June 20-26, 1998

This week Ken welcomes producer, writer, showrunner and creator of the new NBC Medical Drama Transplant, Joseph Kay.

Ken and Joseph discuss being in Toronto, being stuck behind a border, Transplant, a show set in Canada being an NBC co-production, The X-Files, Chris Carter, learning how to run a show working on a show, serialization in television, the ongoing story in Transplant, the difficulty of telling stories without a definitive end, Medical Dramas, E.R., immigration stories, George Clooney: Movie Star, how medical dramas are the new detective/mystery shows, re-inventing cop shows, Spielberg, secret identities, super hero origins, broken people, how 1998 is a transitional year, the end of Larry Sanders, Sex in the City, when HBO became an original programming contender, Seinfeld, Mr. Show, The Kids in the Hall, New York City, SCTV, Johnny LeRue, Toronto, the current state of TV criticism, Ted Lasso, Major League, anti-heroes, stand up on TV, Still Standing, Mike Birbiglia, Crashing, Stephen King, when things get too heavy, the importance of heart, Watchmen, why we need rules, keeping a writing staff, telling a story in the season, breaking everything and putting it back together again, being a lawyer, legal drama, This is Wonderland, Night Court, the specific, representation on TV, diversity, Maple Syrup Urine Disease, becoming a hypochondriac, Cheers, trying to "program" your kids' taste, The Simpsons, watching your parents watch shows, Star Trek, writing or not writing COVID into tv shows, being scared by crowds on TV these days, the whiteness of TV Guide, and why Veep/The Thick of It is the greatest place to work out aggression through insults.