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3 articles from 2007

14 November 2007 | From Studio Briefing | See recent Studio Briefing news

In advance of a special to air on the nostalgia channel TV Land, the channel and Entertainment Weekly have issued a list of the 50 greatest TV "icons" of all time. The list is headed by Johnny Carson, with Lucille Ball listed in second place. But it is heavily weighted in favor of personalities from the '70s on. For example, while it lists Barbara Walters at No. 23, it makes no mention of Edward R. Murrow (or Mike Wallace, Chet Huntley, David Brinkley or Walters' ABC colleague Diane Sawyer, for that matter.) Jerry Seinfeld, Bea Arthur, Jon Stewart and Flip Wilson make the list at Nos. 8, 38, 41, and 43 respectively, but not Jack Benny, Burns and Allen, or Red Skelton. While Kermit the Frog takes 21st place, Howdy Doody is passed over. And while Regis Philbin ranks 27th, Dave Garroway and Steve Allen are ignored.

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1 May 2007 | From wenn.com | See recent WENN news

Tom Poston, the Emmy award-winning actor who played comic sidekicks to a number of TV stars, most notably Bob Newhart, Robin Williams, and Steve Allen, died Monday night at his home in Los Angeles; he was 85. Poston, who was married to actress Suzanne Pleshette, passed away after a brief illness, the nature of which was not initially disclosed. Before venturing into television, Poston made his Broadway debut in 1947 in the acclaimed production of Cyrano de Bergerac starring Jose Ferrer, and assayed a number of dramatic roles onstage. In the mid-1950s he was selected by Steve Allen to appear as a recurring character in a number of man-on-the-street comic sketches on The Steve Allen Show, and he won an Emmy for the part in 1959. Poston worked almost exclusively in television throughout his career, occasionally taking the small film role, and appeared on Get Smart and The Bob Newhart Show, among other sitcoms. In the late 1970s he played the cantankerous neighbor to Robin Williams on the hit show Mork and Mindy, and in the '80s had arguably his most famous role, that of handyman George Utley on Bob Newhart's second sitcom, Newhart, a part which earned him three Emmy nominations. Poston guest starred on a wide variety of sitcoms and dramas, among them ER, Dharma & Greg, The Ellen Show, Becker, Will & Grace, That 70s Show and most recently the Disney show The Suite Life of Zack and Cody. Poston was married twice before he tied the knot in 2001 with Suzanne Pleshette, whom he first met in 1959 on Broadway and worked with on The Bob Newhart Show. He is survived by Pleshette and three children from his previous marriages. -Mark Englehart, IMDb staff

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16 January 2007 | From wenn.com | See recent WENN news

Steve Krantz, who produced the X-rated animated movie Fritz The Cat and created successful TV mini-series out of wife Judith Krantz's romance novels, has died. He was 83. Krantz died of complications from pneumonia on January 4 in Los Angeles. During his TV career, he wrote for Milton Berle and Arthur Godfrey and helped create several comedies, including Dennis The Menace and Bewitched as head of creative development at Columbia Pictures Television. He was also executive producer for Steve Allen's The Tonight Show. Krantz later turned to feature films such as Fritz the Cat, based on the Robert Crumb underground comic and Cooley High, about black high school students in the 1960s. In the 1980s and 1990s, he produced mini-series based on his wife's steamy novels, including Scruples, Mistral's Daughter and Dazzle. After his retirement, Krantz was involved with mental-heath counseling and former California Governor Pete Wilson appointed him to the board of the California Mental Health Council.

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3 articles from 2007