Fran Drescher on being a showrunner for the American sitcom | American Masters | PBS

Official website: http://www.pbs.org/americanmasters | #americanmasterspbs On November 18, 1999, Fran Drescher sat down with director Pamela Mason Wagner to discuss how she consulted Lucille Ball’s playbook for showrunner-stars in the American sitcom while creating "The Nanny." Interview conducted for "Lucille Ball: Finding Lucy." Chapters: 00:00 Finding inspiration through the success of Desilu productions 01:43 Constructing the “The Nanny” as platform to reach a wider American audience 03:09 Reversing the “Clown and Straight Man” dynamic in a traditional sitcom 05:52 Translating the archetypal 1950s domestic relationship for a modern audience 08:57 Lucy and Fran Fine using subversion to assert agency in their domestic partnerships 13:34 On grounding their characters’ flaws in their humanity and compassionate lightheartedness 18:08 The importance of incorporating glamour into domesticity 19:34 Placing a priority on the conflicts and contradictions and heart inherent to being human Subscribe to the American Masters channel for more clips: http://bit.ly/1JmUCu5 Enjoy full episodes of your favorite American Masters films: http://www.pbs.org/americanmasters FOLLOW AMERICAN MASTERS: Facebook:   / americanmasters   Twitter:   / pbsamermasters   #AmericanMastersPBS Instagram:   / pbsamericanmasters   #AmericanMastersPBS TikTok:   / pbsamericanmasters   FOLLOW PBS: Facebook:   / pbs   Twitter:   / pbs   Instagram:   / pbs   Shop: http://www.shop.pbs.org/ ___________________________________ Now in its 37th season on PBS, American Masters illuminates the lives and creative journeys of those who have left an indelible impression on our cultural landscape—through compelling, unvarnished stories. Setting the standard for documentary film profiles, the series has earned widespread critical acclaim: 28 Emmy Awards—including 10 for Outstanding Non-Fiction Series and five for Outstanding Non-Fiction Special—two News & Documentary Emmys, 14 Peabodys, three Grammys, two Producers Guild Awards, an Oscar, and many other honors. To further explore the lives and works of more than 250 masters past and present, the American Masters website offers full episodes, film outtakes, filmmaker interviews, the podcast “American Masters: Creative Spark,” educational resources, digital original series and more. The series is a production of The WNET Group.