of energy again. [...] The type of makeups I liked to disguise myself under had not been conducive to a live show [...] Once I inhaled so much remover that I passed out on the makeup room floor. I was resuscitated and went out to give a terrific performance, even though I can't remember being there." She had a year to deliver the show. The 1993 special Tracey Ullman: A Class Act, a satire about the British class system, was shot entirely on location and co-starred actor Michael Palin. The show's success led to American cable television network HBO becoming interested in having Ullman do a special for them. The only caveat was that she take on a more "American" subject. She chose New York City. That special, Tracey Ullman Takes on New York, was an award-winning success. HBO then broached the idea of a "Takes on" series. Ullman was unsure if she could do it without the help of her "mentor" James L. Brooks who helped launch her American career with The Tracey Ullman Show. "Last year, I was 35 years old, and I thought, 'It's time to do it myself really. I thought, 'I know the premise, I know what I want to do...' I sat at the head of the table and made myself a boss." Production on season one of Tracey Takes On... began in Los Angeles in 1995. Characters created for her previous two HBO comedy specials were carried over for the series: gay airline steward Trevor Ayliss, British Conservative MP wife Virginia Bugge, British magazine editor Janie Pillsworth, Long Island housewife Fern Rosenthal, and faded Hollywood actress Linda Granger. Ullman was thrilled with the artistic freedom working in cable television allotted her, specifically HBO. "If we did the story line with me and [Julie Kavner] as gay golfers on network TV, Johnson & Johnson would pull their advertising, then there'd be a big piece in USA Today, and it would be a headache. HBO let us have fun with it, and when Julie and I come out at the end, it's in the most wonderful way. Our Romance show may be a bit sappy, but it's more of a battle theme, something that will get people talking." Production on Tracey Takes On... began each year in February with a staff retreat. Three months would then be spent writing the scripts. Pre-production would follow in