Phil Rosenthal spilt the beans on how a spec script for Frasier led to the development of CBS’ 1996 hit sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond. The co-creator of the 1996 hit sitcom revealed how the spec script was picked up by Worldwide Productions and he was roped in to write a script for a show for American comedian Ray Romano.
Everybody Loves Raymond creator wrote a script for Frasier
In an interview with Television Academy in 2005, Phil Rosenthal revealed that he wrote a spec script for Frasier while working on Coach. Rosenthal was working on the spec script to move forward with his writing career since there was no “professional respect” for working on Coach. He told the interviewer-
“Nobody wants to read Coach. Like I’m on this hit show but there’s not really professional respect for that show. Don’t know why that they’re not interested.”
“So I write a spec for Frasier, they’re interested in that naturally. They like the business, that’s high-class.”
Rosenthal then explained to the interviewer that as a writer you need to write a spec script to establish yourself as a writer. He said that while he was working on one of the top ten shows, Coach, nobody wanted to read that. So he had to write something else to find his next job. He further added-
“So I write a Frasier. Somebody reads it and Worlwide Pants, this is David Letterman’s company, so somebody over there reads it. And there was a comedian on Letterman. This comedian had been working for 12 years doing stand-up gigs around the country and never made it. He had his one six-minute appearance on Letterman and he said there should be a show for that guy.”
“So they set about looking for someone to create a show for this comedian. This happens all the time, comedians sign development deals they find and pair them up with the writer to create a show for them.”
He explained how he was sent tapes of Ray Romano’s stand-up by David Letterman‘s company to write something with the comedian in mind. Rosenthal recalled meeting Romano and how he liked his type of humour.
“They had read my spec [for Frasier] and they sent me tapes of this comedian. I put in and say ‘Oh that’s that Ray Romano.’ I saw the episode that he was on because I watched Letterman every night. Very funny, hilarious routine.”
“That’s what made him Raymond”: Everybody Loves Raymond Creator
While discussing how the idea of Everybody Loves Raymond was born, Rosenthal explained how Romano’s real life played a key role in his character as Raymond in the show.
[Romano] said you know I’ve been trying to write new material but since I’ve had twin baby boys, it’s been very hard to come up with anything new.”
Rosenthal went on to reveal that Romano asked him about a bit that he’s written and whether he found it funny. Romano then proceeded to jingle his keys like one would do in front of babies to play with them or stop them from crying.
“I thought that was brilliant and he goes ‘I’m glad you laughed at that otherwise I was gonna have to come down and rub my nose in your bellies.’ So this is right up my alley, this type of humour.”
“What he’s talking about is very relatable and it reminds of young Bill Cosby. This is the type [of comedy] Cosby [would do]. The type of very relatable and clean material that was. What I learned later, by the way, was he didn’t always have that kind of material. It took having a family, getting married, and having children to focus the laser beam on to that. And that is what made him Raymond.”
