“I’m starting to feel like this is my funeral,” Oz creator Tom Fontana joked, while sitting down for an Atx retrospective on Monday, celebrating his series’ enduring impact.
During the lively, foul-mouthed conversation, moderator Eric Deggans of NPR noted that the prison drama was the first one-hour drama series ever to air on HBO, paving the way toward a Golden Age in small-screen storytelling.
In Fontana’s opinion, Oz was groundbreaking in just one way. “HBO trusted me, as the writer and producer, to make the show I wanted, as opposed to the show they thought they wanted. I thought that gave permission to do [shows like] Sopranos and Six Feet Under,” he said. “I think…we took a chance, and it has allowed other people to make TV shows that take a chance.”
On the panel, Fontana was joined by actor-director Terry Kinney, as well as cast members Lee Tergesen,...
During the lively, foul-mouthed conversation, moderator Eric Deggans of NPR noted that the prison drama was the first one-hour drama series ever to air on HBO, paving the way toward a Golden Age in small-screen storytelling.
In Fontana’s opinion, Oz was groundbreaking in just one way. “HBO trusted me, as the writer and producer, to make the show I wanted, as opposed to the show they thought they wanted. I thought that gave permission to do [shows like] Sopranos and Six Feet Under,” he said. “I think…we took a chance, and it has allowed other people to make TV shows that take a chance.”
On the panel, Fontana was joined by actor-director Terry Kinney, as well as cast members Lee Tergesen,...
- 6/15/2021
- by Matt Grobar
- Deadline Film + TV
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