Ty Burrell interview: ‘Modern Family has normalised gay marriage

March 27, 2014 by admin · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Actors

Created by Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd, the team behind Frasier, it’s a show that is pushing television boundaries and, in its own quiet way, changing political viewpoints. Right wing conservatives, including Mitt Romney and his wife, are said to be fans and, in a recent survey, Republicans ranked the show third in a list of their top 15 shows, while Democrats didn’t rank it at all. All rather surprising, given the inclusion of a gay couple with a baby as one of the family units.

“This is probably a little overwrought, but I do actually think the writers are making the world a better place,” Burrell says earnestly. “It’s one of my favourite things about the show. I love it when I talk to conservatives and they’re describing all three couples, and they never mention that one of them is gay. That’s the brilliance of the writing. In a completely unaggressive, apolitical way, they are showing this couple as completely normal dealing with ordinary stuff. The banality of it is the most revolutionary thing.

“I think if you turned around and asked that same conservative person how they felt about gay marriage, that probably hasn’t changed for them, but the seed has been planted none the less. It’s progress and it’s the coolest thing.”

Source: The Telegraph

Ty Burrell at the New York Television Festival. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Ty Burrell: 2 family friendly films from ‘Modern Family’ star

Tags: Burrell, Christopher Lloyd, Frasier, Mitt Romney, Modern Family, Same-sex relationship, Steven Levitan, Ty Burrell

It’s All Relative – How ‘Modern Family’ Became TV’s Best Comedy

February 23, 2010 by emily · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Modern Family News

California Chronicle has a story about Modern Family and its creator Steven Levitan. We really liked this quote from him:

One of the show’s strengths is that everyone has a different favorite character. “Someone will come up to me, he might be a big, burly trucker, and you think he’s going to say he likes the Ed O’Neill character. But he’ll say, ‘I really like Mitchell,’” the gay character played by Jesse Tyler Ferguson. “And I’ll think, I did not expect that from you. I get that all the time.”

Here is another important news:
Levitan and Lloyd will do 24 episodes this season, and then age the family naturally for next season. After producing iconic series like “Frasier,” which ran for 12 seasons, the prospect of doing the same with “Modern Family” is daunting, to say the least.

“It makes us feel like we’re at the base of K-2,” Levitan says. “We’re just trying to make it to the next destination. I think the show has legs, but we’re going to take it one season at a time.”

Tags: Arts, Frasier, Gay, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Mitchell, Modern Family, Steven Levitan, Television

First-year show creators, producers hope for Golden Globe nomination

December 2, 2009 by admin · Leave a Comment
Filed under: Modern Family News

“Modern Family,” “Glee,” “Community” and “The Good Wife” are some of the breakout shows that could get a nod.

It’s no wonder the Golden Globes have a reputation for being more fun than the rather stately affairs that usually bring out Hollywood’s A-list. After all, broadcasting live from the Beverly Hilton on Jan. 17 and keeping the Champagne flowing is bound to loosen things up. But the Hollywood Foreign Press Assn.’s biggest night is also known for being ahead of the curve when it comes to honoring first-season TV shows — partly because of being the first TV-related ceremony of the calendar year and partly because of its envelope-pushing attitude.

This season offers a ballroom full of potentials that could strike the fancy of the HFPA’s 83 voting members — among them “Modern Family,” “FlashForward” and “The Good Wife.”

On the comedy side, ABC’s “Modern Family” seems to have put a spring in the steps of critics. Although executive producers Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd are modest about the show’s success, Levitan is happy for the recognition. “One of the reasons that it might be striking a chord is because there’s a sense of optimism,” Levitan says. “We don’t try to dodge emotion.”

Lloyd, who went to many an Emmy ceremony during his years on “Frasier,” says that seeing the show nominated as a whole would be a thrill. “There are lots of individual awards that come and go, and they’re wonderful, but they can have the effect of making people feel just a bit left out. Because [the Globe] recognizes everybody who works on the show, that’s one that you can really rally behind.”

Read the full story at LA Times.

Modern Family