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A writer's life during the golden age of television

I’m Jack Olesker, creator, writer, producer and director of more than twelve hundred episodes of television, eighteen motion pictures and seven published novels. I've written and created many animated series during The Golden Age of Television Animation including Care Bears, M.A.S.K., Heroes on Hot Wheels, The New Adventures of He-man, The Super Mario Bros. Super Show, Hello Kitty’s Furry Tale Theater, Popples, my co-creation of Mighty Morphin Power Rangers and many more.

It’s been my joy to have entertained countless millions of viewers who were young fans and stayed fans as they grew up and introduced their own children to many of my series continuing to air worldwide.

And now, through my A Writer’s Life…During the Golden Age of Television Animation blog, I’m going to take all of you on an amazing journey back to those shining years of animated television series. It’s a real-life journey that has everything – history, action, adventure, cliffhangers, comedy and drama, suspense, devastating disappointments and tremendous triumphs.

We who labor – and labored -- in the animation industry are forever indebted to you for being fans. So my A Writer’s Life…During the Golden Age of Television Animation blog is a labor of love dedicated to you. It’s my way of saying “Thank-you.” I promise it will be a fascinating journey.

Let’s go on it together!

- JACK OLESKER

I didn’t have much time to mourn Sandy Fries. Lori walked to me standing by the Care Bears desks and said, “Come with me.” As we walked past staff writers writing and artists drawing, I looked to the second floor walkway. Andy, Jean and Kevin were by the railing. I thought I saw Andy smile. Then they turned and walked away.


Lori opened a door and as we walked into a windowless but comfortable office, she said, “Your office.” There was a weathered oak desk, a brown leather executive chair, a couple of office chairs, tan metal file cabinets, the requisite phone, a Rolodex, plenty of pens, yellow legal notepads and, taking my breath away, a huge computer monitor and keyboard perched atop the desk, wires running to a tower hidden below.


“Thank you, Lori.”


She answered, “You earned it.”


I ran my fingertips over the Rolodex and looked to Lori. “Writers?”


She nodded. “You’ve got two weeks to get the series back on schedule.”


I said, “Done.” She nodded, knowing it would be. I sat in my chair and added, “I’ve got work to do.”


My benefactor grinned. “Indeed you do.”


As she was leaving, I asked, “Can I have the conference room at noon tomorrow?”


She said, “I’ll get it for you.” Then she left.


I looked at Rolodex, picked up the phone and called the first writer. It was going to be a long day, an even longer one looming tomorrow.

When I returned to the studio the next day, Sandy was gone, his desktop cleared of whatever had been his. I was the Care Bears’ story editor now. It was bittersweet.  Sandy wasn’t a bad guy. He was a smart guy, had earned an M.S. in Journalism from Columbia.  


But being a story editor wasn’t for him.  It seemed to me that he had been adrift, and one didn’t survive long in the entertainment world if one was adrift.  Much later, I’d look him up on what would become the web. He’d write an episode of Jem here, Hulk Hogan’s Rock ‘n’ Wrestling there. But except for snagging a slew of Tom & Jerry Kids’ episodes, most of his gigs were single episodes.


He never worked again as a story editor.


The last I knew he was teaching at a college, which seemed the right fit for him.


This children’s entertainment business, as I’ve said, can be brutal. It’s not all about writing for warm and fuzzy teddy bears. It’s also about politics, relationships, maneuvering, jockeying and sometimes doing something you’re not proud of, but something that nonetheless needs to be done.

In the epic film, Patton, there’s a scene in which the hard-edged general whose audacity and dogged determination and relentlessness did more than any single person to win World War II is walking through a battlefield with his aide-de-camp after a battle. Patton surveils twisted tanks, bodies everywhere. He looks up at acrid, choking black smoke rising and after a moment, in a grim confession, rasps, “I love it… God help me, I do love it so... I love it more than my life...”


I would come to know what the warrior general meant.


People die in wars. It’s sad, and for a time you mourn them. But if you’re a warrior you resign yourself to knowing it’s a part of war and often to the benefit of those who go on battling for the victories that they and fellow warriors seek.

I don’t think many people like getting someone fired. But business is business. I’m not just a freelance writer now; I’m on staff, a part of something.


Kevin’s telling me to take Sandy’s job was clear enough, as was Lori’s handing me off to Kevin. I’d served in the military, so I knew about chain of command.

Chain of command works up and it works down. Orders from the top brass pass down to administrators

and supervisors until they reach the staffers they are intended for. This guarantees everyone is on the same page.


Queries are passed from the person with the query up to their supervisor, then to administrators until they reach the person with operational responsibility. This ensures no one is doing an end run and that everyone is aware of what’s going on.


I’d followed the chain of command, first going to Lori, then to Kevin. W


ith Kevin’s clear suggestion, my next step was Andy. Andy was in charge of business; Jean was in charge of creative. Andy would surely mention the issue to Je


an, but Andy was the person to go to.

I walked into his office knowing Lori and Kevin were behind me on this, and I presented the situation to him. He nodded, said it would be taken care of, and, just like that, the meeting was over. As I walked from Andy’s office, I realized the decision to terminate Sandy had already been made. For reasons of their own, Andy, Lori and Kevin wanted me to have some ownership of it.


Now it was over.


Welcome to show business.


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