps erase the trace, eliminating odor and killing 99.9% of viruses and bacteria in the air. scent can't sanitize lysol can from dress the bird. >> to deck the halls. >> so many ways to save life. ready? >> wallet? happy? >> that's 365 by

whole foods market. >> hi, susan. honey. yeah, i respect that, but that cough looks pretty bad. try this. robitussin honey. >> the real honey you love. plus the powerful cough relief you need. >> mind if i root through your trash? >> robitussin with real honey and elderberry. >> your parents have given you some amazing gifts. but what about the inherited ones? celebrate them with ancestry dna. the simple test that shows your deep family roots from your mom's side and your dad's side with some serious detail. trace the journeys and history that shaped who you are today, and see the traits they pass down. your connections to the jen b asks, "how can i get fast download speeds while out and about?" jen, we've engineered xfinity mobile with wifi speeds up to a gig, so you can download and do much more all at once. it's an idea that's quite attractive. or... another word... -fashionable? i was gonna say- "popular! you're gonna be pop-uuuu-larrr!" can you do defying gravity?! yeah, get my harness.

buy one line of unlimited, get one free for a year with xfinity mobile. and see “wicked,” in theaters now. where can nfl fans get a great deal that turns christmas day into game day? x marks the spot. the nfl is streaming christmas day games exclusively on netflix, and you don't want to miss a moment. gather round the game because nothing says holidays like family and football. now xfinity customers can add streamsaver including netflix, peacock, and apple tv+ for just $15 a month. stuff your stockings with tons of entertainment and tons of savings. bring on the good stuff. xfinity. everywhere. >> for the best deals, go to shop mando dotcom. >> hurry hurry hurry hurry. >> i want to know what the best thing about childhood is. at some point it stops. >> in the year 2000, we get

malcolm in the middle. and this is a pivotal show for a lot of reasons, not least of which because it gives us bryan cranston, but because this is a single camera comedy around here. >> being smart is exactly like being radioactive. >> single camera comedies were funny, and the fact that you could shoot them like movies and they could be terrific every week. yep. >> class president felt really good. >> but later that night i had a dream. >> you know, critics loved that because it was something new. it was something that they weren't expecting. oh. >> well, you should see the traffic. the only thing moving is the carpool lane. >> hey, daddy, you want a date with mama? get in the car. >> curb came because larry wanted to do a special. it was his, you know, just follow my life, you know? but he would only make it with the

stipulation that if he didn't like it, he could buy it back. lucky for us, he liked it. you're trying to act like you ain't with me. >> no, i'm not trying to act like i'm not with you. what are you saying? >> i will pull it out in this thing. i will pull it out. >> don't you dare do that. >> no, the actors wouldn't get an outline for the show. >> they wouldn't even read what the scene was about. >> diddy. sa'ar. >> yeah. judy. judy. judy. >> judy! >> oh, my god. by the way, that shelf coming down was not planned. >> that shelf really did come down. and larry and jeff just acted their way through it. what do i do? >> stick in your jacket, jeffrey. it's too big. where do i put it? >> do something. she's coming up. >> i think curb, in many ways, is the ultimate descendant of seinfeld. it's in a much more real, truthful place where morality is a gray area. where's the head? and everybody's redefining it all the time. >> the kid is home hysterical because her doll, judy, has been. >> decapitated. because you two

sickos took the head for god knows what reason. >> some voodoo you're doing. >> larry and i would play a game of worst case scenario. >> i was talking to a friend of mine, and he's a survivor, and he'd love to meet you. >> would would it be possible? i mean, for me to bring him to dinner? i mean, of course you would take the basic premise from something that actually happened and then just exploit it. >> where's this survivor what? >> he's the survivor from the from the television show. >> the guy from the survivor tv show. and the holocaust survivor got into an argument about who had it worse. >> i'm saying we spent 42 days trying to survive. >> we had very little rations, no snacks, snacks. >> what are you talking, snacks? we didn't eat sometimes for a week. >> for a month? >> we weighed nothing. >> i went from i mean, i couldn't even work out when i was over there. >> they certainly didn't have a gym. >> what?

>> i mean, i wore my sneakers out, and then the next thing you know, i've got a pair of flip flops. >> flip flops. we slip on the ground. >> that was, to me, larry david at his best because he managed to take a subject that no one would really find funny and make it hilarious and palatable. >> i am a survivor. i'm a survivor. i'm a survivor. >> i'm a survivor. i'm a is there any taboo that you wouldn't break? >> no, no, not if there was a funny idea. >> it's all about funny. yeah. >> so this is the magic trick, huh? >> illusion. michael. >> trick is something a does for money. >> the best development was absolutely firing on all cylinders. from the first episode to the last. >> don't you judge me. you're the selfish one. you're the one who charged his own brother for a bluth frozen banana. i mean, it's one banana. michael. what could it cost? $10. >> you've never actually set foot in a supermarket, have you? >> if you got it. it was the funniest thing you ever saw because it assumed this audience was as smart as its writers. >> what do you got there? >> don't be afraid to

make a. i'm not gonna beat myself up over that. >> it was so clever and more meta than just about any show that's ever been on television. >> your average american male is in a perpetual state of adolescence. you know, arrested development. >> hey, that's the name of the show. >> it was really smart in the eye that you can kind of break all these rules and also have a lot of characters on a comedy who were extremely unlikable. >> there are a lot more important things than jokes in a comedy. >> jokes aren't the most important thing in a comedy. >> what's the most important thing? >> character? that sort of stuff. yes, just like complete control of the body. and it's all that now, isn't it? yeah, i know it's all busy. yeah, just keeping up the morale. can we have a chat? yeah. >> oh, i'd watched the british show the office. >> it's one of the greatest cringe shows of all time.

>> no, i don't have a great many ethnic employees. that's true, but it's not company policy. i haven't got a sign on the door that says white people only. you know, i don't care if you're black, brown, yellow orientals make very good workers khuza'a don't do that. >> when the decision was made to make an american version, what was that there was a lot of head shaking. i was like, oh, god, american tv, they're going to ruin it. >> are they breathing? >> no, rose, they are not breathing. and they have no arms or legs. >> no, that's not part of it. >> where are they? >> it used the same mockumentary format that the british show had. oh my god, dwight. >> what are you. are. >> we searched for the organs. where's the heart? the precious heart. >> that show works. everybody you go to in that cast is

hilarious. oh my god, that is what the mockumentary format. >> it was different. and all of a sudden it became something that you just realized the audience was very comfortable and very conversant. >> hey park lady, yeah, you suck. you hear that? >> you called me park lady. >> the office, parks and rec, modern family. the conceit is they're making a documentary. >> i'm okay, i'm good, i'm good. >> the idea of these shows is, you know, they sit down on the couch, or they catch them in a separate part of the office, and everybody does a confessional, like reality television. >> i've gained a few extra pounds. >> while we were expecting the baby, which has been very difficult, but apparently your body does a nesting, very maternal, primal thing where it retains nutrients, some sort of molecular physiology thing. >> but that's science. you can't you can't fight it.

>> we didn't need to explain that there's a documentary because like, yeah, it's a documentary. we don't need to know what he's talking about. i got it, and it's funny, this year's emmy nominations have been announced. >> the comedy series 30 rock was the top nominee. >> 30 rock 30 rock is having the last laugh again. >> last year's best comedy winner pulled in 17 nominations, the most in that category. why are you wearing a tux it's after six. >> what am i, a farmer? >> tina fey, i always felt, was the best joke writer in america. >> would you describe yourself as cat competent? >> oh, yes, i love cats. >> i used to have two cats, but then i moved to this place with hardwood floors, so we had to put them down. >> so here comes 30 rock. it's probably the densest show ever joke wise. >> no, no, high def 30 rock was a critical success from minute one and had a very passionate, very desirable audience watching it from even an

advertising standpoint. >> but it was not a highly rated show on television. on pornography. but critical success was a marker for we're doing something right there. >> although my summer replacement shows were big hits, america's next top, pirate, are you stronger than a dog, island, island 25 super hot moms, 58th grade boys, no rules. >> oh yeah. didn't one of those women turn out to be a prostitute? >> that doesn't mean she's not a wonderful, caring. >> welcome to times square. >> it's the biggest party of the year. happy new year with the biggest guests. >> we have even more amazing guests lined up for you with performances by music's biggest stars and appearances by comedians, celebrities and more. >> yes, anything can happen on new year's eve. oh my gosh. >> wow. >> new year's eve live with anderson and andy. live coverage starts at eight on cnn and streaming live on max this

holiday season. >> kevin, catherine. all aboard the freedom unlimited. >> kevin, kevin, kevin, kevin and kevin. >> i mean macaulay. take a very special trip to the mall where anything can your little kid is born. really? >> yeah. anything is cash. >> bankable? i'm sorry. >> tis the season to cash back with chase freedom unlimited. >> how do you cashback? chase. >> make more of what's yours. >> give your dog more days of play with a once monthly injection given by your vet that controls osteoarthritis pain in dogs. nubrella should not be used in breeding pregnant or lactating dogs. >> this is the best day of my life. >> la. >> you don't stop being you just because you turned 65. >> but you do face more risk from flu and covid. last year alone, those viruses

hospitalized nearly 1 million people 65 and older, 1 million vaccines lower your risk of getting really sick so you can keep doing you. >> vaccinations it's. >> time for. paint it up. >> powder it up. and you ought to be glad. you're good. girl's gonna go bad. >> you were made to chase your passions. we were made to put them in a package. >> i didn't do this for the fame. i did it to pay it forward to the next generation of athletes. i joined sofi because they've helped millions of members

always great. >> go to dash dot com right now and see how much you can save.

>> i'm elizabeth wagmeister in los angeles and this is cnn. >> you okay? one okay. >> i had a particular connection to the band of brothers mini series, john scola. my father served in the second world war and was in many of the places where airborne ended up. and coming. and what he felt was real about it was that the emotions were utterly true. >> there was a bunch of ordinary guys who, by way of training and volunteerism and sacrifice, both saved the world and were forever changed by what they did. >> a lot of those veterans were still alive, so we got to meet them. we got to talk to them. >> i've seen my friends, my

men being killed. and, uh, it doesn't take too many days of that. and you change dramatically. >> the show premiered september 9th, 2001, two days later, everything changes. people were concerned. should we stop airing it? because it's a war story. and now the country is at war again. >> it turned out to be something that was necessary because now almost every american, i think, felt as though they had enlisted in something that they had not enlisted in before. after 9/11, we were all part of something. >> you deserve long and happy lives and peace. >> i know that face. >> historical dramas of the founding of the nation have been overly rosy. >> when i go to the cupboard and i find no coffee, no sugar,

no pins, no meat, am i not living politics? >> one of the things that was amazing to me about john adams was it was done as realism. people are hurt when they fight for what is rightfully theirs. >> you approve a brutal and illegal act to enforce a political principle. >> sam. >> just the grittiness of founding a nation and liberty will reign in america. and trying to figure out what a president is. >> god bless george washington, president of the united states. >> it's a gift to be given 12 hours on hbo. >> god help you if you don't have something to say. >> let's understand each other. >> i'm not western district. >> i'm not a narco. >> i don't dirty people because i don't give a about a possession charge. i'm a murder police. i'm here about the bodies. >> david simon was a newspaper reporter in baltimore. he spent a year embedded with the baltimore homicide unit to

write a book. he and ed burns, who was a police officer, got together and said, well, what if we tell the whole story of the death of the american city, the futility of the war on drugs through the eyes of cops? ben. of drug dealers. >> y'all got the best territory and no kind of product. >> i got the best part, but could stand a little more territory of teachers, of politicians. >> just make the entire city into the character itself. >> you follow drugs, you get drug addicts and drug dealers, but you start to follow the money and you don't know where the it's going to take you. >> the wire broke down systemic racism and the cycle of poverty like no other television show had. >> come on, get up. >> school day. y'all gonna be late. >> it wasn't just about. hey, look at these black kids chillin. drugs on the street. you were in the apartment with them where they had no parents, where they were taking care of

their siblings, where they were trying to scrounge for food. >> where's your book bag? >> i ain't give no homework. >> so you start to get a much more realistic, three dimensional picture of what poverty looks like in a city. >> one of the things about the wire that was so interesting is it didn't rely on this traditional representation of gangsters. it didn't rely on this traditional representation of cops. it was like reading a great novel or a great series of novels. something ain't right. >> yo, watch out man. that fool. is packing. >> i think the wire showed the architecture of a full city. and the way it layered its characters, particularly omar. omar was by all other facets of his life, pretty awful. yeah, the cheese stands alone. but he had this code that he lived by that

made him very touchable and very human. >> hey. yo, mike. hook a sister up. yo. >> he was openly gay, but people were also very afraid of him and his sexuality was not necessarily weaponized against him. and for me, i didn't see black gangsters portrayed that way a lot. no matter what we call heroin, it's going to get sold. it's strong. we're gonna sell. it is weak. we gonna sell twice as much. you know why? cause a fiend, he's gonna chase that no matter what. >> this is the greatest tv show of all time. >> i know people always argue about that. >> it's the greatest tv show to have black people on it. >> ever. >> david, what's the highest compliment someone could pay you about the show? >> you didn't lie. >> that would be it. you didn't cheat. >> good night. stars. >> good night. stars. you know pupils? my pupils at the time, hbo was in about 33 million

homes. >> well, if was going to 110 million homes. so that's a lot of people who i think would like programing like this, who do not have hbo. and then we just said, well, there's got to be a different version of tony soprano. and that ultimately was found in the script. that was vic mackey, who was a cop, good cop and bad cop left for the day. >> i'm a different kind of cop. >> the pilot, the shield, is fascinating because you think that the show is being set up as a cat and mouse game. vic mackey is secretly in bed with all the gangs and all the drug dealers, and making lots of money. and then you're introduced to terry crowley, this undercover cop who has been sent to bring him down, and you think, oh, that's the show. i've seen this show before. i've seen that movie before. >> we're talking about making a case that puts mackey behind bars for a long time. >> then you get to the end of the pilot, and vic shoots terry in the face.

>> there was some thought that hbo shows did well because they had no commercials. >> so when a basic cable show like the shield that did have commercials found an audience, all of a sudden it just opened the door and other original programing sprung up like nip tuck. >> when you stop striving for perfection, you might as well be dead and rescue me. >> you son of a. and it was a whole new playing field. tommy. >> you only come across an artist like luther vandross once in a lifetime. >> he was a boss from the beginning. luther said, i have a sound in my head. i got to get it out. you are my shining star. it was the most exciting time in the world. his life had extremely joyful moments and some really difficult moments. if we were to be able to talk

to luther as fans, we would be able to say, we just love you. >> luther. never too much. new years day at eight on cnn. touches of black. >> they say a lot without having to say much. >> they stand for elegance, refinement and prestige, even a little can go a long way. >> and though they're darker than the darkest night, they make you see everything in a new light. >> get 1.9 apr for up to 60 months, plus 1000 retail bonus cash and specialty tags. >> 2025 sportage and sorento vehicles. look out, cause here i come. >> have you always had trouble with your weight? same. >> discover the power of wegovy with wegovy. >> i lost 35 pounds and some lost over 46 pounds. >> and i'm keeping the weight off. >> i'm reducing my risk. wegovy is the only weight management medicine proven to reduce risk of major

cardiovascular events such as death, heart attack or stroke in adults with known heart disease and obesity. >> don't use wegovy with semaglutide or glp one medicines or in children under 12. don't take if you or your family had mtc men two or if allergic to it. >> tell your provider if you plan to have surgery or a procedure, are breastfeeding, pregnant, or plan to be. >> stop taking and get medical help right away. if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, severe stomach pain, or any of these allergic reactions. serious side effects may include pancreas inflammation and gallbladder problems. >> call your prescriber if you have any of these symptoms. >> wegovy may cause low blood sugar in people with diabetes, especially if you take medicines to treat diabetes. call your prescriber about vision changes. if you feel your heart racing while at rest, or if you have mental changes, depression or thoughts of suicide may occur. >> common side effects include nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, constipation, stomach pain, flu or upset headache, feeling tired, dizzy or bloated, gas, and heartburn. some side effects lead to dehydration, which may cause kidney problems

with wegovy. >> i'm losing weight. >> i'm keeping it off and i'm lowering my cv risk. >> wegovy. >> ask your prescriber about wegovy. >> mild moderate to severe crohn's symptoms kept me out of the picture. now i have skyrizi. i've got places to go and i'm feeling free. >> controlling my crohn's means everything to me. control is everything. >> and now i'm back in the picture. feel significant symptom relief at four weeks with skyrizi, including less abdominal pain and fewer bowel movements. skyrizi helped visibly improve damage of the intestinal lining, and with skyrizi, many were in remission. at 12 weeks at one year, and even at two years. >> don't use if allergic serious allergic reactions, increased infections, or lower ability to fight them may occur. before treatment, get checked for infections and tb. tell your doctor about any flu like symptoms or vaccines. liver problems leading to hospitalization may occur when treated for crohn's. >> now's the time to take control of your crohn's.

>> control is everything to me. >> ask your doctor about skyrizi. the number one prescribed biologic in crohn's disease. >> closed captioning is brought to you by skechers. hands free. slip in footwear. >> hi, i'm howie mandel, the newest ambassador for skechers. i went to the store to buy hands free skechers slip ins, and i said i was an ambassador. the owner called me and i said, yes. skechers slip ins. >> the current crop of 18 to 25 year olds is the most politically apathetic generation in american history. >> we had a lot of difficulty getting the west wing on the air, and part of that was because a not unreasonable belief on the part of nbc that people didn't want to deal with politics. >> running for president of the united states without putting social security front and center, is like running for president of the walt disney corporation by saying, you're going to fix the rides at epcot. >> i think what made it so different than any other show i'd worked on was the richness of character and words and

thoughts and images that aaron sorkin wrote. >> i would love for people to think that i'm as quick and clever as the characters that i write, but you'd be disappointed if you met me. >> josh. >> yeah, six pages on english as the national language meetings don't just take place, sitting down and talking to people and the turn into a social studies paper. >> i wanted josh, donna, look at the memo i gave you what you asked for. don't snap at me. >> so we knew that was the essence of the show. >> this movement. >> what's wrong with everyone today? >> the challenge of doing that is number one lighting. >> what was the question? >> if you look at that set on the west wing, there is a lot of glass. >> glass is reflective. >> so there were a lot of technical challenges that existed. >> but the biggest challenge by far was the performance challenge. >> 8025 votes jumped the fence because they could go beginning, middle and end of a scene sometimes in one take. >> and it was liberating and also intimidating.

>> what the hell happened? we don't know. give me names. we're finding out. >> i love the west wing because it's a complete fantasy of a political world that is so healthily bipartisan, and it shows people intensely and emotionally grappling with the hard. questions. >> 40% of americans have a gun in their home. >> only 16% believe gun ownership is an absolute right. >> only 9% believe it's an absolute wrong. there's a middle. >> we can win them. it presented both sides as real human beings that cared. >> not easy being my vice president isn't. >> no, sir. >> this was a valentine's towards public service that i think people were hungry for. >> and so this was a group of people just trying to make the world better. >> alexander hamilton didn't think we should have political parties. >> neither did john adams. >> if political parties led to divisiveness. >> date number 52 of the socialism that you've been

waiting for, the manchurian candidate couldn't destroy us faster than barack obama. >> critics now claim the administration is actually pressuring certain disabled veterans to, quote, hurry up and die. >> what you saw in the media universe in the 2000 was the splintering of the audience, and in news, it's splintered largely along political lines. >> you're watching fox news, real journalism. >> fair and balanced. >> roger ailes had the brilliant idea of creating a network for conservatives, thus fox news. >> the controversy over john kerry and his vietnam war medals has just gotten worse. >> msnbc kind of stumbled into the idea of a liberal counterpart. >> people who watch fox news thinking that there is news in it are tinfoil hatters, conspiracy theorists, paranoids, racists, loons and pinheads. >> there was no longer a shared factual basis for our political views. we didn't all go home and watch walter cronkite. >> on fire on the left, james

carville and paul begala. on the right, robert novak and tucker carlson. >> in the crossfire. >> i remember when jon stewart went on crossfire, it was 2004. >> john kerry was the democratic presidential nominee, facing george w. bush. >> and i thought, you know, i was watching it. and i said, well, this is going to be a funny show. >> can i say something very quickly? >> uh, why why do we have to fight the two of you? can't we just say us? say something nice about john kerry right now. >> i like john, i care about john kerry. >> and something about president bush. >> he'll be unemployed soon. >> i think anyone who enjoyed paying attention to the news and watched the daily show will forever remember jon stewart going on crossfire and reading those guys. >> the riot act. >> you're doing theater when you should be doing debate, which would be great. no, it's not honest. what you do is not honest. >> what you do is partisan hackery. >> and i'll tell you why. >> i come on your show and you sniff his throne and you're

accusing us of partisan hackery? >> absolutely. >> you're got to be kidding, man. >> you're on cnn, the show that leads into me is puppets making crank phone calls. what is wrong with you? >> comedians and satire, when done right, will take on hypocrisy no matter where it comes from. >> i think the vice president and his wife love their daughter. i think they love her very much. and. and you can't have anything but respect for the fact that they're willing to talk about the fact that they have a gay daughter. yes. >> we admire your love for your. gay daughter. >> if they've stepped in it, a trusted comic will bring that to the forefront. and i think that that's what people like about the daily show. >> there's an upcoming election. >> evidently. i didn't know that. >> you're our chief political correspondent, stephen. i mean, every two years, we elect a brand new house of

representatives. a third of the senate. it's called the midterm elections. it's. >> i only vote when the big kahunas are up. you know, el presidente. >> i can't be running around every two years voting. i got a life. >> i could not have lived without the daily show. and colbert then becomes the companion show c for colbert. it is also so compelling to watch this hilarious, pseudo conservative dumb guy. >> and who are the heroes? the people who watch this show average, hardworking americans. you're not the elites. you're not the country club crowd. i know for a fact that my country club would never let you in. one of the things about being on the colbert report and stephen would say it himself, was he was playing a character. the book is the nine inside the secret spooky world of the supreme court. >> stephen had to respond in

real time to the guests as his character, not as himself, which was an incredible feat of acting as well as kind of quasi journalism. >> that's a big part of the book, is how much do the justices political views play a role in how they decide cases? >> how much? >> i mean, why would political views go into it? these guys are supposed to be, except the activist judges, the four liberal activist judges. i can understand why they're liberal bent would affect them because they're activist judges, right? but the conservative judges are not activists. they're. they're inactivists. they they, um. yeah, i guess you're exactly right. >> yeah, right. >> the moment i remember is the moment that barack obama was named president of the united states. >> cnn projects that barack obama is the next president of the united states of america. it is now official. he has passed the 270 electoral vote.

>> when you watch the tape, you can see the colbert begins to cry. and that character can't cry because that's not what the character does. and jon stewart, he loves colbert so much as a human being. he covers for colbert. >> 297 for barack obama. 149 for john mccain. >> and it has been one wild year. >> i know that whole live stream was crazy. what? oh, wait, you mean the rumors about me and the french pole vaulter? who's saying that? is it everybody? >> i have zero idea what you're talking about. >> and you think i'm the one that doesn't follow the news? >> i did like that one new song about coffee. >> espresso. >> oh, i'd love one, actually. >> oh, sweetie, you have been following actual news, right oh, boy. >> new year's eve live with anderson and andy. live coverage starts at eight on cnn and streaming live en masse today. >> my friend, you did it. >> you did it. >> pursue a better you with centrum. it's a small win

toward taking charge of your health. so this year you can say. you did it. >> transform your website into an immersive 3-d experience with infinite reality. >> you can tap the power of the spatial and social web, unlock valuable data, and take your brand to the next level. it's time for better shopping. bolder entertainment, and bigger sports. it's time to up your web game. infinite reality. >> every parent knows when it's time to go into protect mode. adding lysol disinfectant spray to your cleaning routine is three times more effective at stopping the spread of germs now's the time to go back in time and shine a light on the family journey that led to you.

>> detailed dna results, inspiring family history, memberships. now's the time to save at ancestry. >> give your dog more days of play with a once monthly injection given by your vet that controls osteoarthritis pain in dogs. nubrella should not be used in breeding pregnant or lactating dogs. >> this is the best day of my life. >> leporella. >> when a tough car finds you on the go. its sirup would be silly. hey, trying to robert sauer juice pack with the power of robitussin and every bite easy to take cough relief anywhere. chew on relief, chew on a from tried and true. >> to try something new. >> so many ways to save life. f

$34. go to deal dash dot com and see how much you can save. >> i'm

er, the most faithful fans still only watches that show. two out of four weeks. >> at the time, there was just a general fear and anxiety and they had the data to back it up. that shows that became increasingly serialized, would lose viewership over time. let's don't. because if the audience misses an episode, then they would be inclined to stop watching it because they would feel like i missed one. and now i don't know what's happening. >> there had been amazing shows that had been serialized. they never had syndication value because you couldn't revisit them. but there's almost no better hook. it's like a book you can't turn down. like, okay, i'm just going to watch a little bit more 24 was set to debut in november of 2001. >> the pilot climaxes with an assassin blowing up a passenger jet in midair. fox orders

this. fox schedules it. 911 happens. suddenly. this show, which seemed like this goofy thing about, you know, kiefer sutherland chasing after middle eastern extremist terrorists, becomes the most timely show on television because that is all that anyone in america can talk about. after september 11th. >> the name for the series comes from the idea that it's 24 episodes in a season. each episode is one hour in a day, and jack bauer just has the worst days. >> we are running out of time. pull the trigger. please don't make me do this, boy. i know how hard this is for you, but if you care about me at all, you will pull the trigger. do it. i'm sorry, i can't. chloe, pull the trigger. pull the trigger, you! >> the commercial breaks in that show were almost welcome so that you could catch your breath 24 was really the first binge show. if you think about

it. there were a lot of people in the later years of 24 that would only buy the dvds. >> do you think he'll come after you? >> yes, and a lot of the subtleties and complexities that the storytellers have been doing. you'd say, my god, this is blowing my mind. i can see it now because i just watched three in a row. >> battlestar galactica was a show made in the late 1970s. not a very good show, but a show with a really good idea, which is civilization has been destroyed. humanity is on the run. what happens next? years later, syfy channel looked at it and said, well, what if we take it seriously? >> madam president, we have to eliminate the olympic carrier immediately. >> there are 1300 people on that ship. >> star wars feels like fantasy and fable in the best possible sense. this felt like war. do it. the photography was shot very much like world war ii. combat cameramen work okay,

fire on my mark. >> no fracking way. >> lee. lee, come on. >> it was as if someone was floating in space with an old world war ii film. oh, and oh, here comes a cylon. i want to get this shot. really was riveted by it. >> it's classic sci fi in that it's about using the robots in the spaceships and the clones to comment on the world we live in right now. >> i can't die. when this body is destroyed. my memory, my consciousness, will be transmitted to a new one. >> the cylons look and act and feel just like humans. and by the time you get to the middle of battlestar galactica, you don't really know who you're rooting for anymore. >> what other secrets are rattling around inside that mechanical brain? >> it was like sort of west wing in space. >> madam president, without you, we wouldn't have made it.

>> it was just a very rich world it felt lived in, felt real, and the stakes could not have been higher. >> i think lost is the first huge cinematic tv show i saw. >> i remember gathering at a friend's house to watch, and it was long enough ago, and the internet was still young enough and social media was, i mean, not what was what friendster j.j. >> abrams ambition for the lost pilot was grandiose. he always talked about it as making a movie every week. i think when we say the word cinematic, what we really mean is opening it up a little bit more, but also the ambition of an action set piece move. jj was very aggressive. he was like, if you want me to do this pilot, you're going to need to give me the resource in order to do it. and i want to shoot it as a movie. and then

we've got to keep that bar up. >> you start off you're thinking, all right, well, this is just a survival drama. here's these people. they're playing his crashed. how are they going to get by? how are they going to find food, et cetera.? we hunt. and on top of that, there's this whole mystery where are we? why can't we get a rescue signal? why is there a polar bear? what is going on here? >> the show averages more than 15.5 million viewers each week, and spawned countless web locations where millions of avid fans can obsess. >> the fan base is saying, when are you going to answer these mysteries? personally, i started feeling hamstrung story wise almost instantly because we had to do 25 hours of lost in the first season, so we started communicating to abc, we're going to run out of

flashback stories. >> call it jack. >> you call it. >> and abc was adamant in saying no. like the show is a hit show. people love the flashbacks. don't worry, you guys are great at it. just keep it up. >> you okay? freckles? >> at the beginning of the third season of the show, we had our characters locked in cages and i think looking back on it now, damon and i are like, well, i think that's metaphorically how we felt. we felt we were locked in cages around halfway through the third season, abc said, okay, we will let you end the show. >> and we're like, yes, thank god. and they said, after ten seasons. >> of desperate housewives and lost launched the same year, it really was a huge boost for the network. they had two shows that everybody was talking about. >> in truth, i spent the day as i spent every other day quietly polishing the routine of my life until it gleamed with perfection. >> i had a lot to say about women who go into the iconic

roles of wife and mother, and are unfulfilled. >> i think the good news it brought is women who are not perfect, who are not young. are viable, and the fan base was amazing. and the, you know, there were t-shirts. i remember going into a store and there was i am lynette. are you saying i'm a bad mother? >> ma'am, you need to get back in your car, please. >> i am gabby. i am susan, i am bree. >> are you at a bar? >> we stood on the shoulders of those who came before. you know, strong women, characters in television. but in the wake of desperate housewives, a lot more shows with older women came on the air. >> oh, what are you doing? >> knock myself out naked. oh, and then

i fell. so how are you? >> you only come across an artist like luther vandross. once in a lifetime. >> he was a boss from the beginning. luther said. i have a sound in my head. i got to get it out. you are my shining star. >> my. >> it was the most exciting time in the world. >> his life had extremely joyful moments and some really difficult moments. >> if we were to be able to talk to luther as fans, we would be able to say. we just love you, luther. >> never too much new year's day at eight on cnn. >> start your day with nature. made the number one pharmacist. recommended vitamin and supplement brand emergen-c crystals pop and fizz when you throw them back. >> and who doesn't love a good throwback?

now with vitamin d for the dark days of winter? >> go, friends! gather kiki, chris jason. >> friends. let's go, let's go. >> friends, hold on to your dice. >> nice frosting. brad. >> thank you. how are we doing, kiki? >> tastes like money to me. i can't go back to jail. wait. did you rob my bank? are we winning one? oh, buddy. our friendship. let's go. >> weight loss. for so long, i felt stuck. >> but zepbound means change. zepbound is for adults with obesity to help lose weight and keep it off. >> activating two naturally occurring hormone receptors in my body. it works differently. >> it's changing what i believe is possible when it comes to weight loss. it's changing how much weight i lose

up to 48 pounds and changing what happens. >> don't take if allergic to it, or if you or someone in your family had medullary thyroid cancer or multiple endocrine neoplasia syndrome. type two. tell your doctor. if you get a lump or swelling in your neck, stop zepbound and call your doctor. if you have severe stomach pain or a serious allergic reaction. severe side effects may include inflamed pancreas or gallbladder problems. tell your doctor if you are experiencing vision changes. taking a sulfonylurea or insulin. having suicidal thoughts if you're nursing pregnant or plan to be, or taking birth control pills. side effects include nausea, diarrhea, and vomiting, which can cause dehydration and worsen kidney problems. >> zepbound means change, and when it comes to weight loss, change is good. >> discover the weight loss you could be bound for. talk to your doctor about zepbound louis. cut. >> muhammad. action! louis. louis. cut. mud on her face.

>> louie. okay, everybody. that's lunch. >> mud mask no. no, no. >> compare hotels in the hotels.com app. >> i told you, i don't need these anymore. i have sling this critical time calls for the critical news coverage that sling provides. >> okay, see you tomorrow. >> the most important news at the best price. sling lets you do that. >> it is game day, people, and i have never felt this kind of electricity. not in years. >> this town of dillon, texas is on fire. >> i love friday night lights. >> i grew up in colorado. it's set in texas, but i knew every single person who was on that

show and they weren't on the air anyplace else. >> amen. amen. clear eyes, full hearts. can't lose. let's get em. >> the pilot of friday night lights is one of the best pilots of any television show ever. you introduced almost instantly to the fact that jason street is the greatest quarterback that dillon high school has ever had. there's a street. >> i've been scouting quarterbacks for notre dame for 27 years. your son may be the best i have ever seen. >> about 35 or 40 minutes into the episode, while trying to make a tackle fumble on the play, a fumble, the ball loose. jason street is hit and he's paralyzed. it is devastating because you get just far enough into the episode to think that maybe the bad thing will not happen to this person. if we're going to. but then the show wouldn't be

the show. >> i am going to stay in dillon. i'm going to be a father to this baby and to this family. i'm going to coach high school football, and you and i are going to stay together. and that's the way it is. yes. >> no. what do you mean, no? you got to go to austin. this is. this is your dream. >> that's what i'm telling you. >> that's what i'm telling you. what? we wanted it to feel like was that the audience was just being invited in to a very small town, very intimate setting. i don't want to be responsible, nor do i want to have this baby be responsible for you not living out your dreams. >> and that's what i'm saying. you are my dream. >> i have walked with you all these years to get to this place. you and i, together. this is about just a couple trying to actually be in a marriage and make it work, instead of just like what we always see on television. and then i felt a very strong, deep desire to not just have her be

the sidelined, supporting wife. it looks to me like on your little sojourn, tim, you missed yourself. oh two biology exams and what looks like a pretty important term paper in your english lit class. so let's start there. i don't know what a sojourn is, man. a sojourn is what's going to keep you back a year if you don't get it together. that's right. change your attitude. that's what a sojourn is. the rest of it, you can look up all the single ladies, all the single ladies. >> kelly was a really interesting show because it was about a high school, and they take pop songs that are already out there and make them part of the story. i'm dancing with myself, and it was about these misfits at a high school where there's nothing to lose and there's nothing to prove, and they're in the glee club. there's a lot of themes about a not fitting in, but b homophobia

i'm through with playing by the rules of someone else's game. >> it was so specific to my childhood. and like, whoever thought that, you know, a bunch of misfit show choir losers would become a global thing. i never did. i don't stop. >> i think glee and ryan murphy really got the general public understanding that, oh, there is a person behind this, and there is a person's sensibility that is driving this show. >> love you like a sister. >> this is the point at which the showrunners are almost as famous or more famous than some of the people on their shows, because we care so much about the creative process. so is it the drama and the story that usually comes first and then the medicine later? >> the theme of every episode and the drama of every episode comes first, and then we try to find medicine that relates to or reflects that theme. >> mr. and mrs. glass, i understand how difficult this is. >> no disrespect, but like hell

you do. >> are you going to have to make a decision as to how you want to proceed? >> you mean my baby's life or my own? yes. >> gray's anatomy, it revealed what a good storyteller shonda rhimes is. >> i love you in a really, really big pretend to like your taste in music. let you eat the last piece of cheesecake. hold a radio over my head outside your window. unfortunate way that makes me hate you. love you. so pick me. >> people like shonda rhimes. these are the people who are just the lifeblood of broadcast networks. and in shonda's case, it's fantastic because finally a woman, finally a person of color is doing this. >> anything that opens doors for more women and more african-americans and more diverse casting and more diverse crew is a good thing. >> shonda stood up and went, yes, i am going to be a

showrunner, and i'm going to be a juggernaut. >> ten bucks says he messes up the mcburney says he cries. >> i'll put 20 on a total meltdown. >> 50 says. he pulls the whole thing off. that's one of us down there. the first one of us. where's your loyalty? >> above and beyond the cultural aspect, which is important and great. we need to remember that she created a bunch of shows that are terrific fun to watch. >> you can do this. >> andie anderson, take a seat. look at this. you're wet. disheveled. there's debris hitting you. >> why do you have that on your phone? >> i watch it all the time. hey, listen, we need to be ready for new year's eve. there could be an ice storm or a hurricane. and obviously, confetti. maybe you are ready. >> new year's eve, live with

anderson and andy. live coverage starts at eight on cnn and streaming live on max. emergency crystals pop and fizz when you throw them back. and who doesn't love a good throwback? now with vitamin d for the dark days of winter? >> not again. the cold is coming. >> your cold is coming. >> thanks, revere. >> we really need to keep zicam in the house. >> only if you want to shorten your cold. when you feel a cold coming, shorten it with zicam. >> every parent knows when it's time to go into. protect mode. kill 99.9% of bacteria when you add lysol laundry sanitizer to your laundry routine. >> can your pad flex with you without shifting? always flex foam can. it's the only pad made with a flexible foam core, with wings that fit securely for up to zero bunching and zero leaks in

your pad. do that. see what foam can do for you today, my friend. >> you did it. >> you did it. >> pursue a better you with centrum. it's a small win toward taking charge of your health, so this year you can say. you did it. >> this guy can't shoot. >> he's got weak arms. >> how do you sleep at night on a mattress for a mattress firm. >> so i sleep all night long at the semiannual sale and clearance. >> save up to 60% on top brands. get matched at mattress firm. sleep at night. >> someone need a hug? sing. >> danny werfel bah, humbug. >> somewhere inside, every lost grown up is the kid they once were. it seems to me they need us now more than ever. >> i'm enchanted. drawn to the world.

z's bakery is looking to add a pizza oven, arissa's hair salon wants to expand their space, and steve's t-shirt shop wants to bring on more help. with the comcast business 5-year price lock guarantee, they can think more about possibilities for their business and not the cost of their internet. it's five years of gig-speeds and advanced security. all from the company with 99.9% network reliability. get the 5-year price lock guarantee, now back for a limited time. powering five years of savings. powering possibilities™.

off at shop mando dotcom. >> i'm rahel solomon in new york and this is cnn. >> i don't want to mess this up again. no. >> me neither. okay. we are. >> we're done being stupid, okay? >> it's you and me. all right? this is it. this is it. unless we're on a break. don't make jokes now. >> by the time frasier and friends went off the air, there was a feeling among the networks that the multicamera format filmed in front of a live studio audience. >> so i guess this is. >> it was getting kind of tired and getting kind of stale. you guys play the most important part.

>> the live studio audience. >> now, there is no form of television that makes as much money for the networks as multi-camera tv shows. oh, my. >> we write a four camera show, we write it, direct it and perform it and rehearse it like a play in front of a studio audience when someone gets a laugh on that stage, they actually hold as you do. >> not in real life, as you do not in single camera. you are holding for that laugh. oh. >> it's an abstract, not abstract enough. >> you've done an amazing job. >> it looks like something, though. what does it look like? >> you can get close. you can even touch it. i'm fine

this is bugging me. >> where have i seen this before? >> i started studying what phil rosenthal was doing with raymond. >> and he was embracing the very best of what the genre could do, which was interesting characters. he provided me with a very, very loud reminder that i didn't need to fix anything. i didn't need to knock any boundaries or walls over. i just needed to embrace what was there. >> men, men, men, manly men. >> i had been in so many shows that had failed spectacularly that i became known as the show killer. men, men, men, men. >> manly men. >> and that's not a great thing to be known as in show business. >> on the sly. i had him come in and read for me. and he was brilliant. >> how much is a hooker? right. >> alan, what are you gonna do with a hooker? >> well, i'd like to pay her to have sex with me.

>> how much are you looking to spend? >> well, as you know, i am a bit of a bargain hunter. >> yeah, but unfortunately, they don't stock hookers at the 99 cent store. give me a number. >> okay, well, um, what could i get in the $200 range? crabs. >> and carjacked. >> i have an enormous sense of pride to have done a multi-camera sitcom that people really took to their hearts for 12 years. >> okay, let's start in first position. jake, do you know first position? >> is that, like, missionary position? >> i mean, that was the longest that a sitcom had been on broadcast television in the history of broadcast television at the time? i think big bang is going to beat it, but still, that's amazing. >> two people

talking is the essence of a four camera sitcom. lighting is not really an issue. there's no music that's going to help the material checkmate. there's no special effects. again, it's hopefully good words with good actors. >> it must be humbling to suck on so many different levels. big bang had this weird hurdle, it seemed of not only are you fighting the natural fight that every show does about getting an audience, trying to stay on the air and keep your job, yada yada, make way for the fastest man alive. >> oh no. see, this is why i wanted to have a costume meeting. >> but then there was also this weird wave of energy coming. like you're in a genre that's passé, that we're done with this, we don't want to see this anymore. >> and the emmy goes to jim parsons the big bang theory. >> obviously, we didn't go away, and i believe very strongly that the multicam, the

way they're shot in front of the studio audience, you hear the other people laughing. i think it ignites something that's innate in all of us. it's very primal, almost, which is that that desire to gather as a group and hear a story. >> well, hey, lawrence, look live from new york. >> it's saturday night, so every generation has their favorite saturday night live, right? >> and it's usually the one that was on when they were in high school. so the people that were in high school during the 2000 won the jackpot. >> that's true. you're still. what are you saying? >> you're beautiful. in the mirror. you should look in the mirror. you're beautiful. do. >> because over the course of that decade, you see some of the most extraordinary people come through that show. >> we should mention that although the waters above appear calm below the surface, there is a frenzy of activity. >> one of the hallmarks of snl is you need somebody to play

the president. and will's w was stellar. he went this way. >> will ferrell's george bush was sort of a lovable dummy. >> how about a life saver here? okay, yeah, that'd be nice. not a good idea. there you go. while you're at it, can i get those antlers, too? yeah. there you go, son. i like these. >> no, and of course, more cowbell was also a will ferrell high point alternative. >> cowbell was fantastic. not only because it's a great concept, but because will really gets to be will. >> the last time i checked, we don't have a whole lot of songs that feature the cowbell. >> i gotta have more cowbell, baby. >> i'd be doing myself a disservice, and every member of this band, if i didn't perform the hell out of this snl in the 2000 is also a great time for women. >> it's my birthday

because there is a strong group of women that play off each other really well. >> what do you pot indian, you cherokee? look at those cheekbones. what are you sue? sue got sue in you. >> you chippewa. yeah, you got a little sue. >> sue, i believe that diplomacy should be the cornerstone of any foreign policy. and i can see russia from my house. i like. >> waterfalls. i like butterflies, i like rainbows, i like chasing cars. >> you are seeing creativity and wacky left field things that you wouldn't have seen before. lazy sunday wake up in the late afternoon. >> andy samberg and the lonely island guys, akiva and jorma really helped make the transition for snl into the digital era. and that's when things started to go viral for snl. i'm on a boat. >> i'm on a boat. everybody look at me cause i'm sailing on

a boat. >> you know, on a boat. or who could forget in the box? i mean, come on, one cut a hole in a box. >> put your junk in that box. make her open the box. and that's the way you do it. it's my in a box. >> they say things take time and effort, but it's worth the wait. >> i could tell some stories. >> i'm so excited. >> don't believe twitter brought the world together and the world was not ready to see itself. >> you read the comments? >> yeah, i might recommend that. you don't. yeah, that's how i get by. >> we never backed away. >> he never stepped down. oh, that's how i get back. >> i feel at home here. >> lord. that's how i get by. >> long after guests leave viruses and bacteria linger. air fresheners add a scent, but only lysol air sanitizer helps erase the trace, eliminating

odor and killing 99.9% of viruses and bacteria in the air. scent can't sanitize lysol can. >> my moderate to severe crohn's symptoms kept me out of the picture. >> now i have skyrizi. i've got places to go, and i'm feeling free. >> controlling my crohn's means everything to me. oh, control is everything to me. >> and now i'm back in the picture. feel significant symptom relief at four weeks with skyrizi, including less abdominal pain and fewer bowel movements. skyrizi helped visibly improve damage of the intestinal lining, and with skyrizi, many were in remission at 12 weeks, at one year, and even at two years. don't use if allergic. >> serious allergic reactions, increased infections, or lower ability to fight them may occur before treatment. get checked for infections and tb. tell your doctor about any flu like symptoms or vaccines. liver problems leading to hospitalization may occur when treated for crohn's, now's the time to take control of your

crohn's. >> control is everything to me. ask your doctor about skyrizi, the number one prescribed biologic in crohn's disease. >> you make good choices. they've shaped your journey to leave all that your life built. rock solid for generations. with ambition like that, you need someone who elevates advice to a craft. at ubs, we match your vision with insight and expertise to shape a unique outcome for you. advice is our craft. >> sauer etrade's. easy to use tools like dynamic charting and risk reward analysis help make trading feel effortless, and it's customizable. scans with social sentiment help you find

download quick hit slots for free and get a 6 million coin bonus. >> make every day a winning day. >> happy.

>> welcome to deadwood. >> david milch said i have a great idea about ancient rome. >> cops in ancient rome at the time of nero. >> and we're like, okay, just toe to toe, because we're already doing this show about rome. >> thieves will be strangled deserters will be crucified. >> david basically took the underlying theme of his rome show and put it in deadwood. >> no law at all in deadwood. is that true? >> at the time of nero, there was a lot of order and no law, and deadwood was a similar environment. >> maybe you don't value keeping your guts inside your belly enough. those are the days behind us. no, those are the days to my left. >> ian mcshane's character, al swearengen just steals the show. just lock, stock and barrel away

from everybody else. you kind of want to go in that saloon of his and have a drink and try to engage him in conversation, but then you think to yourself, that'd be a good idea if i say something wrong, am i going to get my guts cut out with a bowie knife? he's a fascinating character in that he scares you and he attracts you at the same time. that's kind of a rare thing. >> can we see your fangs? i'm stepdaddy hated vampires, but we don't. >> i think that true blood was an enjoyable beach read, soggy with blood all over it. you'd say, well, it wasn't meant to be taken seriously. it wasn't taking itself seriously. except it was such a big allegory for what was going on with the gay community, with aids, with political backlash. >> you use your tax exempt religious institution as an anti-vampire terrorist enclave. >> this is like there's

monsters all over. but the scariest, most deadly characters in the whole show. >> where are we going to have a dead vampire in our trailer? >> are the human beings? showtime looked at tony soprano and they said, you want an anti-hero? how about a mass murderer? who? who's the hero of our show? >> dexter is based on a series of novels about a blood spatter expert who worked for the miami pd, who is secretly a serial killer. >> soon you'll be packed into a few neatly wrapped hefty's and my own small corner of the world will be a neater. >> happier place. >> he was raised by a policeman to channel his sociopathic impulses to only kill other killers. so he is a bad guy,

but also a good guy. >> i kill reprehensible people. i mean, the the idea of the show is that you're invited to identify with and maybe even root for a serial killer. that's right. he kills horrible people. if i were just killing people willy nilly, i think all bets would be off. yeah, that's. >> where's the fun in that? yeah, in the 2000, the anti-hero really rose to prominence. >> that's a b-b gun. >> my nephew got the same one. >> hey, don't don't don't point that there does. >> nice work. >> i'd hate to see it full of holes. >> and i think they were popular because they were surprising you're a free woman you struck a deal. >> the d.a. dropped the charges. thank you. >> a show for me that was incredibly memorable was damages.

>> now, where's the tape? >> it really was about following the twisted relationship of patty and ellen. >> what are you looking at her for? >> fraud. >> conspiracy, obstruction of justice. >> now, mr. nye tells us you might have reasons of your own for wanting to take down miss hewes. >> yes. i do, i was just so taken with the fact that there was this incredibly dark, unapologetically, morally compromised lead character who was a woman. >> i told pete. to have you killed. >> it was sort of the beginning of a real emergence of rich women on television. all right, all right. >> sure. take my last one. this will help.

>> is this cab free? >> are you nuts? >> oh, i have heard nurse jackie referred to as an anti-hero. >> she was at the mercy of her addiction. that always got her fullest attention. what are you looking at? but beyond that, i think she really cared that there wasn't money in the budget for extra blankets for someone who came in off the street, and she would go and steal it from another department or whatever. she, you know, she really wanted to be a good nurse and she wanted to be married, and she wanted these kids, and she wanted to be a good wife and mother. >> why do you always have to work? yeah. >> and there was no way she could do all of them edie falco for me can do no wrong. >> here she is as the female anti-hero that has her own show. and she's the

one whose morals are questionable. >> are you my back, my back? >> my back. oh, jesus. >> because, you know, she's having an affair. >> can't talk. love you. >> she's stealing drugs. and is she an unfit mother and all those things. and yet you feel for her. so i love that women now get to be get to be the anti-hero and not just either the villain or the good girl. i want to know, have you ever seen. and i think that is something that the decade gave us, which is a move towards television, really reflecting what america looks like you only come across an artist like luther vandross once in a lifetime. >> he was a boss from the beginning, luther said. >> i have a sound in my head. i got to get it out. you are my shining star. >> my. >> it was the most exciting time in the world. >> his life had extremely joyful moments and some really

difficult moments. >> if we were to be able to talk to luther as fans, we'd be able to say, oh, we just love you, luther. >> never too much new year's day at eight on cnn. >> dear doctor k, i used to think i was never meant to be beautiful. i was teased because of my teeth. i didn't like the person looking back at me in the mirror. i never thought i could afford dental implants. you and your team work within my budget and help me feel confident in the plan we made together. i love my new smile. thank you. >> congratulations. you have a beautiful soul, cynthia. >> finance the smile you want for as low as 1.48 a month per arch. schedule a free consultation this holiday season. kevin. catherine. all aboard the freedom unlimited. >> kevin. kevin. >> kevin. kevin and kevin. i mean mcauley. take a very special trip to the mall where anything can get your little kid. is cash back really?

>> yeah. anything is cash. basketball. >> i'm sorry. >> tis the season to cash back with chase freedom unlimited. >> how do you cash back? chase, make more of what's yours. >> at the salvation army. >> a shelter isn't just a place to rest. it's a chance to shed layers, let loose, and finally let it go. with your gift, a warm bed is just the beginning. it's the first night of a new day. when our homeless neighbors feel safe enough to close their eyes. they can see the way forward. love. >> when i was younger, my calling was to play football. but as i grew older, i realized life isn't about how many people you can knock down, it's about how many people you can lift up at ram, our calling is to build game changing trucks. so when you find your calling, nothing can stop you from answering it.

>> right now, during the ram wrap up the year sales event, get $6,500 total cash allowance on the purchase of select 2025 ram 1500 trucks. see your local ram dealer today. hi, susan honey. yeah, i respect that, but that cough looks pretty bad. try this. robitussin, honey. >> the real honey you love. >> plus the powerful cough relief you need. >> mind if i root through your trash? >> robitussin with real honey and elderberry. >> do we get something for my dad? >> i'll grab the car keys. >> looking for a last minute gift idea? give hands free sketcher slip ins. the perfect gift for everybody from kids to grandparents. just step in and run. there's no bending down and no touching your shoes. there's still time. give hands free sketcher slip ins. >> as the people you love get older, their risk of severe flu and covid goes up. last year alone, those viruses hospitalized nearly 1 million people 65 and older. that's nearly 1 million moms, dad's favorite uncles

and grandmas. if someone you love is 65 or older, talk with them about vaccines because to you, they're not just another number. >> closed captioning is brought to you by mike, an all in one home access and monitoring system. >> mike, you boost your home's iq. >> amc you know, people forget amc stood for american movie classics, and then suddenly they kind of figure out, let's stop paying for these other movies. let's make our own content. >> i was called in 2005 to come in and meet with the head of amc because they were looking to do scripted programing for the first time. a manager said, oh, i have this great script set in the advertising world in new york. it's been around for eight years and nobody's bought

it. everybody's past advertising is based on one thing. >> happiness don draper is a master of the universe. >> a.d. executive. in early 1960s manhattan. but he is actually secretly a man named dick whitman. he has stolen the identity of the real don draper due to an incident during the korean war. so he's living another man's life, but he's battling his own demons at the same time, and we're seeing him rise and fall over the course of the 1960s, in a lot of ways, the most interesting arc of the show is peggy olson's career. she goes from this little church mouse, secretary to a really tough and bold and confident career woman. >> i like the way she's handing out the pops. >> who knows what she can do and is going to try to get it. even during a really sexist period for the industry, when it was so hard for a woman to get anything. >> peggy, can you get me some coffee? no.

>> the female characters in mad men are great because they each kind of represent different aspects of what women were going through at that time. >> you glide around that office like some magnificent ship. >> i had this incredible experience of reading the feminine mystique and sex and the single girl in the same week, and i said, oh, well, this is my show, daddy. >> the heroes of mad men were the women, and the men were all obstructions of one kind or another. >> i'm here all day, alone with them. outnumbered. >> what about carla? >> doesn't she count? >> it's not her job to raise our children. >> it was incorporating the music of the times. the images of the times, the history of the times and the attitudes of the times you could tell me where i could find out. >> what color panties are you wearing? what? >> oh my goodness ooh, blue.

>> who had blue? >> can i walk you home? >> mad men had absolutely no nostalgia for the period. it showed that people were jerks and adulterers and connivers. even back in the glory days of the 1960s. >> what are you doing? >> christ. somebody shot the president. >> what? >> how? they communicated the kennedy assassination was actually exactly as it came to pass. they drew their pistols, but the damage was done. the president was shot in the back seat of the car. everything stopped. nothing seemed important ever again. and it just so happened to be the weekend that roger's daughter was getting married. and there was a big wedding. away from the hospital. i would put mad men and sopranos in a position of the most important shows in the history of television

i was about to turn 40 years old, and this was about 2004, two years after the end of the x-files, and i was kind of at sea. >> i wasn't sure what to do next. i was having trouble getting. frankly, i was having trouble getting employed. my buddy tom schnauz had been on the x-files, too, and he said, i think we should put a meth lab in the back of an rv and, you know, see america, make some dough on the side. he's got a warped sense of humor, but at any rate, when i heard that idea, i thought to myself, you know what? if i really did that, what would it take? and then i thought, well, i'd need money really bad. why would i need money? >> lung cancer. >> inoperable. >> we pitched breaking bad to

not even a handful of places. some people liked it. some people not so much. it'd been kind of been dead for about six months or a year or something like that. and suddenly i hear, hey, would you like to go meet the folks at amc? they're interested in doing breaking bad. >> zain verjee when we were making the decision to do breaking bad, we absolutely were looking for an anti-hero show, and we wanted a guy that was going against the grain. >> dad, come check this out. >> yeah, i see it. >> come on, take it. >> check it out, walt. >> they always tell you you need to have a good one sentence pitch. and i came up with, we're going to take mr. chips, and we're going to turn him into scarface. what we were really going for was change. walter white says it in the first hour of the show, electrons. >> they. >> change their energy levels.

>> molecules, molecules change their bonds. >> breaking bad was a study in change about that money. >> money. better watch your game. play it. >> cause the change that happens to one character as he devolves from good to bad. >> you know the business, and i know the chemistry. >> there was definitely a shift. after mad men and breaking bad that the phone started ringing and a ton of feature people wanted to start making tv shows. >> would you pass the butter, please? >> bad dad. >> and it now really has taken over what the indie feature was. now it's being made in the tv sphere. >> walter, you've been busy. >> welcome to times square.

>> it's the biggest party of the year. happy new year with the biggest guests. >> we have even more amazing guests lined up for you with performances by music's biggest stars and appearances by comedians, celebrities and more. >> yes, anything can happen on new year's eve oh my gosh. >> wow. >> new year's eve live with anderson and andy. live coverage starts at eight on cnn and streaming live on max. >> long after guests leave, viruses and bacteria linger, air fresheners add a scent, but only lysol air sanitizer helps erase the trace, eliminating odor and killing 99.9% of viruses and bacteria in the air. scent can't sanitize lysol can. today, my friend, you did it. >> you did it. pursue a better you with centrum. it's a small win toward taking charge of your health. so this year you can say you did it from

dress the bird. >> to deck the halls. so many ways to save life. ready? wallet. happy. that's 365 by whole foods market. >> my moderate to severe crohn's symptoms kept me out of the picture. now i have skyrizi. i've got places to go. >> and i'm feeling free. controlling my crohn's means everything to me. control is everything to me. >> and now i'm back in the picture. feel significant symptom relief at four weeks with skyrizi, including less abdominal pain and fewer bowel movements. skyrizi helped visibly improve damage of the intestinal lining, and with skyrizi. many were in remission at 12 weeks at one year, and even at two years. >> don't use if allergic. serious allergic reactions, increased infections, or lower ability to fight them may occur. before treatment, get checked for infections and tb. tell your doctor about any flu like symptoms or vaccines. liver problems

leading to hospitalization may occur when treated for crohn's. >> now's the time to take control of your crohn's. control is everything to me. ask your doctor about skyrizi, the number one prescribed biologic in crohn's disease. >> emergency crystals pop and fizz when you throw them back. and who doesn't love a good throwback? ♪ ♪

with so much great entertainment out there... wouldn't it be easier if you could find what you want, all in one place? my favorites. get xfinity streamsaver with netflix, apple tv+, and peacock included, for only $15 a month. to learn more, go to lumi dot com. >> all the best, all the worst 2024 thursday at 11 on cnn. >> while it's tempting to play it safe, the more we're willing to risk, the more alive we are in the end, what we regret most are the chances we never took. >> there's an old showbiz axiom you've got to get off the stage before somebody says, hey, you should get off the stage. oh, that's your dream.

>> skyrizi. >> endings are hard in general, and i think the sopranos was able to accomplish this thing that everybody in television is always trying to accomplish, which is do something that no one has ever seen before. >> tony is meeting the family at a restaurant, and we're listening to a journey song, and watching is one by one. the family members come in and there's these sinister people lurking around strangers waiting. you were wondering, tony, going to survive this? was tony going to be shot? what was going to happen? >> you're cutting to meadow park in a car. you know, all these things that are completely normal. but they're imbued with this dread. don't stop believin

hold on to that feeling. >> nothing is happening. they're enjoying a family meal and listening to journey. fever. and it's building. and it's building. don't stop. >> the long black in which everybody says. did i just lose my hbo signal? what's going on there? i actually thought was kind of like the chord at the end of sergeant pepper, in which nine pianos just hit this long, long major bong. and it goes on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on and on. that black was sort of like what the series needed in order to communicate. the fact that it is now officially over. >> as for sopranos creator david chase, he got whacked in the headlines. he got whacked by the new york post cartoonist who showed fans getting whacked, and chase literally got whacked online. >> 3 or 4 days later, carlton and i were in new york talking to a couple of television

critics about how amazing it was, and they were like, oh, you know, there's a lot of controversy about the about the sopranos finale. and we were like, what? they're like, oh, yeah, some people just absolutely hate it. like the whole cut to black. it's pretentious. nobody knows what it means. they're all discussing whether tony is alive or dead. and we were like, well, those are all the things that make it brilliant. and right then we realized that we were completely and totally. right. >> if you've been fortunate enough to be successful, they've gone along for a long ride with you, and the viewer has a through line for every character and the show that you could never possibly have. >> you know i love you, right? more than anything, of course, honey. >> so it is a fool's errand to try and please anyone but yourself when you're writing

a series finale. >> finales have become increasingly more important. you know, if you don't do a really good finale to a really good series, the series can sort of lose its luster. but six feet under comes up with a perfect ending, and the show is actually even enhanced a little bit. the end of six feet under has the daughter just driving away in the car and music starts to play. it's sia's breathe me. and she looks up in the rear view mirror, so she's looking backwards. but then the show looks ahead. ouch. i have lost myself again lost. >> myself. and i am nowhere to be found.

>> that season ended and everybody died. and i thought it was brilliant the work on tv is as good as any work that's on a big screen. >> and so that hierarchy of film and television, i think, has been changed dramatically. partially because of the great work that people did at hbo and also because of the work they did at a lot of other places. >> i've waited a long time for this. >> coming up as an actor, film was the thing. tv was like less than. >> i say so to suddenly be in an era where we could tell these rich stories, entrance has been gained and really create the suspense of them and the

trajectory of them. >> get over whatever it is and do your job in ways that maybe we couldn't necessarily in film. >> i do think that led to where we are now, where everybody wants to do tv. >> sit down, you guys. know what? >> oh, yeah. >> you can't sit there. why not? >> that's where sheldon sits. >> he can't sit somewhere else. oh, no. >> no. >> you see, in the winter, that seat is close enough to the radiator so that he's warm, yet not so close that he sweats in the summer. >> it's directly in the path of a cross-breeze created by opening windows there and there. it faces the television at an angle that isn't direct, so we can still talk to everybody, yet not so wide that the picture looks distorted. >> or perhaps there's hope for you after all.