David Mamet brings skills to ‘The Unit’

Tackling that Mamet dialogue
Known for a writing style that creates poetry out of an unusual cadence and unabashed profanity, Mamet doesn’t spring to mind as an easy fit for network TV. But, as he once told Haney, if swear words are “all you’re depending on for drama, then you’re a charlatan.”

Mamet is “someone that the networks, the studio, I think, in the past viewed a little dangerously,” Ryan told TV critics. “And I’m hoping that any success we might have with this will change their opinions of that, because I’ve never met someone as committed and professional and intent on making good dramas as he is.”

Asked in an interview to compare TV drama with film and stage, Mamet described television as having a “wonderfully curious” structure more akin to an epic than a play, then spun off into a theater riff that touched on Pinter, Chekhov and the Second City improv troupe of his native Chicago.

None of whom, of course, ever coped with commercial breaks.

In that regard, TV “harkens back not to drama but to the medicine show. You’re offering someone legitimate entertainment ... but once in a while you’re going to take a break and sell them snake oil,” Mamet said.

In return, “The Unit” audience gets to visit a realm known to a handful of insiders, he said.

For Haney, sharing his past has given him a great second act.

After a long day on the set, he said, a realization set in: “I thought, ’Gosh, I love this.’ This is the most enjoyable thing I’ve ever done in my life.”

MORE FROM DRAMA

'The Tudors' turns bloodier in season 2

'The Tudors' turns bloodier in season 2 Michael — or is it Kevin — returns to 'Lost' Typo puts 'ER's' Julianna Margulies back on TV 'Wire' creator reflects on show's end Quiz: Is there a true fan in the ‘House’? How well do you know ‘CSI’s’ Gil Grissom?   Add Drama headlines to your news reader: