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ETY R'
lif AMERICAN
SOCI
CANCE
138
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 1991
A Writing Force
Janis Hirsch says her Jewish upbringing
has helped her succeed as a Hollywood
writer.
STEVE K. WALZ
Special to The Jewish News
I
t's a long way from the
drudgery of pampering
petty television and
movie stars on public rela-
tions junkets to having the
same performers fawn over
you because the tables have
turned.
But that's what happened
to Janis Hirsch.
The one-time New York
entertainment public rela-
tions executive chucked her
career in 1982. She moved to
Los Angeles to try her hand
at prime-time television
comedy writing.
After several minor suc-
cesses — "Square Pegs"
with Sarah Jessica Parker
and "Love, Sidney" featur-
ing Tony Randall — Ms.
Hirsch hooked up with the
production team responsible
for ABC's "Anything But
Love," the comedy starring
Richard Lewis and Jamie
Lee Curtis.
In the two years since she
joined the company, based
on the 20th Century Fox lot
in Beverly Hills, the 40-year-
old writer has risen to co-
executive producer of the
series. And, she's been given
the green light by rival CBS
to create for the fall televi-
sion season a comedy pilot
utilizing the talents of
Carrie Fisher and her mom,
Debbie Reynolds.
Ms. Hirsch is sitting on
pins and needles waiting to
see if either show will have a
spot on the ABC or CBS fall
slate, which is to be an-
nounced. No matter what
the result, she said she's
grateful for what she's ac-
complished in television so
far.
"I still don't believe I am
becoming a force in
Hollywood, where writers
are usually anonymous tal-
ents," Ms. Hirsch said. "It's
so amazing when you con-
sider that I'm actually doing
this in a place where it never
snows either."
Many of television's top
comedies have Jewish
writers. And Ms. Hirsch is
certain there's a correlation
between the Jewish experi-
ence and writing for a hit
prime time comedy.
"Growing up in Trenton
(N.J.), I remember going to
Steve K Walz writes from New
York.
different shuls to see my
grandparents or other mem-
bers of the family," she
recalled. "And the thing I
recall most were the laughs
and fun that I had."
"I mean that's where I got
my Jewish point-of-view of
things. It all goes back to
family and relatives," she
added. "All Jewish families
have this amazing cast of
characters in our own per-
sonal history. I'm a writer
and a Jew and I can't
separate them."
Speaking of amazing
families, Ms. Hirsch is one of
the few people in Hollywood
to work with the talented
"All Jewish families
have this amazing
cast of characters
in our own personal
history."
Janis Hirsch
and beautiful off-spring of
two legendary Hollywood
inter-marriages.
Jamie Lee Curtis is the
product of the union between
Tony Curtis and Janet
Leigh. Carrie Fisher is the
daughter of Eddie Fisher
and Debbie Reynolds.
"The lineage is startingly
similar isn't it?" remarked
Ms. Hirsch.
"Debbie Reynolds may not
be Jewish, but she uses more
Yiddish than me and has
admitted that her daughter
Carrie is so Jewish-oriented,
that Debbie has told me,
`Maybe I didn't have a good
marriage, but I had a great
mother-in-law!' "
Ms. Curtis is much more
physical in her approach to
acting than Ms. Fisher, ac-
cording to Ms. Hirsch.
"While Jamie will make
up her mind and be physical
about something, Carrie will
think about three things and
then write about it," Ms.
Hirsch said. But "both wo-
men have lots of angst and
guilt.
"I'd love to have Carrie in
front of the camera with her
mom, but Carrie has become
a 'cottage industry' in
Hollywood — not because of
her work as Princess Leia (in
Star Wars) but because she's
such a talented, prolific
writer, Ms. Hirsch said. "So
she'll help me write the pro-
gram."