Like all great collaborations in show business history, the team of Jimmy Hoy and Neil Stein is sustained through brutal hardship by a shared vision. In their case, a very clear shared vision of $50 million.For two comedy writers in the world of contemporary television, that pot of gold lies only at the end of the syndication rainbow. And standing between them and their big payday is a major hurdle. They must finally succeed in boosting one of their "projects" past the pilot phase and into production.To acquire that Golden Apple of television land, Hoy and Stein agree to cast as their star the stunning but volatile Geneva Holloway, an ascendant young actress from the world of prime-time soap operas. When their new comedy series meets with success, Geneva, sipping a little too generously from the ladle of power, launches a reign of terror over the producers, the crew, and her fellow cast members. "She's like Mengele," says Jimmy, "but without the human side." He and Neil sacrifice their dignity, self-esteem, health, and, in one case, a human life in their efforts to appease this unappeasable star.Ultimately, Geneva, confident that she is irreplaceable, offends the only people in the industry who are able to insist on respect - the men with the money. And she pays a horrible price. But, blessed as she is with what Neil describes as "a black belt in denial," she manages to convert this awful personal tragedy into yet another attention-getting ploy.Artistic Differences is, on the one hand, a study in the terrible lure of power, and on the other, practically a handbook for the production of half-hour television comedies. It is also very funny and very true. As one Hollywood producer put it, "It didn't make me want to write a novel, but it did make me want to get out of television." Read Less