Heartsounds
Encyclopedia
Heartsounds is an autobiographical book written by Martha Weinman Lear (former staff writer and editor for The New York Times Magazine) and first published in 1980
by Simon and Schuster.
The book is about Lear's husband, Harold Alexander Lear, a Manhattan
urologist, and how the couple deals with his life-changing heart condition. The couple must face the medical system for the point-of-view of the patient, something they seem not to be prepared for, and learn about each other along the way, as Harold's health slowly declines, over a four year period.
On her husband's double by-pass coronary operation, Martha Lear wrote:
The book was made into a television
movie
in 1984 by Harold Lear's cousin, television writer and producer Norman Lear
, with ABC
, and Embassy Pictures
. The script was drafted by Fay Kanin
, who also was one of the co-producers, along with Fern Field, and the film was directed by Glenn Jordan. James Garner
played the part of Harold Lear, while Mary Tyler Moore
played Martha Lear. It also stars Sam Wanamaker
, as Moe Silverman, and Wendy Crewson
, as Judy. Norman Lear was the executive producer for the project. The movie was shot in Toronto, Ontario, Canada
, with additional exterior footage shot in New York City, New York. Toronto stood in for New York City for economic reasons. The film debuted on ABC September 30, 1984.
Garner was nominated for a Golden Globe, for Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV, and for an Emmy, for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or a Special. Mary Tyler Moore was nominated for an Emmy, for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or a Special. The producers, Norman Lear, Kanin, and Field, were also nominated for an Emmy, for Outstanding Drama/Comedy Special. The casting director, Eve Brandstein, was nominated for an Artios, for Best Casting for TV Miniseries' or TV Movie of the Week. ABC won a Peabody Award
.
1980 in literature
The year 1980 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*Marguerite Yourcenar becomes the first woman to be elected to the Académie française....
by Simon and Schuster.
The book is about Lear's husband, Harold Alexander Lear, a Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
urologist, and how the couple deals with his life-changing heart condition. The couple must face the medical system for the point-of-view of the patient, something they seem not to be prepared for, and learn about each other along the way, as Harold's health slowly declines, over a four year period.
On her husband's double by-pass coronary operation, Martha Lear wrote:
- "No other surgery affects people in quite this way. For it is unthinkable, finally, that one’s heart should be cut open. It is the one unthinkable cut."
The book was made into a television
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
movie
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
in 1984 by Harold Lear's cousin, television writer and producer Norman Lear
Norman Lear
Norman Milton Lear is an American television writer and producer who produced such 1970s sitcoms as All in the Family, Sanford and Son, One Day at a Time, The Jeffersons, Good Times and Maude...
, with ABC
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
, and Embassy Pictures
Embassy Pictures
Embassy Pictures Corporation was an independent studio and distributor responsible for such films as The Graduate, The Lion in Winter, This Is Spinal Tap and Escape from New York.-Founding:The company was founded in 1942 by producer Joseph E...
. The script was drafted by Fay Kanin
Fay Kanin
Fay Kanin is an American screenwriter, playwright and producer. Kanin was President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences from 1979 to 1983.-Biography:...
, who also was one of the co-producers, along with Fern Field, and the film was directed by Glenn Jordan. James Garner
James Garner
James Garner is an American film and television actor, one of the first Hollywood actors to excel in both media. He has starred in several television series spanning a career of more than five decades...
played the part of Harold Lear, while Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore
Mary Tyler Moore is an American actress, primarily known for her roles in television sitcoms. Moore is best known for The Mary Tyler Moore Show , in which she starred as Mary Richards, a 30-something single woman who worked as a local news producer in Minneapolis, and for her earlier role as...
played Martha Lear. It also stars Sam Wanamaker
Sam Wanamaker
Samuel Wanamaker was an American film director and actor and is credited as the person most responsible for the modern recreation of Shakespeare's Globe Theatre in London...
, as Moe Silverman, and Wendy Crewson
Wendy Crewson
-Life and career:Crewson was born in Hamilton, Ontario, the daughter of June Doreen and Robert Binnie Crewson. She attended Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, where she won the prestigious Lorne Greene Award for outstanding work in the theater. She then studied at the Webber Douglas Academy...
, as Judy. Norman Lear was the executive producer for the project. The movie was shot in Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, with additional exterior footage shot in New York City, New York. Toronto stood in for New York City for economic reasons. The film debuted on ABC September 30, 1984.
Garner was nominated for a Golden Globe, for Best Performance by an Actor in a Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for TV, and for an Emmy, for Outstanding Lead Actor in a Limited Series or a Special. Mary Tyler Moore was nominated for an Emmy, for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Limited Series or a Special. The producers, Norman Lear, Kanin, and Field, were also nominated for an Emmy, for Outstanding Drama/Comedy Special. The casting director, Eve Brandstein, was nominated for an Artios, for Best Casting for TV Miniseries' or TV Movie of the Week. ABC won a Peabody Award
Peabody Award
The George Foster Peabody Awards recognize distinguished and meritorious public service by radio and television stations, networks, producing organizations and individuals. In 1939, the National Association of Broadcasters formed a committee to recognize outstanding achievement in radio broadcasting...
.
External links
- James Garner Interview on the Charlie Rose Show
- James Garner interview at Archive of American TelevisionArchive of American TelevisionThe Archive of American Television is a division of the non-profit Academy of Television Arts & Sciences Foundation that films interviews with notable people from all aspects of the television industry....