Famed television producer Norman Lear, whose wildly successful television sitcoms, including "All in the Family" and "The Jeffersons," combined comedy with sharp social commentary and dominated television ratings in the 1970s, has died at his home in Los Angeles, 101, his family said.
"Norman lived a life filled with curiosity, tenacity and empathy. He loved our country deeply and throughout his life helped preserve its founding ideals of justice and equality for all," his family said, CNN reported.
"He began his career in the early days of live television and found his passion for writing about the real lives of Americans, not some shiny ideal. At first his ideas were met with closed doors and misunderstanding. However, he stuck to his conviction "that the stupidity of the human condition makes television great, and it was finally heard."
Starting with "All in the Family" in 1971, Lear's shows touched on painful topics of racism, feminism and social inequality that no one had dared to touch before. The series, which won an Emmy for Outstanding New Series, centers on the white working-class Bunker family and its petty, brooding, prejudiced and strangely likable patriarch Archie Bunker.
The hit series spurred a string of equally popular and political spinoffs, including "Sanford and Son," "Maude" and "Good Times."
In his 2014 memoir, Even This I Get to Experience, Lear attributed the success of his shows to the stories drawn from the writers' real-life experiences, which lend authenticity to the characters they develop.
"Audiences themselves have taught me that you can get wonderful laughs on the surface with funny performers and good jokes," he writes, "But if you want them to laugh heartily, you have a better chance if you can get them to think first." ."
He executive produced the cult classics Princess Bride and Fried Green Tomatoes and was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Screenplay for Divorce American Style. His political propaganda led to the creation of the liberal political organization People for an American Way.
Even at 90, Lear continued to work. Along with Jimmy Kimmel, Lear, 95, produced and hosted three episodes of Live in Front of a Studio Audience, which won Primetime Emmy Awards in 2019 and 2020. The series uses current stars such as Jamie Foxx, Woody Harrelson and Viola Davis to recreate original episodes of "The Jeffersons," "All in the Family" and "Good Times."
In recent years, Lear and his business partner Brent Miller have rebooted some of their hit 1970s sitcoms, including "One Day at a Time." /BGNES
