Member Review
Review by
Dedra C, Reviewer
Moonlighting: An Oral History is the nostalgic trip down television memory lane that I didn’t know I was wanting!
I had a ridiculously fun time reading this honest and thorough look at the people who were behind and in front of the camera during the tumultuous filming of the hit series Moonlighting. It was a detective show unlike any other that has come before or after it, with slap-stick comedy, exceptional acting and writing, and characters who broke the fourth wall.
But behind the scenes, it was a team effort to get the memorable shows on the air each week, with a writer who often wrote scenes as they were being filmed, a show that had twice as much dialogue as most other shows on television at the time, and two lead actors whose differences eventually led to excruciating animosity.
If you follow much television, you may have heard of the “Moonlighting curse.” It’s even in the urban dictionary. It’s defined as: “When the will-they-won’t-they couple on a TV show finally gets together… and it ruins the show. (Derived from the 1980’s TV show Moonlighting, whose ratings declined to the point of cancellation after the main characters finally resolved their sexual tension)”
Scott Ryan goes to the source, interviewing most of the players who were involved in the show, creating a timeline of events that probably hasn’t ever been done before. And by the end of the book, he decides if the “Moonlighting curse” is valid or not.
I appreciated how Ryan handled what could have become a tell-all, he said/she said ordeal by allowing the interviewees to speak candidly, sharing how they remembered events, even if they contradicted each other. When it comes down to it, it’s not important if anyone was right or wrong, it’s just fascinating to know how all the right (or wrong) things had to fall into place to make some of the most iconic moments of television.
“Memory is better than fact anyway, because it’s created by feelings.”
It’s been years since I’ve seen the show—at least twenty years—but I still remember so many episodes, moments, lines, and songs from the series. I was a child when it originally aired, but thankfully my parents were cool enough to let me watch it with them.
It’s a difficult show to find now—it’s not streaming on any platform and the DVDs are out of print (and terribly expensive to buy used)—mostly because the licensing fees are too expensive these days. But it’s not impossible to find. I won’t say how because I’m terrified it will disappear before I can rewatch it.
If you were a fan of the show, if you still remember the Shakespearean episode that was done in iambic pentameter or the black and white episode introduced by Orson Welles—or the episode that sparked the “Moonlighting curse”—you’ll enjoy this comprehensive look at the series (with photos!) that made Bruce Willis and Cybill Sheppard household names.
I had a ridiculously fun time reading this honest and thorough look at the people who were behind and in front of the camera during the tumultuous filming of the hit series Moonlighting. It was a detective show unlike any other that has come before or after it, with slap-stick comedy, exceptional acting and writing, and characters who broke the fourth wall.
But behind the scenes, it was a team effort to get the memorable shows on the air each week, with a writer who often wrote scenes as they were being filmed, a show that had twice as much dialogue as most other shows on television at the time, and two lead actors whose differences eventually led to excruciating animosity.
If you follow much television, you may have heard of the “Moonlighting curse.” It’s even in the urban dictionary. It’s defined as: “When the will-they-won’t-they couple on a TV show finally gets together… and it ruins the show. (Derived from the 1980’s TV show Moonlighting, whose ratings declined to the point of cancellation after the main characters finally resolved their sexual tension)”
Scott Ryan goes to the source, interviewing most of the players who were involved in the show, creating a timeline of events that probably hasn’t ever been done before. And by the end of the book, he decides if the “Moonlighting curse” is valid or not.
I appreciated how Ryan handled what could have become a tell-all, he said/she said ordeal by allowing the interviewees to speak candidly, sharing how they remembered events, even if they contradicted each other. When it comes down to it, it’s not important if anyone was right or wrong, it’s just fascinating to know how all the right (or wrong) things had to fall into place to make some of the most iconic moments of television.
“Memory is better than fact anyway, because it’s created by feelings.”
It’s been years since I’ve seen the show—at least twenty years—but I still remember so many episodes, moments, lines, and songs from the series. I was a child when it originally aired, but thankfully my parents were cool enough to let me watch it with them.
It’s a difficult show to find now—it’s not streaming on any platform and the DVDs are out of print (and terribly expensive to buy used)—mostly because the licensing fees are too expensive these days. But it’s not impossible to find. I won’t say how because I’m terrified it will disappear before I can rewatch it.
If you were a fan of the show, if you still remember the Shakespearean episode that was done in iambic pentameter or the black and white episode introduced by Orson Welles—or the episode that sparked the “Moonlighting curse”—you’ll enjoy this comprehensive look at the series (with photos!) that made Bruce Willis and Cybill Sheppard household names.
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