Tuesday was the day when the Emmy-winning actor passed away at his home in Los Angeles due to natural causes.
ET has verified that Norman Lear, a famed writer, producer, and television creator who won several Emmys and was responsible for the creation of countless classic comedies, including All in the Family, The Jeffersons, One Day at a Time, and Good Times, has passed away. He was 101 years old.
In a statement to ET, Lara Bergthold, a representative for the family, said that Lear passed away “after a lifetime of laughter” on Tuesday, at his home in Los Angeles, on account of natural causes. It has been decided to have a private service for the close family.
In memory of our beloved husband, father, and grandpa, we would like to express our gratitude for the heartfelt act of love and support that has been shown to us. When it came to his life, Norman exemplified innovation, persistence, and empathy. He was extremely devoted to our nation and devoted his whole life to working for the preservation of its foundational principles, which included fairness and equality for everyone. The most precious presents have been the opportunity to get to know and love him. The family of King Lear issued a statement in which they expressed their gratitude for the public’s compassion while they quietly mourned the loss of this amazing human being.
Lear has broken his own record by becoming the oldest Emmy winner in the history of the award in September of 2020. It was a long way from his early days in television that he left behind a legacy. From the time of his birth in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1922, Lear was not instantly lured to the dazzling lights of Hollywood. His mother was a stay-at-home mother, and his father was a convicted felon who had served three years in jail for fraud.
During World War II, he enlisted in the Army and eventually became a door-to-door salesperson and publicist. In the early 1950s, he started writing humor with Ed Simmons, who was his cousin’s husband. Prior to that, he had completed his education and joined the military. While working together as business partners, Lear and Simmons contributed sketches to The Colgate Comedy Hour and The Martin and Lewis Show. These routines were performed by the comedy combo Jerry Lee Lewis and Dean Martin. Lear was contracted to write for the floundering comedy Honestly, Celeste! in 1954, but the series was terminated after just eight episodes. Despite Lear’s attempts, the show was ultimately canceled.
After that, Lear went on to become a producer for the variety show The Martha Rye Show and worked as a writer for The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show. Towards the end of the 1950s, Lear debuted his first television series, which was titled The Deputy and starred Henry Fonda. This Western-themed television show ran for a total of two seasons.
A number of television specials and scripts were written by Lear during the decade of the 1960s. These included The Danny Kaye Special, Three to Get Ready, and Justice for All. Justice for All was a pilot that was never shown in 1968 and starred Carroll O’Connor. It was eventually renamed All in the Family throughout the 1960s. This led to Lear being nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in the 1967 comedy Divorce American Style.
The year 1972 saw the launch of Sanford and Son, another of Lear’s breakthrough successful television programs. The British comedy Steptoe and Son served as the source of inspiration for the half-hour sitcom that ran for a total of six seasons and was presided over by comedians Red Foxx and Desmond Wilson. Lear’s adaptation had a cast that was mostly black and was set in Watts, California, in contrast to the original series, which focused on a trash merchant in London and his kid.
Lear, who produced a number of great television programs throughout the 1970s, including Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman, and Fernwood, can confidently state that the decade was a prosperous and fruitful one for him. Maude and The Jeffersons, as well as Tonight, One Day at a Time, Good Times, and What’s Happening!!, are also examples of spinoffs that sprang from the television show All in the Family. Other film credits include the fact that Lear was the writer and executive producer of the picture The Little Rascals, which was released in 1977.
First broadcast in 1971, All in the Family went on to screen for a total of nine seasons. In the United Kingdom, the comedy was adapted from the serial Till passing. Lear’s parents served as a source of inspiration for the characters of the Emmy-winning comedy, Archie Bunker (played by O’Connor) and Edith Bunker (played by Jean Stapleton), respectively. Concurrently, The Jeffersons, a comedy that starred Sherman Helmsley and Isabel Sanford, had its premiere in 1975 and continued to broadcast for a total of eleven seasons, making it one of the longest-running comedies in the history of television. Two Emmys were awarded to the series, with Sanford being the first Black actress to win an Emmy for Best Actress in a Comedy Series. The series had fourteen nominations for the Emmys, but only two of them were taken home.
They were innovative multi-camera programs that were filmed in front of a live studio audience and explored topics such as racism and religion, politics, and women’s rights. Lear and his old business partner, Bud Yorkin, were responsible for the creation, writing, and production of these comedies. Following the conclusion of his relationship with Yorkin in the middle of the 1970s, Lear established the production business T.A.T. Communications in collaboration with the talent agency Jerry Perenchio. In 1986, he established Act III Communications.
In addition to covering the television landscape, Lear’s Act III Communications was responsible for the distribution of cult masterpieces from the 1980s such as Fried Green Tomatoes, Stand By Me, and The Princess Bride. In spite of the fact that Lear had a number of successful programs in the 1970s and early 1980s, the spark continued to simmer for the subsequent twenty years. Lear continued to executive produce a number of documentaries, short films, and television movies, despite the fact that he created and produced a number of series, including 704 Hauser, Sunday Dinner, a.k.a. Pablo, and a number of other shows. However, none of these shows even came close to reaching the same level of success as some of Lear’s previous endeavors.
It was because of Lear’s tireless efforts that he was elected into the Television Hall of Fame in the very first year! In addition to receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, he was also honored with a Peabody Award, several Emmys, a nomination for an Academy Award, and the National Medal of Arts. During the year 2017, Lear was one of the individuals that received honors from the Kennedy Center Honors. Moreover, Lear was involved in political activities. In addition to being noted for his outspoken remarks about political issues, he was the founder of the activist group People for the American Way. It was because of his efforts that President Nixon included him on his “Enemies List.”
In addition to establishing one of the most prosperous careers in Hollywood, King Lear had three marriages. His first marriage was to Charlotte Rosen, which lasted from 1943 to 1956. Lear’s firstborn child, Ellen, was born as a result of the marriage. Following the end of his relationship with Rosen, Norman Lear wed Francis Loeb, a writer and editor. In 1956, the pair tied the knot, and in 1983, they divorced. They had two daughters, Kate and Maggie, during their marriage. Following the conclusion of their divorce proceedings three years later, Francis was awarded a staggering sum of $112 million as a settlement. The marriage between Lear and his third wife, Lyn Davis, took place in 1987. Together, they have three children: a boy named Benjamin, as well as twin girls named Madeline and Brianna.
With the release of the Netflix comedy One Day at a Time in 2017, Lear entered the world of streaming media as an executive producer. The show is a reimagining of his previous sitcom, and it has a Latino cast. One Day at a Time was canceled by Netflix in 2019, however Pop TV has revived the show as a result of the support it received from its audience. In 2019, Lear and his production business worked along with Jimmy Kimmel to reimagine live versions of several television shows, including All in the Family and The Jeffersons. Woody Harrelson, Marissa Tomei, Jamie Foxx, Wanda Sykes, Will Ferrell, and Kerry Washington were among the stars of the one-night-only television spectacle that topped the ratings with a combined total of 15 million people during its original telecast.
Lear is quoted as saying, “Clearly, there is still a large demand for multi-cam comedy on subjects that we care about deeply,” in reference to the ratings achievement.
At the 78th Annual Golden Globe Awards, which took place in 2021, Lear received the exceptional Carol Burnett Award for television for the third time in its history.
Lear, who was practically there, graciously and charmingly received the prize after an introduction that was delivered by Wanda Sykes and highlighted his contributions to the television landscape.
“To accept an award, this award, in the name of Carol Burnett, I could not feel more blessed,” Lear said. “I am convinced that laughter adds time to one’s life, and nobody has made me laugh harder, there’s no one I owe more time to than Carol Burnett.”
“I’ve had a lifetime of partners, performers, associations and creative talents for which I am eternally grateful,” according to him. “There would be an entirely different Norman Lear here with you tonight it if were not for those years of Ed Simmons and Norman Lear that were responsible for the Dean Martin and Jerry Lewis Colgate Comedy Hour… that would be true for every step of my career.”
Then, Lear went on to identify and express his gratitude to a large number of his former and current colleagues, including Brent Miller, who were all “major parts of my life and career that brought me to this very moment.”
In the end, Lear expressed his gratitude to his family by saying, “At the age of nearly 99, I’ve never lived alone, and I’ve never laughed alone, and that has as much to do with my being here today as anything else I know.”
In addition, I would want to express my gratitude and blessings to you, Carol Burnett, for all the happiness, surprise, excitement, and laughter that you have brought into my life. “As I think about you and laughter and the joy of parallel careers, I am so glad that we had this time together,” Lear ended, pulling on his ear as a nod to Burnett’s famous gesture, which she has employed over the years as a subtle but iconic approach to communicate with her grandmother.
Despite the fact that he was far into his nonagenarian years, Lear never let his age to slow him down and continued to work frequently. In an interview with Entertainment Tonight (ET), Lear discussed the topic of overcoming age presumptions on an episode of his Podcast One program. The show included Jane Fonda and Lily Tomlin as guests.
“The cultural expectation is all wrong about aging,” he commented on. According to the speaker, “It is all about pains and aches, and it isn’t enough about expectations and tomorrows, and excitement for this and for that, and the other thing.” It has nothing to do with having a life. It is about passing away.”
His wife, Lyn Davis Lear, his six children, Ellen Lear, Kate Lear, Maggie Lear, Ben Lear, Madeline Lear, and Brianna Lear, as well as his four grandkids, Daniel, Noah, Griffin, and Zoe, are among those who are able to carry on his legacy.
As an alternative of sending flowers or gifts, Lear asked that donations be donated to the organization People For the American Way. At this time, his family has begged that they be given privacy.