DS writing credits? How done?

[Julia99]

Posted by Julia99 on February 21, 2002 at 07:39:34:

Does anyone here know how they determined who got writing credit for a particular episode? It occurred to me due the "Julia rocks & rolls" thread. For the 'tour de force' episode, Ron Sproat was credited with writing it. . .I do recall in one interview. .the interviewer mentions the loud laughter coming from Grayson's kitchen. . .she says its the 'writers' working on the show's script. . .Sooo was writing credit determined by whomever lost the coin toss and had to actually **type** it??

J99

[Gothick]

Posted by Steve on February 21, 2002 at 08:17:19:
In Reply to: DS writing credits? How done? posted by Julia99 on February 21, 2002 at 07:39:34:

That's interesting about Ron Sproat having done the actual writing for the Julia solo episode. I'd forgotten that. From what I understand, the 3 writers would get together and plot the shows, then divide up who would do the various scripts. Dan Curtis often took a hand in determining how the plot should go. Sam mentioned in a printed interview that he would try to protest some of the more outlandish plot developments and Dan would look at him and say, "Well, do you want to write the show, or don't you? You know, I can find other people to write the show."

At some point, too, some of Gordon Russell's scripts were really being written by Violet Welles. She started out as his ghost writer, and Dan liked her stuff so he made her an official writer after Sproat left (I think). But at the end of the show, Russell had Welles writing the scripts that had his name on them ... or so she stated in an interview printed in a zine.

Steve