ABC Stopped Mork And Mindy's Writers From Giving Pam Dawber's Character Any Depth
Mork from Ork made Robin Williams a star, but Mork and Mindy wouldn't have worked without Pam Dawber -- a fact ABC did their best to ignore.
ABC executives made it abundantly clear that Mork & Mindy's writers could not give Pam Dawber's character any depth. Despite April Kelly and David Misch proposing an episode where Mindy contemplated her life's purpose, network executives insisted that Mindy should remain a "normal American girl." The network discouraged offering her any backstory, adding to the unconventional circumstances surrounding the series' creation.
Though Dawber and Robin Williams eventually formed a memorable on-screen partnership, the network's decision to limit the character's development ultimately hindered the show's potential. Director Howard Storm noted that Mam Dawber, without whom Robin Williams would have lacked a counterpart, was unfairly overlooked in the show's legacy.
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