Orlando Chapter STC - 45th STC Conference

Professional Development

Notes from 45th International STC Conference
Anaheim, California, May 17-20, 1998

Carliner opened with a fusillade of quotes from TV shows, ranging from comic to thought-provoking.
The Lucy Ricardo Theory of Project Management:
- Lucy's Principle #1: Always have a partner (Ethel)
- Lucy's Principle #2: Always have an alternative plan (Plan B)
- Lucy's Principle #3: Always have an explanation for your actions.
Bottom line: Zany though she was, you could say one thing for Lucy: she was flexible. That works well in project management.
The Sweeps Month Theory of Time Management

Sweeps months are the 4 months the Nielsen ratings draw upon a broader base, with a greater statistical reliability--forming the basis of ad rates that are the lifeblood of the TV industry. The sweeps months are February, May, August, and November.
Carliner observed that major news events always seem to happen in the sweeps months, thereby improving ratings. He cited the Kennedy assassination, the Iran hostage crisis, and the Nixon resignation. He further pointed out that in Desert Storm, Iraq invaded in November and the Allies attacked in February. CNN stock went through the roof. Interesting theory, albeit rather perverse.

The show's storyline always followed a precise plot chronology, almost down to the minute.
Canned though it was, the "cookbook" plotline does reflect the presence of stages in life: as in the denial-anger-xxxx-acceptance pattern of grief
Thus there's much to be said for system and sequence in our business as well. Structure provides security within which creativity can flourish.

When a chunky and out-of-shape Rhoda Morgenstern first hit Minneapolis in the immortal Mary Tyler Moore show, somebody (probably Mary!) suggested she might try to get in shape. To which Rhoda replied, "Well, every so often I do get the urge to exercise. I generally sit down and let it pass."
Later, however, the actress did trim down and gradually transformed the character from a frump into a glamorous star in her own right--and the result was a successful spinoff and a meteoric career ascent.
Similarly, we need to "exercise" by developing our professional skill sets if we want our careers to flourish. Sitting down until the urge passes won't cut it!

The headwriters of soap operas wield awesome power. If they don't like an actor or actress, they can just write their character out of the show (as in a convenient car accident). And introducing a new character often carries with it a hefty bonus.
Often ego-driven, headwriters have a habit of wreaking wholescale havoc on the soap opera character list when they take over a show. However, history (and ratings) have shown this practice to backfire. One of the great comforts of soap operas for daytime addicts is continuity. You can literally go out of country for 3 months, tune back in to General Hospital, and Ernest's trial is still pending, Travis is still in a coma, and Erica is still brazenly interloping in Brad and Angie's marriage. Changing all the characters upsets this stability, and viewers tend to tune to another soap which doesn't kill off all its characters.
The business lesson is that during corporate takeovers, sweeping management changes and personnel "bloodbaths" ultimately do not serve the bottom line. Carliner referred to "dumb-sizing" as "down-sizing" taken to overkill. Change everything at once, and you kill the integrity of the company, much as writing off all the characters wipes out the soap.

In the sitcom, Julia was a sassy interior designer in a foursome of women
The tie-in is her theory that people have 3 basic rights: to be respected, to be loved, and to be needed.
On being respected, Carliner cited a powerful episode of All in the Family wherein Archie (Carroll O'Connor) makes fun of a retarded person, who then humbles him with his gracious humanity.
On being loved, he referred to an episode of The Mary Tyler Moore Show when Mary asks Ted Baxter's wife incredulously, "Do you love him?" The reply: "Somebody has to."
And on being needed, he told a story about a medical social worker who was trying to convince an indigent AIDS patient in the late stages of the disease why he shouldn't just go ahead and give up. The only successful approach was a simple statement: "Because I'm not ready for you to die yet."
Food for thought.

Yes, Roseanne is obnoxious and disliked, but she does confront real social issues.
Why should we have to leave all our emotions at the door when we go to work? We should be honest about how we feel.

For those who are too young to remember [I hate you!], Edie was Lou Grant's long-suffering wife on The Mary Tyler Moore Show. She rarely appeared; her presence was mostly through Lou's comments to Mary.
No matter how bad things sounded between Lou and Edie, Mary, like a good friend, kept reassuring Lou it would be OK.
In a real shocker, the writers had Edie actually leave Lou. It was a powerful episode for what was usually a fairly lightweight sitcom.
The moral for the world of work? Sometimes what people need to be told is not what they want to be told. Tact is fine, but we serve nobody by ducking issues, even if we are well-intended.

Lily was an African-American character in this very well done but not widely watched series that was set in the South in the 1950s, before the Jim Crow laws were stricken from the books.
She overcame nearly insurmountable obstacles in exercising her right to vote. Even after passing a poll test that was specifically designed to be unpassable, she was still denied her right to vote. But she persisted, and ultimately prevailed.
The lesson is that sometimes you have to push.

Ally's character stresses the importance of listening and being listened to.
Carliner segued this into the finale by saying, "Conferences do that. Listen." With that, he summoned a parade of candid photos taken throughout the conference that was just drawing to a close.

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