The Making of Moonlighting | Glenn Gordon Caron, Part 1

80s TV Ladies

“They said I could do whatever I want. So I thought, I’ll write a boy-girl detective show that kills this stupid genre.” – Glenn Gordon Caron, creator of Moonlighting
Some walk by night, some fly by day… Susan and Sharon cross paths with legendary writer, director, producer and creator of the classic 80’s series Moonlighting for a rollicking conversation about David, Maddie, Ms. DiPesto – and everything in between!
Moonlighting ran from 1985-1989. It starred Cybill Shepherd and a then-unknown Bruce Willis and would become a landmark classic of 80s television. Tasked with making “one of those boy-girl detective shows” Caron agreed on the condition that he could do whatever he wanted. What he – and as it turns out, we – wanted, was Moonlighting. Glenn Gordon Caron has been a force in television for over four decades, since his first job on Taxi – followed by a stint on Remington Steele -- before going on to create the seminal 80s romantic comedy/detective series Moonlighting. Caron later went on to create the long-running Patricia Arquette show, Medium. Moonlighting is now streaming on Hulu.
THE CONVERSATION

• 300 SONGS in 66 episodes – the MANY hurdles of getting the music rights for Moonlighting for the Hulu broadcasts.
• Glenn’s first pilot turned out to be for a little actor named… James Stewart.
• Steven Bochco asked Glenn to come work on his new show, then called Hill Street Station: “I said no – this is never gonna go.”
• On the crazy tone of Moonlighting: “I’m showing the episodes to my youngest child, who’s fourteen. He’s come to believe that I’m mentally ill.”
• Cybill Shepherd signed on to Moonlighting -- after reading only half the pilot!
• On casting the role of David Addison: “I brought Bruce Willis in to audition eleven times. They rejected him ten times.”
• The role of David Addison’s brother was originally written for… David Lee Roth?!
• GETTING PAST THE CENSORS: ABC censors wouldn’t allow David & Maddie to say “frig”. But “fig”? Um, Okay.
• On being a maverick: “I was young and arrogant and didn’t care about my reputation. I would live to regret that.”

So, join Susan and Sharon – and Glenn – as they talk Aaron Spelling, Pierce Brosnan, Peter Peter Bogdanovich, 100-page scripts, directing Orson Wells – and getting kicked by nuns!
AUDIOGRAPHY
Watch Moonlighting on Hulu.
Check out the Moonlighting fan website, DavidandMaddie.com
Susan’s new play Confidence (and the Speech) has just been published! Now available for purchase and licensing at DPS via Broadway Licensing.
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The 80s TV Ladies traveled to ShePodcasts UNPLUGGED and Podfest Expo 2024! We were thrilled to be learning from and meeting many wonderful fellow podcasters.