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Early in his television career, Norman Lear admitted he wasn't being honest with himself
"If we couldn't make a story entertaining, we would not do the story. But I didn't feel the obligation was to make an audience laugh only.
With a career spanning a length like Norman Lear's, it's no wonder that he went through various phases as a writer, director, and producer.
Lear was incredibly candid about his growth as a producer during an interview included in The Producer's Medium: Conversations with Creators of American TV, written by Horace Newcomb and Robert S. Alley.
In the interview, the All in the Family creator revealed that, despite his reputation as an entertainer communicating strong messages about social issues through his projects, he didn't begin his career with that mindset.
"As far as the content of the series I have produced," Lear said, "in the early years when I was asked, 'What are you trying to say?' I would respond, 'I'm not trying to say anything; we're doing a comedy show. Isn't it funny?' But gradually I began to realize that I was not being honest with myself. Of course, our primary obligation in theatre is to entertain, and I try never to lose sight of that."
"If we couldn't make a story entertaining, we would not do the story. But I didn't feel the obligation was to make an audience laugh only. An audience is entertained when it's involved, involved to the point of tears or laughter. So I began openly to say, 'I don't feel an obligation just to make an audience laugh; I feel an obligation to treat an audience to the best we could provide in dramatic entertainment-laugh or cry."
With age came wisdom, and as Lear grew older, he realized that he had a responsibility to his viewers. "When I was asked whether I had a right to say the things that were said in the shows, in the early days, I would avoid admitting that we did more than entertain," said Lear. "Then I began to realize that I was fifty years old, a grown man, with responsibilities and attitudes, and why wouldn't I, as a mature writer, have thoughts and the desire to express them in our work? So we did."
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