Norman Lear is the creator and producer of many notable television series, including All in the Family, The Jeffersons, and Sanford and Son. Lear, a strong supporter of the first amendment, is also the founder of People for the American Way, an advocacy organization for progressive causes. In the first of this two-part conversation, Lear discusses why he decided to join the military and how it showed him that in certain circumstances, anyone is capable of evil. He recalls his early struggles as a press agent before turning to television writing. He says one of his proudest achievements was a television special in the 1980s when conservatives and liberals appeared together on the same stage. [Contains mature language]
Listen to Part II.
Photo by Christopher Ho