Tina Fey Talks Aaron Sorkin And '30 Rock' Beginnings

With Tina Fey busy filming the final season of "30 Rock" and Aaron Sorkin getting ready for Season 2 of "The Newsroom," it's hard to believe the successful TV writers were considered rivals in the early "30 Rock" days.

In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, Fey opened up getting a call from then Entertainment President of NBC Kevin Reilly to tell her that Sorkin's "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip" had been picked up instead of "30 Rock."

"Kevin Reilly called me and [Lorne Michaels] and said, 'I just want you to know from me before you hear it elsewhere that we're buying this other show because we can't not, it's going to be such a big hit, and it's Aaaron Sorkin, and we had to fight for it in a bidding war,'" Fey said. "It was kind of thrilling to be the underdog and to have this imaginary nemesis."

But "30 Rock" was picked up shortly afterward and "Studio 60" only lasted for one season.

"[The "Studio 60"] actors, the few that I've met since then, are so nice," Fey continued. "And Aaron Sorkin came and did a cameo on our show [later]."

Years later, Sorkin is facing a great deal of criticism for "The Newsroom," but he insists he doesn't see it as a bad thing.

"Anytime that people are talking this much about a television show, it's good for television ... good for people who watch television and good for people who work in television," he pointed out at the Television Critics Association Summer Press tour.

The final season of "30 Rock" premieres on Thurs., Oct. 4 at 8 p.m. ET on NBC.