Meet Billy Van Zandt

We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Billy Van Zandt a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Billy, really happy you were able to join us today and we’re looking forward to sharing your story and insights with our readers. Let’s start with the heart of it all – purpose. How did you find your purpose?

The first time I saw I Love Lucy reruns, I found my purpose.

I knew I wanted to do that type of comedy for the rest of my life. Physical comedy grounded in reality. From Lucy, Desi Arnaz, Vivian Vance, and William Frawley, I learned timing as a comedian. From Jess Oppenheimer, Madelyn Pugh, and Bob Carroll Jr. I learned how to write a script. I studied it all. Comedy is musical. There’s a rhythm to it. And when you’re attracted to a particular performer when you start out it’s because you have the same ear they do. Except they’re mastering their art, and your talent is still developing. That’s a good thing. You can study them to understand your own timing. Same with writing. And I could not have had better teachers. Well, yes I could. My audiences were and are the best. They have taught me everything.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

Born and raised in New Jersey. After years as an actor, I started writing plays to give myself something to act IN. Then I started directing my shows and producing them. The plays brought me national success, and brought me into the television world. I spent 40+ years going back and forth writing and producing TV sit-coms on the west coast, and acting in the plays I wrote and produced on the east coast. I have 25 plays that are published with Concord Theatricals and produced all over the world. In recent years, when I’m not touring the country in my latest play, I’m writing books. The first (Get in the Car, Jane) chronicled all our TV shows, and my new book (out November 18) Because It’s Funny is all about the creation of the plays. A novella The Cracker Jack Man comes out in the spring.

I always have three or four things going on at the same time. If one doesn’t work out, you concentrate on the one that will. I love what I do. I work harder than anyone I know but I don’t consider what I do for a living, work. It’s all play. Nothing better than making people laugh.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

You only asked for three, but I’ll give you five.

1) An ear for comedy is something you’re born with. I was lucky. You either have it or you don’t. You can nurture it by being in front of an audience. They teach you everything.

2) Work with people better than you at your craft, it ups your game.

3) When you start out you think you have all the answers. You don’t. Never stop learning. And keep at it. You only write better by writing more.

4) Make your own work. And if something scares you, it’s usually the time to say yes and jump in.

5) No one in show business knows anything. Follow your gut and make your own rules.

Do you think it’s better to go all in on our strengths or to try to be more well-rounded by investing effort on improving areas you aren’t as strong in?

For 46 years I wrote with Jane Milmore. The great part of having a partner is you have someone watching your back, inspiring you, making you laugh, confirming your choices, telling you the truth when you go wrong, and fighting together as a united front. The bad part of having a partner is the partner makes up for any weaknesses you may have. You bring your strengths to the partnership, and they bring theirs. So you leave those parts to them, instead of developing them yourself.

Now that Jane is gone, I’m forced to face developing things I let slide for 46 years because she’s no longer here to take care them (in our case the sentimental parts of a script were Jane’s, and I took care of the broader comedy).

Always work on what you don’t know! Oh. And the other bad part of being in a partnership: you have to split the royalties.

Contact Info:

Image Credits

Billy’s headshot credit: Danny Sanchez

All other images credit: Van Zandt Milmore Productions II

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