Key to Success

As a hopeful screenwriter, I read the article on “L.A Law” producer David Kelley with the naive belief that every once in a while a talented person will make it through the maze of “connections” (“He’s the Final Authority on ‘L.A. Law,’ ” Aug. 12).

However, I was brought back to reality when I got to the ninth paragraph that started: “Through a family friend and client at his firm . . . he was able to option the completed script. . . .”

As successful as Kelley now is, the fact remains that he got where he is because he knew somebody. As a writer who knows no one (not even the janitors who clean the agents’ offices), I am frustrated by the realization that no matter how you analyze it, it’s not what you know but who you know.

I certainly hope Kelley shares a percentage of his salary with his family friend--because he owes his success to him.

ROSE TOWNSEN

Cypress