New York Times
Sunday, March 2, 2003

From Harvard to Hollywood
Laughing All the Way.

By: HUGH HART | SPECIAL TO THE TIMES

LOS ANGELES

Richard Appel graduated from Harvard Law School, clerked for Judge John Walker at the Second Circuit Court of Appeals and prosecuted criminals for three years at the United States attorney's office for the Southern District of New York. Then Mr. Appel found his true vocation. He began writing sitcoms.

"It's easier to believe they would let a lawyer write for 'The Simpsons' than it is to think they'd let a 'Simpsons' writer decide who to indict," said Mr. Appel, a 39-year old lawyer turned producer. He mused about his loopy career path on the Fox lot as actors rehearsed scenes from "A.U.S.A.," a new NBC comedy series named for Mr. Appel's old job title: assistant U.S. attorney.

The show, which had its premiere in February, was given a prime-time slot, right after "Frasier," at 9:30 on Tuesday night Scott Foley ("Felicity") stars as Adam Sullivan, a rookie prosecuting attorney who has a crush on a spunky public defender, played by Amanda Detmer, despite their philosophical differences. He's surrounded by a cranky boss (Peter Jacobson), a geeky legal aide (John Ross Bowie) and a wacky roommate (Eddie McClintock).

"Would I necessarily say to everybody who wants to be a comedy writer, the first thing to do is to go to law school? No. I think there are probably more direct routes," Mr. Appel said. And yet he remembers witnessing plenty of funny business as a lawyer. "People would come back from court with transcripts and put their best stuff on their doors. You could literally spend an hour walking around the office and read these hilarious moments, where a witness would just self-explode or the judge would use some malapropism. These were scripts, ready to go."

Mr. Appel joined the U.S. attorney's office in Manhattan in 1990, shortly after Rudolph Giuliani left. "I saw an amazing variety of life come in and out of that building, which is a magnet for every kind of character," he said. "You'll see a pompous defense lawyer, a brilliant judge, a judge a little off his rocker, D.E.A. agents who are honest, some federal agents who are shady -- they all have business being there. As a storyteller, that's a gift."

Gradually Mr. Appel realized his favorite part of the job had become writing j okes for the occasional office "roast." "I liked being in front of juries, I loved negotiation pleas and making everyone happy," he said. "But temperamentally I was maybe a little doomed. I'm not sure I ever would have been a great prosecutor because I don't find it that easy to sit in judgment of other people.".

Mr. Appel did find it relatively easy to attract the attention of Hollywood agents, in part because he'd written for The Harvard Lampoon. Former contributors like Conan O'Brien had helped turn the university humor magazine into a hot credential, he said. "The Harvard-Hollywood connection started to happen when I was going to law school. By the time I got up the nerve to send a bunch of scripts to agents, the fact that I'd been on The Harvard Lampoon helped. I could think of maybe a dozen other people who had gone to Harvard and become writers on shows like 'Seinfeld' and 'The Simpsons.' There was a sense among agents that 'Hey, maybe that's a place to find new writers.' "

So in 1993, Mr. Appel quit his job and moved here with his wife, the novelist Mona Simpson, and their infant son. The gamble paid off. Mr. Appel's initial 10-week contract at "The Simpsons" turned into a four-year, two-Emmy tenure. Mr. Appel was an executive producer of "King of the Hill" from 1997 to 2001, picking up a third Emmy. And 15 months ago, he sold NBC on "A.U.S.A." and began looking for someone to play a taller, funnier version of himself. More than 150 actors auditioned before Mr. Foley read for the part. Mr. Appel hired him on the spot.

"Scott, both in person and as his character, has this rare quality," said Mr. Appel. "He's immensely likable and sincere, without being obnoxious. I thought, 'Boy, let me have some of that to work with.'"

The affable Mr. Foley, dressed in jeans, a black sweater and boots, settled into his character's book-lined "office" and explained his take on "A.U.S.A." "This isn't really a jargon-heavy show. You get to see the law stuff, but you also go outside the courtroom. I don't want to say the cases themselves are secondary, but not unlike 'Felicity,' this show is also about relationships. The cases are understandable and relatable to the average Joe - me - so, no, I didn't have to go learn what 'tortius' meant. I don't have to know that."

Which is a good thing. Unlike his Harvard-educated employer, Mr. Foley, 30, didn't go to college. "I was never good in school," he breezily admitted. "Homework? That took me away from seeing my friends. The amount of Ivy League writers we have in the writers' rooms, there are brains dripping off the walls. It's so intellectual it gives me a headache!"

Immediately after graduating from high school in St. Louis, Mr. Foley moved to Los Angeles, where he waited tables and studied acting for seven years. In 1998, he landed the role of Noel Crane, Keri Russell's earnest college classmate and sometime boyfriend, on "Felicity." There he met his wife, the actress Jennifer Garner, star of the ABC series "Alias." When Mr. Appel, came calling after "Felicity's" four-year run, Mr. Foley said he had one reservation. If the show became a hit, would "A.U.S.A.'s premise be fertile enough to generate three or four seasons' worth of stories?

Mr. Appel is convinced that won't be a problem, noting that Judge Walker, his former boss, has already pitched him some true-life tales populated by genuine courthouse characters.

But there's one outlandish story twist Mr. Appel promises to steer clear of. "I've assured my mother that I will not allow Scott's character, if this show succeeds, to leave the U.S. attorney's office after three years and go right to 'The Simpsons.' " Mr. Appel said. "You can only do that to a kind woman once. And besides, who would believe it?"

Copyright 2003 New York Times