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11/27/2007: Lenny Gets In a Good One


First off, I just had a new idea for the pencils campaign -- when you put down what show or writer you support? Put your own name down. After all, you're the generation of writers who are going to benefit from this. It makes perfect sense. Go 'head. Support yourself; that's what you're really doing anyway.

All right. Now down to business. I heard a great line in a Law and Order re-run yesterday. The detectives go to bust a mob guy in the back room of a shady bar. You know exactly the scene, right? They find the guy, the son of an old-time mobster, with his cronies watching television (financial news). Detective Briscoe hauls the head mobster to his feet. As he cuffs him, he says:

"You know, your old man would've at least had a card game going."

Fantastic. The writer, finding himself faced with a hopelessly familiar scene, found a subtle way to make it new while calling our attention to the one missing classic element. And it's funny.

Got a scene that feels familiar? Try mixing it up a bit, and don't be afraid to have a character comment on it. We did stuff like this on Buffy, too, by having some surprising design or lifestyle choices in the demon world -- and having a character notice and comment on it always yielded funny moments.

Strike: I'm trying something new today, a "van loader" shift at WGA headquarters. You get double-credit compared to picketing, so I suspect it's going to be hard work.

Lunch: Sushi at Echigo (the warm rice place)