"I was mediocre journalist, a mediocre musician, a mediocre actor, a mediocre athlete. I had to find something I could do well."¹

A surprising beginning for a man who, on the night of January 28, 1979, had created the three toprated shows on network television. Garry Marshall had indeed found something he could do well ... make people laugh. "I got a degree in journalism from Northwestern University but I wasn't very good at it. I wasn't a good student. Everybody seemed to be better than me. When I got out of school, I worked in the newspaper field but not very successfully. The reason was that I was too funny! So, I got into comedy writing.

"At that time, I wrote things for comedians. I would go to different night clubs and try to sell jokes. Some bought, some threw me out and a few took me under their wing...