Interview by Trevor for TVSeriesFinale
Bill Kunstler has written for many television series over the past 13 years. After working on The Jeff Foxworthy Show, he spent a season on Murphy Brown, the hugely popular TV newsroom sitcom of the 1990s that stars Candice Bergen. From there, he went on to numerous short-lived shows like Inside Schwartz, DAG, Quintuplets, and Oh Baby — working with talented performers like David Allen Grier, Andy Richtor, Delta Burke, Charlie Finn, and Christopher Rich.
Bill recently spent over a year on the FOX sitcom The War at Home which stars Michael Rapaport as an outspoken and prejudiced husband and father of three teens. On first glance, the series might appear to be just a crass FOX sitcom, but the series actually tackled some tough issues in a wonderfully astute and sensitive way. Despite a loyal core audience, the show was cancelled in 2007.
In this interview, Bill talks about working on Murphy Brown, the challenges of working with cancellation-crazy networks, the “lost” episode of The War at Home, the episode in which Larry’s best friend Kenny (Rami Malek) comes out of the closet, the end of the sitcom, and what the third season might have held for the characters.
We also discuss the current writers strike — how it’s affected him personally, why it’s so important, and what he’s doing to help his fellow writers in his work with United Artists.
TUNE IN!
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Filed under: Bill Kunstler, Inside Schwartz, Murphy Brown, Quintuplets, The War at Home |
Adopt a Writer 
I am going to seek out “The War at Home” now. (It’s on DVD, right?) I really enjoyed listening to Bill talk and my respect for him makes me want to watch it. Like an idiot I let the press sway me and I never gave it a chance.
I AM SO GLAD THE STRIKE IS OVER! Bill speaks so eloquently about it and I feel so vindicated for him and all the other writers we’ve adopted.
Great interview, Trevor! I didn’t expect to listen to it all in one sitting, but I was totally captivated and entertained. Plus, there’s nothing new on television ;)