Show TV history students tune in to learn from froman an industry veteran Bob Pool Los os Angeles Times The man down front with the booming voice always seemed to have something interesting to say about televisions television's old days So students students students stu stu- stu- stu of dents in the class at the University California Los Angeles on TV history histo histo- ry knew what to do computers they were On the laptop at the School of using to take notes and Television auditorium auditorium auditorium Theater Film the name Stanley they Rubin discovered that That's when they pioneer pioneer pio- pio their classmate was a Hollywood pio pioneer than half a century neer who more won TVs TV's first Emmy Emmy- ago television and film These days the with more than writer and producer he the is at decades of experience six as polishing shing off thelast the pol Westwood camp campus last few units siding standing in the way of his bachelor of arts degree the a one one 1937 earning in he He narrowly took a missed history S of film class last Rubin 88 88 finished fall faU And when I this quarters quarter's TV history course last month he found himself within four units of graduating Many of his classmates took little note of Rubin at first But that changed when the white-haired white man began raising his hand and commenting commenting commenting comment comment- ing on everything from stage lighting techniques to Writers Guild disputes to program syndication practices I checked him out online and this man is great said Elias Mael an 18 year-old year film and television major The computer searches showed classmates that Rubin had served years on the Writers Guild board of directors and spent five years as president president president pres pres- ident of the Producers Guild They discovered that Rubin had written 19 movies and produced more than two dozen feature and TV films as diverse as Francis in inthe inthe inthe the Navy talking-mule talking comedy which gave Clint Eastwood his first credited role and the edgy The Presidents President's Analyst in 1967 starring James Coburn Rubin worked with Marilyn Monroe Robert Mitchum and J 4 J i isy sy t A a p N 3 d Film and television major Elias Ellas Mael left and Marshall Knight and writer Stanley both 18 talk shop with pioneering producer Rubin 88 who has returned to school to get his degree tor Otto when he produced River of No Return in 1954 He clashed with eccentric studio mogul Howard Hughes in 1951 over The Whip Hand His TV producing credits include work with Ronald Reagan in hi the and series General Electric Theater It was the pilot episode of a 1948 network TV program called Your Show Time that won Rubin the fledgling television industry's first Emmy The episode titled The Necklace won for best film made for television Some students have approached him outside class to pick his brain Rubin's own paper for professor John Caldwell's TV history class was wasa a personal account of Your Show Time The Your Show Time shows were hour half-hour dramatizations of what we called the worlds world's classic short stories which were really the worlds world's very good public-domain public Students Cont Cant on Page 6 V I h S Students Cant Conf from front short stories Rubin explained Rubin's page 20 term report rt t tells tells' of how the series' series advertising sponsor not NBC controlled the show Twice vice a week Rubin drives to class and four hours of lectures and discussions Rubin's most recent film was White Hunter Black Heart which he produced co-produced with Eastwood in 1990 Im kind of semi I suddenly suddenly suddenly sud sud- denly felt I had the time and I wanted wanted wanted want want- ed the degree So I decided to come comeback comeback comeback back to UCLA I had 14 units to go under the old semester system but I found that had grown to 18 units under the quarter system Rubin said Im learning a lot lat Rubin said he is content being the student even when hes he's intimately i. i V U A J familiar Ita ar with th the subject f mati matter rHe r. r He asks the best questions He has a rapport with professor Caldwell that the rest of us not having any real experience dont don't have said year old freshman Marshall Knight He has the perspective of the life of this industry from spending spending spending spend spend- ing a life in it Still Rubin said I make a point to myself in class not to talk too much I try not to take too much class time And theres there's nothing childish about the students I dont don't see it as rubbing elbows with rank amateurs But sitting in class with students young enough to be his grandchildren dren can yield surprises Rubin blanched when a year old freshman freshman freshman fresh fresh- man said a TV show with a virtual virtual- reali reality ty them is iss s 's d t d Shrugged ed Rubin Im experiencing the greatest sense of generational gap Ive I've ever experienced Rubin eagerly anticipates tion He said he missed out on marching marching marching march march- ing with his Class of 37 peers because he took a smaller class load than he should have in his senior year while he was busy editing the campus Daily Bruin newspaper Show business has changed a lot since Rubin's first days at UCLA But Buthe Buthe Buthe he is quick to tell students that some things haven't changed at all When I was writing a film I sat in inan inan inan an office with a typewriter and had meetings with the producer or tor When a writer finished his script didn't him around I they want any any- 1 jl l said Th liked to think he h had d written the script The director liked to think he had written the script So they got the writer out of there Although he needs only four more units to graduate no unit four-unit class is available So Im I'm taking an unit eight-unit class next called Hollywood Now that picks up on the motion picture business business business busi busi- ness from the mid on he said perfect for me That's when I left |