Blossom

My guest this week was first known from his unforgettable role as Danny Dallas in the classic comedy Soap, Nick Russo in the defining 90s series Blossom, and starring alongside George Burns in one of my all-time favorite films, Oh God, You Devil.

Beyond his fantastic acting career, he has spent more than 20 years shaping the television landscape from behind the camera as a prolific television director.

I'm thrilled to talk to Ted Wass.

Basically, you know what happens, you know, when the new guy comes in, they kind of like to

clean the decks.

And then I saw the Blossom pilot, and I thought you were with the show from the beginning, but the original pilot was Richard Massor and Barry Longfellow.

Yes, that's right.

Yeah, they...

in pretty much almost every single sitcom we've started.

The last one we did was Blossom, and you were in that one.

I'm glad this is not a drinking game, because your daughter would be smashed.

Yes.

Yes, Blossom, which episode

was it? It was, I don't remember the specifics, but you were in the classroom.

um with blossom but it was one of the earlier ones

I think it was this different character even, but they went completely off model and they did it like a, because that show is a multi-camera sitcom.

He went on to write for some of the most successful shows in TV history, including Laugh-In, Sanford and Son, All in the Family, MASH, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Rhoda, and The Golden Girls, among others.

Later, he served as writer-producer for Blossom, The John LaRocquette Show, My Wife and Kids, and Two and a Half Men.

In addition, he co-authored the book Big Man, the biography of Bruce Springsteen's longtime saxophonist, Clarence Clemens.

It is indeed a pleasure to welcome my guest, Don Rio.

Right.

I loved her.

But, you know, the Golden Girls was part of the Whit Thomas universe where I developed a bunch of shows, Blossom, I did a show called Lenny with Lenny Clark there.

I did a show called Heartland.

... "You're going to die soon."

Bill Bixby died six days or something after filming an episode of Blossom, and only a few days after playing golf with James Woods.

So-

Okay.

You know, these like big insights into comedy.

I wrote a Blossom spec for her.

This was a show of the 90s that her husband, Paul Witt, was producer on.

So I thought if I read a Blossom and Susan likes it, maybe Paul will put me on Blossom.

That didn't happen, but she put me on Nurses.

And that was amazing.