Ron Hart
Appearances
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
I co-created a show for the Disney Channel, so I'm a pretty big deal to 12-year-olds. I think I ended up writing for television because I grew up addicted to sitcoms. I wanted to be cool like Fonzie, tough like George Jefferson, funny like Alf, and I wound up with a body like Norm from Cheers. I write with a partner, always for other people's shows.
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
We tried to get our own shows on the air for years, and it never worked out. And all those disappointments, it snuffed out my passion for television. My dream job became just a job. And when Disney Channel approached us, I wanted to write for them about as much as most adults want to watch them. But they were going to give us a shot. We needed them. They constantly studied their audience.
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
So we were like, so it's a show about an older sister mentoring a younger sister. And they said, actually, our research shows that kids are fascinated by twins. So we said, So it's a show about twins? I wanted them to love the show more than I wanted to love it myself. This is how the process continued until eventually we were picking out a title for the show.
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
We pointed out to them there were a lot of kid shows like Austin, Ann, Allie, Sam, Ann, Cat, Bucket, Ann Skinner. Could we just not name the show after two characters? So in the summer of 2013, Liv and Maddie premiered. A show I created was on the air. I had the job I aspired to have my entire adult life. And I sucked at it. There were all these decisions to make. Which color to paint the lockers?
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
What kind of dress would Maddie wear to the prom? Our research shows that Liv should have a best friend or a dog. Which one? I was supposed to be the guy with a vision. But it's not like this show sprang out from a passion burning inside of me. I had no vision. But once we were on the air, it was time for us to become part of Disney Channel's research. Focus group testing.
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
We went to an office park, sat behind a two-way mirror, and watched middle schoolers shred my life's work. We did okay with the girls, we did okay. But they showed an episode to a room full of 12-year-old boys. They all took their hoodies and pulled them all the way over their faces. They hated us more than broccoli. They told the interviewer things like, this show is dumb.
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
And Disney Channel guys just scribbling away next to me. I thought we were going to be canceled before I got my parking validated. But then one boy, one brave, beautiful boy said, I think Liv is hot. Now, The same actress played Liv and Maddie, but I was not about to judge this goddamn hero.
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
Because with a heart of a lion, he shrugged off all the other boys laughing at him and told that interviewer, our show was kind of funny. And that courage. cracked a door open just enough for the others to come out. And they all admitted they watched the show too. And once they were out of the closet, the dam burst. They liked the little brother. The Halloween episode was their favorite.
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
One kid said he liked to sing the theme song to himself, but was afraid that other guys would catch him and tease him. They started quoting scenes from each other. These dudes weren't just watching the show, they were fans. And Disney Channel guy had no idea what was going on. But I understood. Because when I was 12, I was addicted to Laverne Ann Shirley.
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
But I would lie and say, my sister likes that show. 12-year-old me could not say he liked a show about girls. But in that conference room, these 12-year-old boys' minds were melting because they realized they weren't freaks for liking Liv and Maddie. One kid choked back tears and said, I thought I was the only boy watching. And it struck a nerve for me.
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
For the first time in years, that spark of passion that had drawn me to television had fueled to the fire. As a producer, I don't want boys to be ashamed to watch my show. As a human, I don't want boys to be ashamed to watch stories about girls. I knew we had to tell the boys out there watching Liv and Maddie in their secret closets of shame that it was okay. So I came up with this episode.
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
Listen to this crazy storyline. The little brother of Liv and Maddie is a secret fan of this girly show we made up called Linda and Heather. His friends catch him singing the girly theme song, and they make fun of him. But he is the heart of a lion, and he tells them he loves Linda and Heather. And that cracks a door open just enough for all of his friends to admit they love the show too.
The Moth
The Moth Radio Hour: For the Ages
The network didn't think this was going to work. Thank you. I don't know. Thank you very much.