Plot Synopsis

By weaving the past and present together with archival footage and in-depth interviews with creators, writers and actors, this series of four one-hour episodes examines key character archetypes in television history. Each episode focuses on a different character type: the man of the house, the independent woman, the misfit and the crusader. The show features more than a hundred in-depth interviews with the creators, writers and actors who give life to the characters whom audiences have come to love, and demonstrates how the finest television today has its foundation in the best television of yesterday. Interviews include: James L. Brooks, Larry David, Julianna Margulies, Mary Tyler Moore, Shonda Rhimes, Shawn Ryan, and many others.