Media Alert

CNN is running a new series, The History of Comedy.  I watched the first episode last week and thought it was generally well done.  The episode tonight (Thursday) is about women in comedy.  I mention this because my dear friend Treva Silverman is in it.

Treva has had a wonderful career as a TV comedy writer, in an era when being a woman writing for television wasn't common.  Her most notable work was on The Mary Tyler Moore Show,  where she was on the staff for five seasons and won two Emmy Awards.  I also believe she was the only woman on the staff during those years.  But she also wrote on the staff of The Monkees for two seasons, and wrote for That Girl, Room 222 and many others.

(She wrote a lovely memorial about Mary Tyler Moore here on her Facebook page, not just about working together but catching up and reigniting their friendship years later in New York.)

Side note:  I can't swear to this but it's a theory.  Tina Fey has often spoken how her favorite show growing up was The Mary Tyler Moore Show.  When she did her own series, 30 Rock, she created a character 'Rosemary Howard' who was a feisty writer on Liz Lemon's favorite show as a kid, and her idol. It was played by Carrie Fisher.  I've always had a theory -- just my own, since Treva and Tina Fey have never met -- that the character was inspired by Treva.  Especially since, well, she was the only female staff writer for five years on Tina Fey's favorite TV show.

The Lovely Treva, as she is known among her...well, me, and a small but wise and knowing smattering of others, was also Joan Rivers' writing partner for years and is a wonderful playwright.  (Among other things, she has written a tremendous play Scandal, which has had workshop productions while snaking its way along trying to get a production on Broadway.  It's absolutely terrific, and I wrote about the play here on the Huffington Post a few years back, in case you want to know about it.  Which you should, because the play is really that good.)

Among her other talents, Treva is a great honky tonk piano player.  Oh, okay, it's not honky tonk at all, but I always like telling her that because I like the idea of it.  But she did have some...interesting...piano gigs early in her career, so I think it counts.

Treva wrote to say that "It's on CNN at 7:00 PM tonight and then again at 10:00 PM.  Unless it's interrupted for Breaking News.  But that won't happen.  We've had all these slow news days lately with nothing much going on."