Tuesday, February 15, 2011

Respect!

"Television has raised writing to a new low."
Samuel Goldwyn

1 comment:

  1. It would be interesting to know when he said this. It is hard to imagine the history of the american TV for someone who, like me, has never been in the US. I would like to stay for some months in the US living with various families, just to know the american TV and audience. I know very well only the italian and german audience and TV, and I regret that I do not know the american and the arab TV. And that one doesn't know the israelian TV in Europe is even worse than the misconsidering of Lion Feuchtwanger by the german feulleton.

    I think this quote is very ambiguous. It is not clear whether he is only being ironic or whether he is willingly ambiguous. The TV has the great merit of easyness: of good information which can be reached without staying on tiptoe. It isn't easy to accomplish this easyness. In this sense SG has expressed very well the effort which is necessary to reach this level. In the show-business either. Thomas Gottschalk is as good as or even better than Groucho Marx, who once has been moderating a Quiz-Show in the 50-ies. Nevertheless the level of many tv productions is actually low, too low. And I wonder if beyond self-discipline there can be a measure which could efficiently make things better.

    "When I want your opinion, I will give it to you", SG is said to have said.

    This confirms my impression, that ambiguity is SG's style.

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