Fiction by special guest J. D. Truesilver

It was a tough decision. It is always that way when a friend is involved. The pressure was on Ted Wilson. It might come down to his job or fire Bill Sorenson. As Network director, he had hired Bill some ten years before.

Bill was a stand up guy who could write for television. That was the rub. He had proven that. A few of his shows were even critically acclaimed.

However, advertisers could give a damn less about a writer being critically acclaimed. Ted’s boss had made that abundantly clear. “It just did not sell the soap.” His boss’s words still painfully rang in his ears. If Bill did not quickly think of something that would catch fire with the advertisers, he would have to let him go.

Ted had a stack of resumes on his desk. He would have to fire Bill, and “hire some young blood. Someone more in touch with the times, someone whom could write a top rated show that would sell the soap.”

Bill Sorenson knew it was coming. He could tell by his old friend’s preoccupied manner the past few weeks. He too felt the heat coming down on his friend from up above in the corporate hierarchy. He recognized the sound of Ted’s hesitant footsteps coming down the hallway.

It was the Friday before the holidays began. Bill mentally braced himself. It would be tough explaining to his wife exactly how this year’s Christmas bonus turned into a pink slip. Bill knew this might herald the end of their twenty five-year marriage.

Since the kids left home, they had drifted apart. He had a sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach that his wife was having an affair with a “friend”. In a way, he could not blame her. Over the years, his bouts of depression and unpredictable mood swings had taken a toll on their marriage. To make matters worse. His drinking had increased significantly the past few years.

He had confronted her about the affair. She vehemently denied it. She had always been a terrible liar. Bill knew he would crash and burn without her. Throughout the marriage, he had become increasingly emotionally dependent on her. She was in many respects his last anchor to reality.

His thoughts of suicide had become more than a passing fancy. He tentatively waited for the ax the fall. However, not before one last defensive creative charge on his part.

Bill took the offensive and headed Ted off at the pass. He stepped out in the hall. “Hey Ted do you have a minute?” Ted smiled bleakly. “Sure, for you Bill I might even have two minutes” Ted stepped into Bill’s office and took a seat as he had so many times before over the years.

“I have a wacky idea for a new show I think may just catch fire” “Bill you have never had a wacky idea in your life, but go on.” Well not only is it wacky, it will also be low budget. We can use all unknown actors for every role.”

“Alright enough about budgets. What is the idea?” “It’s going to be a Soap.” The words of Ted’s boss echoed eerily in his mind. “We need a show that will sell the soap, not some critically acclaimed bullshit.” “Go on Bill. I am starting to feel some synchronicity here.”

“It is not just some soap. It is a soap we can run against the talking head pundits in prime time. “Alright already, give it up Bill.” “It is going to be a soap about the first family and how they respond to the headlines everyday in real time, or as close as we can get. We will emphasize the same political headlines the prime time rabid news hounds are drooling over in their boring predictable way.

As a rule, they rely on rumors and innuendo to pump up their ratings. I want to “lower” the bar. I intend to stretch the truth until it pops like a scandalous balloon raining ruinous rumors all over this great Nation.

You know as well as I they show little regard for the truth. We will push the envelope even further, show no regard for the truth, and beat them at their own ratings game. On slow news days, I will write scandalous fictional stories with just a grain of truth about their personal lives.

If we sling a little more mud than the pundits do, we can kick the racy rumor mill into overtime. That should tease the audience into wanting more. I am willing to bet my career this will be a recipe for success that will make our prime time ratings soar.

Bill knew that as chief writer this would make him indispensable to the program and the network. That was the idea. He had no problem writing scripts in the evening. The way things were going; he might be spending his evenings alone anyway.

Ted took his time. He slowly nodded his head and responded, “I like it. You know the network has always had an ax to grind with this administration about free speech. This show could help the network bosses get some cheap shots at them in an election year. Why don’t you stay put for awhile? I will get back with you.”

Bill paced nervously in his office for the next hour. He felt like a condemned prisoner hoping for a reprieve. He knew that at his age the prospects for another network writing job were dim indeed. In fact, the prospects for any job were dim.

Finally, Bill heard Ted’s familiar footsteps coming down the hall. He opened the door with a broad smile on his face. “They brought it hook line and sinker. Thank God they are a vindictive bunch.” Ted took an envelope out of his pocket and handed it to Bill. “I was even able to get you a bonus.” He extended his hand for Bill to shake. “Merry Christmas Buddy!”

Bill was feeling the Christmas spirit. Especially the spirit of giving. He proudly presented his wife with his Christmas bonus check as an early Christmas present. That evening he accompanied her to her company Christmas party. His spirit of giving continued through the evening.

When he met her new “friend”, he “accidentally” spilled a drink on him. He smiled, pretending to be helpful, he used a napkin to dab the friends’ tuxedo. As he leaned forward, he stepped on his toe very hard. Bill then whispered in his ear “stay away from my wife you sniveling pretty boy punk”.

The “friend” had to leave the party early due to a family emergency. Bill expressed his “regret” as the “friend” left the party. That evening he made love to his wife with more passion than he had in years.

Casting for the new show was easy. The President’s popularity was at an all time low. There were several look alike comedians available who were making a living off the President’s communication follies. His wife and daughters were bland to say the least. They had made themselves scarce the past two years. This left their activities open to wanton literary speculation.

Fortunately, the first two weeks of the show were ripe with presidential challenges. This gave Bill his first opportunity to play armchair president. He proved to be very effective. The ratings started to climb.

By the third week, people were starting to ask. What would the soap president do? The prime time puppet pundits were getting very nervous indeed. They had never been upstaged quite like this. They had no ready solution for their free falling ratings.

The next few weeks proved to be slow news weeks. The puppet pundits hoped to recoup their plummeting ratings. Bill only turned up the heat. The soap president debuted in nazi attire playing kinky sex games with a chambermaid.

The next week saw the soap first lady begin an interracial lesbian affair with a chauffeur. The following week witnessed the soap first daughters turning tricks in exchange for crack cocaine.

The puppet pundits were reeling. They started questioning the patriotism of the network. The first family became a National laughing stock. The White House lawyers were instructed to find a loophole to censure the show.

The public craved more political sleaze. Bill was only too happy to serve it up on a silver presidential platter. The President’s political party started to doubt his re-electability.

Bill became the toast of the town. He became a free speech icon. Bill’s wife helped him write a national best seller about the show and free speech in America. He had an over abundance of paid speaking engagements. Meanwhile the puppet pundits were dropping like flies. Like the President, no one took them seriously anymore.

Success came late in Bill’s life. However, based on his past experience he knew it would not last. It was only six months ago that the network bosses were prematurely writing his career obituary. Fortunately, the show’s success had allowed him to earn enough money to retire early and watch his grand children grow up.

Bill was a shy person at heart. He had enough of the limelight. When the other political party offered him a hefty consultant fee. He knew it was an attempt to buy him off and pay for his silence after they elected the next president. The first family soap experience left Bill a little older, but much wiser. He took the money and ran.