Adam F. Goldberg, creator and main character of The Goldbergs, was ousted from his own show and is very bitter about it

Hello everyone. I have decided to get into the present and tell you guys a fascinating story about present day Hollywood, rather than regale you with 1980s nostalgia.

I still work in Hollywood. I am careful not to give away my identity, as I do not want anything I write here to come back to bite me. Maybe when I retire, which is not too far away, I will tell everyone who I am. I can tell you that you will likely not have heard of me, but at least maybe then you can look up some of my past work and positions.

Adam F. Goldberg is a talented man who always had a passion for television and film. While many in Hollywood become pretentious and insufferable once they become famous, Adam has remained down-to-earth and likable. I have not had a ton of interaction with him, and I have not worked on any of his projects, but he has a very good reputation, and has been very pleasant the few times we've crossed paths. There is something real and earnest about the guy which you don't see very much in Hollywood.

https://deadline.com/wp-content/uplo....-goldberg.jpg


Goldberg first found success as the co-screenwriter of the indie comedy movie Fanboys, where he worked with Ernest Cline, who would later become more famous for Ready, Player One. Fanboys was not a hit, and had mixed reviews, but it finally got Goldberg off to the races, after he had toiled in obscurity throughout his 20s. He was 33 when Fanboys was released.

This led to his biggest break: The Goldbergs, a 2013 sitcom which ended up lasting 10 seasons, and for which almost everyone knows him. Given that The Goldbergs was his biggest hit by a wide margin, why does his own Twitter not list it among his credits?

That's what I'll be discussing in this thread. Adam Goldberg now hates and resents his own show, and he has every right to be angry. Some Hollywood types come to resent their most successful work, often because their other work (which they sometimes like better) gets ignored. But that wasn't the case here with Adam. Instead, it was a matter of being too trusting regarding Hollywood colleagues keeping their word, and watching everything he created turn into an embarrassing pile of crap.

Before we get to that, let me gives you some background on The Goldbergs.

Adam accidentally prepared for show decades before he ever conceived it. Always a filmmaker at heart, Adam took home videos on his bulky VHS camcorder in the 80s and early 90s, while he grew up in Jenkintown, Pennsylvania. While most kids end up losing or destroying their childhood hobbies, Goldberg kept those tapes in good condition, and eventually came to the idea of basing a sitcom around them.

Goldberg put together a TV family which closely resembled his own in the '80s, though he made a few adjustments. Born in 1976, Goldberg's teen years were mostly in the '90s, but this is ignored for the show, and it is presented as if his entire tween and teen years were in the '80s. Adam had two brothers in real life, Barry and Eric. Adam wanted to have a sister in the sitcom, so he changed Eric to Erica. The sitcom did not take place in any specific year, and always referred to it being "1980-something". While chock full of '80s nostalgia, the music, props, films, and events depicted jumped all over the '80s, and presented as if everything occurred together.

Goldberg claimed he did not want to assign specific years to episodes because he wanted to cover the entire '80s, and he figured the program would not likely last 10 years. The good news was that Adam was wrong, and it did last exactly 10 years. The Goldbergs is wrapping up this spring, finishing off its 10th full season. The bad news? Adam was pushed off his own show, and had zero input in the final few years.

While the best known controversy surrounding The Goldbergs was actor Jeff Garlin's high profile firing due to his misbehavior on set, the real interesting story was Adam Goldberg's exit after just 6 seasons, and the circumstances surrounding it. For whatever reason, this was barely covered in entertainment news. When it was covered, it was not explained in detail, and most people do not fully understand what occurred.

https://deadline.com/wp-content/uplo...0&h=383&crop=1


I will explain what I have heard regarding Goldberg's departure from his own series, and why he is so resentful. Stay tuned.

Adam Goldberg had a very specific vision for The Goldbergs.

Aside from the small tweaks described in the last post, he wanted it to be generally authentic to his true family experience. Every character in the show used the real name of the character they were portraying from his childhood, including neighbors, friends, classmates, etc. He also modeled these characters roughly after the real people. It took place in his real life childhood town of Jenkintown, Pennsylvania. All of the people whose names were used were asked for permission, and compensated various amounts for allowing it.

Goldberg loved linking the sitcom, which was an exaggerated version of stories from his life, to his actual home movies and the people with whom he grew up. In many cases, he found ways to sneak the real people whose names and characters were being used, often having these 2010s adults cast as parents of the teenage selves being depicted in the '80s. Other times they would be brought on to play bit parts as teachers, vendors, or other brief guest characters.

At the end of each episode, the viewer would be treated to Goldberg's actual 1980s and 1990s home movies, which were often surprisingly close to the crazy antics being depicted in the sitcom.

Goldberg was careful not to be controversial or political. There were scant mentions of Ronald Reagan, or any politics at the time, nor was there any kind of hidden (or non-hidden) commentary regarding the social/political differences between then and now. Instead, it was just a fluff sitcom of a 1980s family constantly getting into turmoil and hijinks.

Goldberg was also very insistent upon keeping the sitcom as close to real life as possible. While there were a few ridiculous moments which required a suspension of disbelief, for the most part the plots depicted were ones you could picture occurring with your own family in the 1980s.

Despite being a nice, drama-free guy, Goldberg guided the series with a gentle but firm hand, making sure it kept to his vision.

For six seasons, The Goldbergs plodded along this way, and got decent enough ratings to continue.

https://media.licdn.com/dms/image/C5...soCmw9Vayyp6Jw

As season 6 was nearing its end in 2019, Goldberg's contract with Sony Television was ending. Goldberg had made a lot of money for Sony, both through The Goldbergs and its short-lived spinoff Schooled, which had just been picked up by ABC. Goldberg had every intention of renewing with Sony, but the company mistook his congenial, easygoing attitude with that of a human doormat. They attempted to lowball Goldberg in his renewal offer, which left Goldberg quietly insulted.

At that point, Goldberg was trying to figure out what to do. Sony obviously believed they could lowball him because his creation was so personal to him, and they could not envision him leaving it. If ever there was an opportunity to lowball someone, this seemed to be it.

However, what Sony did not realize was that Goldberg had been pursued by Disney for quite some time, and all of a sudden, this gave him a reason to seriously consider joining them. Indeed, after listening to an offer from Disney subsidiary ABC Studios, Goldberg decided he was in. But what to do about his baby, The Goldbergs?

Adam came up with what he thought was the perfect solution. He was integral to The Goldbergs. His deep well of home movies were a hit with fans. His vision was what made the show successful. Perhaps he could still be a part of the program, while still moving over to ABC Studios to do his full time work there? After all, the two companies had a friendly relationship, with The Goldbergs airing on ABC itself. Additionally, his new spinoff Schooled was a joint-ownership venture between Sony and ABC Studios, making his hopeful continued collaboration even easier.

https://d23.com/app/uploads/2015/07/abc-studios.jpg

Adam approached Sony and broke the news to them. He was about to accept an 8-figure deal with ABC, lasting four years. This was far superior to what Sony had proposed to him. However, he told them that he would like to remain as executive producer, and would like to still have extensive input into the show. He suggested that they hand off day-to-day duties of showrunning to Alex Barnow and Chris Bishop, who were previously executive producers there. Goldberg said that he'd still provide his home movies, and would creatively advise the series throughout the rest of its run. While financial terms of this arrangement were not known, Goldberg was apparently offering to do this extremely cheaply, more as a labor of love.

Sony actually tried to raise their offer in response to Goldberg's request to remain in the background, hoping he would simply stay there and keep running the show as before. However, Goldberg insisted he had already made up his mind, but really wanted to stay involved with The Goldbergs, as he did not want to abandon what he had created. Ultimately, Sony realized Adam was going to Disney/ABC no matter what, and accepted his offer to stay as executive producer.

In May 2019, Goldberg's move to ABC was quietly announced in entertainment pressers, but it did not gain very much public attention, even among big fans of the series.

Adam Goldberg was now on cloud nine. He was able to pursue other passion projects with his fresh start at ABC Studios, yet remain closely involved with the series based upon his life. Sure, it would be hard work, but it would all be a joy. He was quite proud of himself for getting what appeared to be the best of it in all ways. He got paid more, scored the freedom to create exciting new projects with ABC Studios, and still had creative control of his baby that started the whole thing.

Well, scratch the last one.

Adam was about to learn that the most heartbreaking deals in Hollywood are sealed with only a handshake.

I greatly enjoy your stories, keep them coming.

I am kind of shocked that Goldberg didn't have a lawyer/agent working for him after having some success. Bet he's got one now though

Adam Goldberg felt that The Goldbergs would continue without him in the manner it had run before. After all, why wouldn't it? It was successful, and there's no point to change a working formula after 6 years. The two men who took over had worked on the show with him, and seemed to understand his vision.

For this reason, Adam did not bother getting the terms of his continued involvement on paper, aside from the compensation and the structure of the deal. He was to continue as a creative consultant and executive producer, but these are both general terms which do not necessarily grant you any real power over the production. Basically, Adam was there when they wanted to consult with him, and he was welcome to offer his guidance and advice, but could no longer instill his rigorous standards and vision upon the production.

Now free of Adam's control, Sony and network executives wanted to try things with the show they hadn't done before. For example, they started parodying popular 1980s movies, putting the Goldberg family in situations similar to those movies. This was not what Adam Goldberg wanted! He was watching the show become a cheap throwaway '80s parody hour.

Unfortunately, by this point, they had long stopped listening to him. During Season 7, he had some limited input, and they still used some of his home movies. After not too long, they shut him out of the creative process, and let him know that his home movies would not be necessary anymore, as they would not be basing plots upon them going forward.

Adam was in absolute shock, and felt betrayed. These were people who once worked under him. This was a show which made Sony a fortune, thanks to him. How could they do this? And how could they not realize that the fans were hating it?

The Goldbergs featured Wendi McClendon-Covey playing Beverly Goldberg, Adam's mother. While Wendi did a good job with the character, and is arguably the most memorable person on the show, she also helped bring about the show's decline into awful television. She became an executive producer in 2020, and very much influenced the show's direction to be all about her character. The domineering yenta Beverly, who was charming albeit needy and dysfunctional during the Adam seasons, became an unlikable psycho in the final seasons. I don't even think Wendi realized just how unlikable and creepy she made that character.

Unfortunately, remember these shows are all tied to real people. The real Beverly Goldberg, who was also somewhat of an overprotective yenta in real life, did what the TV Beverly would probably do. She went to bat for Adam!

However, Adam was no longer a kid in high school. He was a television producer in his mid-40s, and his mom had no connection to Hollywood, aside from being Adam Goldberg's mother. Instead, she took to social media and routinely bashed both the show and their treatment of Adam. I was surprised to see that this was not picked up by media gossip outlets, and there are only a few mentions of it if you google. However, if you look closely, you will find it. Beverly (the real one) even joined The Goldbergs fan groups and ranted there.

Adam himself stayed mostly quiet. He doesn't have the aggressive personality like his mom, nor did he want to burn bridges. However, he started to make his feelings known in various subtle ways. I already mentioned that he took The Goldbergs off his Twitter. He also had his name taken off the opening credits of the show, in its final season.

Before:
https://www.pajiba.com/assets_c/2022...uto-249294.png

After:
https://www.pajiba.com/assets_c/2022...uto-249296.png



He also retweeted an article which was highly critical of the final seasons of the show:

https://www.pajiba.com/assets_c/2022...uto-249298.png
https://www.pajiba.com/assets_c/2022...uto-249300.png


In January 2023, Adam put out one of his boldest tweets about the matter, stating that "The Goldberg show abandoned my original premise", and bragging that he did not sign away the rights to his entire life, which prevented the show from showing Adam attending NYU, as he had in real life.

https://twitter.com/adamfgoldberg/st...17523103617024


It remains to be seen when Adam will finally open up fully as to what went on, but now you know most of the story anyway. Would you like to know what he's doing at ABC? I'll conclude with that.

Adam F. Goldberg has reached back into his childhood, developing a new Muppets show for Disney+.

This particular show revolves around the Muppets side character band called "Dr. Teeth and Electric Mayhem", which consisted of Dr. Teeth, Animal, Sgt Floyd Pepper, Janice, Zoot, and Lips. In the 1970s original, the band was developed as one featuring elements of Elton John, Gato Barbieri, Louis Armstrong, Janice Joplin, The Rolling Stones, The Who, and The Beatles.

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikiped...ric_Mayhem.jpg


In the new Muppets Mayhem, the band will be the central characters for the first time in Muppets history. Ten episodes were made, and it will show up on Disney+ during the first week of May, according to my sources.

Does this seem like a step down from producing a major primetime network sitcom? Perhaps, but you have to understand Adam Goldberg. He is not in it for the clout or the fame. He simply likes making films and television. From what I have heard, Adam has tried to lose himself in his present work, and is trying to leave his bitterness about The Goldbergs behind, as much as he can.

It will help that The Goldbergs is ending this spring, which will allow him to move on much more easily. One of his friends told me that it especially bothers him when he hears people criticizing the recent seasons of the show, and believe he is to blame. Adam probably wants to shout from the mountaintops that he's no longer involved, but that's just not his personality. For now, the most he's wiling to do is take his name off the credits, remove mention of the show from his Twitter bio, and occasionally drop a passive-aggressive tweet about his feelings about the matter.

A quick browse of the fan groups on Facebook shows that the fans have definitely noticed his absence for the past four seasons. It is universally agreed upon that the show has turned to dogshit, and even among those who still enjoy it, nobody disputes that it was better while Adam was there.

I wish Adam well. I hope he finds joy in his Muppets, an upcoming Dungeons and Dragons documentary, and some other stuff he's presently doing for ABC/Disney. I hope he realizes that he made the right move by hopping over to ABC when Sony tried to undercompensate him, and that his only mistake was being naive regarding just how self-centered Hollywood types can be, even people you once gave their big break.

There is no loyalty in this town.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by nunbeater

I am kind of shocked that Goldberg didn't have a lawyer/agent working for him after having some success. Bet he's got one now though

---

To answer your question regarding why Adam Goldberg allowed this to happen, and why he did not have a lawyer/agent helping him avoid this fate. He actually did have both lawyers and agents involved, but this agreement with Sony was unique. He felt he was providing them with a cheap service of his continued involvement, and did not imagine that they would decide on their own that he was no longer necessary.

The other problem was the fact that he was the one to voluntarily leave. He was not really in the position to make demands of Sony, as he was leaving for ABC. He thought he was doing them a favor, and then they pretended to be gracious but ultimately spat in his face. Honestly they would have been better off to simply tell him thanks but no thanks, but if you're going to leave, we are probably going to change the show. Had it gone down like that, Adam would have little room to complain. It was the fact that they chose to keep him on as if he still had input, and then treat him like his opinion didn't matter, which left a rightfully bad taste in his mouth.

I do wonder if Adam might have reconsidered leaving if they told him he could either take or completely leave The Goldbergs. Maybe then he would have stayed with Sony, and taken their better (but not as good as Disney's) offer. He felt he could have everything the way he did it, and it didn't work out like he thought.

yeah, honestly at this point it seems par for the course for the suits to fuck up a good sitcom. It's like they take everything that was great about it and change all that shit, some pf the characters get Flanderized, they start fucking with the settings, wacky spoofs, etc. Next thing you know it's an unrecognizable fucking mess

The Goldbergs turned to shit when the characters all became hyper caricatures of their personalities.

Good story.


Strange how streaming apps like Netflix changed the game. I recall Druff making a post about this show before it started. I thought it sounded interesting and I’ve never seen 10 seconds of it, or anything else on network TV outside sports in close to a decade. If you had told me it never made it past the pilot stage I would think that makes sense.

I was staying at a friends house who watched some shows centered around Chicago. Seemed like the Law and Order model with a Chicago PD and Chicago Fire and a few others, and not had I only not ever seen any of them, I’d never even heard of them. It felt weird to even sit and watch network TV.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by BCR

Good story.


Strange how streaming apps like Netflix changed the game. I recall Druff making a post about this show before it started. I thought it sounded interesting and I’ve never seen 10 seconds of it, or anything else on network TV outside sports in close to a decade. If you had told me it never made it past the pilot stage I would think that makes sense.

I was staying at a friends house who watched some shows centered around Chicago. Seemed like the Law and Order model with a Chicago PD and Chicago Fire and a few others, and not had I only not ever seen any of them, I’d never even heard of them. It felt weird to even sit and watch network TV.

---

I could have written this myself.

Harry is a great writer and is rich with detail but I have zero experience with the shows so I can’t connect.

I swear I hardly ever saw Archie Bunker to mention Druff’s other thread. I have enormous gaps with pop culture television and movies.

My expectation is to feel cringe and I opt to avoid that.

I just saw an ad for the current incarnation of Roseanne and words fail me. What in the fuck?

Id gladly buy Harry Hollywood a beer.

Great content

I never saw this show until I lived in Spain this summer. It was on every weekday. Not a big fan, too Jewey for me. They had a few other American shows I hadn’t seen, like Mom. I only really watched Colombo, in Spanish with English subtitles. I’d seen all the episodes as a kid, so I knew the context. Helped me pick up a lot of words.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Jayjami

I never saw this show until I lived in Spain this summer. It was on every weekday. Not a big fan, too Jewey for me. They had a few other American shows I hadn’t seen, like Mom. I only really watched Colombo, in Spanish with English subtitles. I’d seen all the episodes as a kid, so I knew the context. Helped me pick up a lot of words.

---

It actually was kinda Jewey in tone, though interestingly they didn't feature the family's Judaism in plots very much. Pretty much only came up around Hanukkah time.

I guess I was able to relate to it because it had both the Jew factor and the kid/teen in the '80s factor, which were both my own experiences.

I was a bit disappointed that it appears Adam Goldberg was not into '80s video games, so those were barely featured or discussed on the program, even though they were a huge part of life of most kids in that era. I was very into video games from like age 8-15, and then my interest started to wane a lot.

BUMP

This thread lived on the site for 3 days, before Harry asked me to delete it.

Someone found the thread who knew Harry in real life, and asked him if he was the one behind it. Harry freaked out a bit and told me he was going to quit PFA. I offered I'd just delete the thread, and suggested Harry just ask this person to keep quiet about his identity. Harry said that the person was friendly to him, and this sounded like a good plan, so that's what we did.

As you'll see from the original posts, Harry was already a bit nervous about some of the things he was posting, fearing it might lead to him, and had edited it shortly after posting. But I guess it wasn't enough, and someone figured out who he was, who apparently found the thread via google.

Anyway, I thought this thread would be gone forever, but tonight Harry messaged me and said that he'd like it to be restored, almost exactly a year after it was originally posted. He asked me to edit/remove a few lines which allowed that person to deduce his identity, but said the rest can stay. He wasn't close to Adam Goldberg or anything, so that part wasn't going to give anything away.

Interesting story, though, if you haven't read it yet.