Norman Lear: Creator of All in the Family and TV Comedy Pioneer Dies at

Norman Lear was an American writer and producer who revolutionized television comedy in the 1970s with shows that tackled race, politics and class. Born on July 27, 1922, in New Haven, Connecticut, he flew 52 combat missions as a B-17 radio operator and gunner in World War II.

Lear created or produced All in the Family (1971-1979), which was the top-rated show in the United States for five years, along with Maude, Sanford and Son, Good Times, The Jeffersons and One Day at a Time. He won six Primetime Emmys and two Peabody Awards, and the Television Academy Hall of Fame inducted him in 1984.

Lear received the National Medal of Arts in 1999 and the Kennedy Center Honors in 2017. He founded the advocacy group People for the American Way. He was married three times, most recently to Lyn Davis from 1987, and had six children. He died of heart failure at his home in Los Angeles on December 5, 2023, at age 101.

Achievements: All in the Family (1971), six Emmy Awards, two Peabody Awards, National Medal of Arts (1999), Kennedy Center Honors (2017).

Birth: July 27, 1922 - New Haven, Connecticut.

Profession: Television writer and producer.

Interesting Facts: He founded People for the American Way in 1981. He left Emerson College in 1942 to enlist.