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Top of the Rock:

The Rise and Fall of Must See TV
Front Cover
179 Reviews
Doubleday, 2012 - Performing Arts - 326 pages
Seinfeld, Friends, Frasier, ER, Cheers, Law & Order, Will & Grace…Here is the funny, splashy, irresistible insiders' account of the greatest era in television history -- told by the actors, writers, directors, producers, and the network executives who made it happen…and watched it all fall apart.

Warren Littlefield was the NBC President of Entertainment who oversaw the Peacock Network's rise from also-ran to a division that generated a billion dollars in profitsIn this fast-paced and exceptionally entertaining oral history, Littlefield and NBC luminaries including Jerry Seinfeld, Jason Alexander, Kelsey Grammer, Matt LeBlanc, Lisa Kudrow, Julianna Marguiles, Anthony Edwards, Noah Wylie, Debra Messing, Jack Welch, Jimmy Burrows, Helen Hunt, and Dick Wolf vividly recapture the incredible era of Must See TV.

From 1993 through 1998, NBC exploded every conventional notion of what a broadcast network could accomplish with the greatest prime-time line-up in television history. On Thursday nights, a cavalcade of groundbreaking comedies and dramas streamed into homes, attracting a staggering 75 million viewers and generating more revenue than all other six nights of programming combined. The road to success, however, was a rocky one. How do you turn a show like Seinfeld, one of the lowest testing pilots of all time, into a hit when the network overlords are constantly warring, or worse, drowning in a bottle of vodka?   

Top of the Rock
is an addictively readable account of the risky business decisions, creative passion, and leaps of faith that made Must See TV possible. Chock full of delicious behind-the-scenes anecdotes that run the gamut from hilarious casting and programming ploys to petty jealousies and drug interventions, you're in for a juicy, unputdownable read.

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Review: Top of the Rock: Inside the Rise and Fall of Must See TV

User Review  - Joni Daniels - Goodreads

If you watched "Must See TV" on NBC on Thursday nights, you'll find this book pretty interesting. Made up of interviews and pulled together by Warren Littlefield, the former NBC President of ... Read full review

Review: Top of the Rock: Inside the Rise and Fall of Must See TV

User Review  - Bryce Phillips - Goodreads

Living and working in this industry myself, it made this book an instant read. I was fascinated by the hire chain of command allowing Warren to take the risk he did on certain shows. And the fact that ... Read full review

All 179 reviews »

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About the author (2012)

WARREN LITTLEFIELD is the former NBC president of entertainment. Previous to that, he was the NBC comedy executive who developed such hit shows as The Cosby Show and The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air. He currently runs his own television production company.

T. R. PEARSON
is the author of fourteen novels, including A Short History of a Small Place, and a dozen screenplays.

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