Whiz Kids Apple Orchard June 1984

RATINGS! by Lenore Wolgelenter he television world of good guys vs. bad guys is catching up to the “real world” and script writers have decided that com- puters can be used to catch the bad guys. Not only have the writers in TV land discovered computers, they have also discovered what most of us have known for a long time...when you need help with computers. ..look toward kids. With that concept in mind, a television program was born. The Whiz Kids airs every Saturday night, at 8 p.m., on CBS, Thad the pleasure of meeting Max- well Gail, star of the show, on location in Los Angeles’ Griffith Park. Max’s TV credentials go way back to “Bar- ney Miller,” in which he played “Wojo” for seven years. In addition to acting, Max writes songs, poetry and plays piano. His original career goals did not include acting. At Williams College in Mass. he majored in math and physics, but graduated with a degree in economics. After moving to Detroit, he taught both history and English, and proximity to the Univer- sity of Michigan led to an MBA. Evidently, something was not quite right with all these academic dis- ciplines as Max was still looking. With free time on his hands, he took his first acting class; simultaneously, he studied for the law boards. He never took the boards, because acting answered the questions and all his energies went into performing. Max was hired for the role of Lew Farley. Farley is a friend of Richie's (the leading Whiz Kid) family and an investigative reporter. Farley is a tough character with an inquisitive mind and a set of values left from his college days in the sixties and carly seventies, This makes him trusted by the Whiz Kids and brings adult experiences to the show. He goes to the kids for their computer expertise and in return, they come to him for opinions and friendship. The “kids” on the show include Mathew Laborteaux, age 18: Jeff Jac- quet, age 18. Todd Porter, age 16: Andrea Elson, age 15: and Melanie Gaffin, age 10. For the pro- gram, Mat plays Richie, a sophomore in high school, whose father had helped him build a computer that talks. Richie is portrayed as the brain and computer hacker while the other 3 are in supporting roles. Mela- nie plays the seven year old sister, Cheryl, and is portrayed more as a tag along. but she too is becoming more involved with com- puters. Off stage, Mat is very involved with computers and is on the National Advis- ory Board for Atari Computer Corpor tion. Jeff is begin- ning to do some programming with the Apple, and Todd . uses his Apple //e at home. Melanie is becoming expert at Frogger and learn- ing to program. Between takes, all four kids can be found playing games with the offstage Apples, learning to pro- gram riddles for the others to solve. Every now and then, and with slow persistence, they are getting the non- computer crew members involved with Apples. Max, as the reporter, Farley. uses a word processor on the show and turns: to the “kids for the hard-core com- puter work. In real life, he i purchase his first computer. he wants a word proce: ystem, and a synthesizer for recording his songs. During the planning stages of the show, Max's objectives included scripts which realistically approached kids, portrayed the sophistication of their lives and demystified com- puters. The program is targeted towards middle-class families with a strong emphasis on education and achievement. To Max, and others T interviewed, this was an opportunity to present kids and the technology of today in a substantive manner. Instead, the writers and produce! are going towards a more “solve the crime of the week” type of script, and from the building of interper- sonal relationships. As Max said: “Sometimes, the powers that be lis- ten, and at other times high ratings The day | was on the set, the crew was filming a sequence at Griffith Park. In this sequence, Max, as the reporter, was driving his Mustang and was instructed to turn at the edge of the cliff and stop. Down at the bot- tom was a brand new sports car with the “victi Later on in the filming process, the “bad guys" came along and realized that someone had killed their possible informant. As a neo- phyte lo this type of production, it was fun to watch a show being produced. For every few minutes of TV viewing, there are repetitive “takes” to get it right. Watching the filming process was interesting, but it was not the reason for my trip to Los Angeles. Bob Garon, Max’s agent, called the studio and got the people behind the computers out to the set. Apple Orehard-June 1984 43 I wanted to think it was my inter- view that induced them to go through the L.A. traffic in mid-afternoon. Then I discovered, with great pleasure, that it was really the lunch. One of the benefits of going on loca- tion is the wonderful food served to the crew. With tables set under the trees, Rick and Jim gave me some insight to their computer back- grounds. Rie Edelman has been in the computer business since 1975. He start- ed selling Apples at the original Com- puter Mart in the city and was hired to train the secretaries at CBS to use computers. After working as an instructor, he consulted for the Whiz Kids program. This led to his job as the show's resident computer expert. Jim Michaels was an accounting major in college and a computer hobby- ist. He graduated college in 1983. While attending college, he held various positions involving com- puters. He was hired as Ri assis- tant and after a short time of proving himself, he too was offered a perma- nent position, The third member of the team, Kurt Borg, was credited as the mastermind behind the show's com- puter graphics. 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INDUSTRIAL STATION P.O BOX 2134-AC OAKLAND, CA 94614 Circle HelpCard No.30 44 Apple Orchard—June 1984 in computer graphics led to an excit- ing professional position. Both Rie and Jim were quick to show their enthusiasm for the Apple computer. While their Apples were not shown on the stage very often, the three Apple //e’s back stage are referred to as the “work horses” of the set. In one instance the Apples are communication tools for sending digitized photos over phone lines. As the onstage computers are not work- ing terminals, all images and typing simulation that appears on your sereen is being generated off stage by the Apple //e’s. Individually Rie and Jim are responsible for programming the story points for on: n viewing. As I needed translation for the trade jargon, story points are pieces of information or dialogue that the viewer sees. All of the work has been pre-programmed on the Apples and they serve as the control computers for what is (or will be) filmed. Keeping up (and ahead) is a challenge which all three computer people readily accept and enjoy. One particular show which gene ated excitement involved dolphins and dolphin sounds. For the dolphin sound effects, they were delighted to tell me all about their lucky find, “Dolphin Dialogue” from Syntauri Corporation*. (Neither of these people knew of my previous association with Syntauri.) We discovered a wonderful common interest and went off on a long conversation about the software and work being done with dolphins both in Florida, and at Marine World, in California. They were also de- lighted to find out the history of this program and more information about. the alphaSynturi synthesizer. We traded anecdotes about our longevity in this industry, music, computers, the future for computer the new tools. for creativity and communication. Our conversation headed towards comple- tion with a discussion of the Macii tosh and the Lisa, the L.A. freeways and departure for another interview. The final note came when Rie de- scribed with pleasure how he man- aged to get the show's producer converted to computers and to pur- chase a Lisa. * Dolphin Dialogue is available from Syn- tauri Corporation (800) 227-1817 and pro- ceeds go to the Delphind Research Institute, Key West, Florida. Add a smart Print Screen Key The FingerPrint” parallel printer interface card lets you instantly print any hi-res), in color or bl the beginning! games. * Built-in ROM commanded functions. \ keyboard. ORDER TOLL-FREE 1-800-528-6050 xt, 2112 In Arizona: 1-800-352-0458 * Puts any program on hold any time, including graphics or text (even double lack & white. And that's just provides lots of functions y our button or your programs. « 2K of user RAM lets you dream up new \ ¢ Compatible with any parallel printer. * Touch-sensitive button adheres to your * Comes with printer cable and a disk loaded with programs. Now with VisiCalc enhancements. Seize control of your Apple II, Apple II+ or Apple Ile. 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