| . . |
The triumvirate period ended with the crowning of Al Ittleson as executive producer. |
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| I knew Al from our days in the ABC Owned Stations division. He kept me in my job. Day-to-day, I put the weekly show together, and occasionally produced a piece. | ||
 This is an original
meal ticket for fully catered dinners served in New York studio TV1 on evenings of air.
Note the eyeglasses--they were the original 20/20 logo. The circular lenses and the
"2"-shaped earpieces were intended to replicate "20/20." |
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| Once the executive producer signed off on a rough cut, I took control of the post production of all pieces, often enhancing them visually. I supervised the writing of the anchor copy, produced and directed the show openings and continuity elements, designed the set with Roger Goodman (with whom I worked closely in designing and putting the show on-air), and worked side-by-side with the other senior producers. | ||
| Before long, Roone removed Al, and brought in Av Westin. It was Av who made 20/20 what it is today. Again, Av kept me in my position, and I became a student and mentee of Av's. At last, 20/20 stabilized, the formula gelled, and ratings began to grow. | ||
| I stayed into 1981, when I decided that it was time for a new adventure. Av wanted me to switch to producing topical lead stories. I felt I had been there and done that, and wanted to learn to executive produce my own shows. I wanted to learn to control shows financially as well as editorially. With Av's best wishes, I resigned, determined to build my future based on everything I had learned. |