steve martin, the writers' strike, and the underpants

I haven’t been watching television lately. It’s partly because the library strike ended, and I resumed my devouring of literature. It’s also because of the dearth of well-written shows. The shows that I do watch are great entertainment. Among my favorites is The Amazing Race. The Asian father and daughter team are in the final three! At the beginning of the race, I cringed at the father-daughter dynamic, because it strongly reminded me of the stereotypical stubborn and domineering parent and the stereotypical frustrated and misunderstood child. It’s every Asian-American rite-of-passage movie brought to reality television. But as they learned to work together and with each other’s differences, I found myself rooting for them to win each leg of the race. If they can work together, maybe other parents can get along with their children too!

Another show that I enjoy is Gordon Ramsey’s Kitchen Nightmares. Gordon works with an underachieving restaurant, and helps it to succeed. The owners are smart enough to ask for Chef Ramsey to visit, but are stubborn enough to fight most of his suggestions. How can these owners run a business, if they cannot see its obvious flaws? As an observer, you can’t wait for Chef Ramsey to rip a new one into the owners. The owners are always surprised that Chef Ramsey would rip them so intensely. As the restaurant evolves and survives (usually) you realize that Gordon really wants these owners to succeed.

I haven’t been watching television lately. It’s because of the dearth of well-written shows. My favorite shows are now reality shows. My favorite well-written show is House, which was on hiatus after House selected his new diagnostics team. But other than House, my favorite shows lack the wit and direction of top-grade writers.

Since the Writers’ Guild of America went on strike, many shows stopped producing new episodes. The writers will eventually get their four cents per DVD set, but more importantly, their strike has shown the public how important good writers are to the creative process. The pretty faces say the lines and look great on magazine covers, but the writers give depth of character and unity of narrative. It’s the writers that make me want to watch the next episode, not the charming smiles (the smiles are a welcome bonus).

I haven’t been watching television lately. It’s partly because the library strike ended, and I resumed my devouring of literature. Good literature is my opiate. A clever turn of phrase is a mini-symphony to my ears.

I read Steve Martin’s autobiography, “Born Standing Up.” The book details his childhood and early stand-up career. It took him many years to perfect his act, and he became the highest-grossing stand-up comedian of his time. He was unique, off-beat, weird, unpredictable, wild and crazy. After he became famous, he got bored of his stand-up comedy show, because it became routine. He perfected his show, but he was no longer excited about it. It became a job instead of an adventure. At the height of his popularity, he retired his stand-up comedy show.

Steve Martin started writing literature. His first play, “Picasso at the Lapin Agile” was smart, quick and entertaining. His other plays, “Zig-Zag Woman”, “Patter for a Floating Lady”, “WASP” and “The Underpants” showed that he has not abandoned his off-beat and adventurous nature, and that he continues to seek a higher form of comedy. His books made me realize how important it is to develop your talent and your creativity, even if you are already reaping the rewards of your work. Who knows how much better you can become, and how many more insights you can unravel?

I haven’t been watching television lately. It’s because I want to do something else with my time. I want to flex my creative muscle, I want to be challenged, and I want to see where it takes me. This year, I want my creativity to take centre stage.