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It’s estimated that Norman Lear is worth $200 million as a television writer and producer. “All in the Family,” “Sanford and Son,” “One Day at a Time,” and “Good Times” were all created by Norman Lear, who is credited with several of the most popular sitcoms of the 1970s. Aside from that, he’s a well-known political activist who’s given generously to progressive causes and candidates. Founded in 1980, People for the American Way is an anti-conservative Christian group that advocates for liberal values.
Table of Contents
Early Life and Career Beginnings
In New Haven, Connecticut, Norman Lear was born in 1922 to a Jewish family. A traveling salesman, Hyman’s mother was Jeanette, and he was raised by his father. A younger sister named Claire was his only family member. Lear’s father was imprisoned for selling fraudulent bonds, and he met Father Charles Coughlin, an anti-Semitic Catholic radio priest while tinkering with his radio.
Archie Bunker was inspired by the earlier occurrence, while Lear was inspired by the latter episode, both of which shaped his lifetime devotion to advocacy. After graduating from Hartford, Connecticut’s Weaver High School in 1940, Lear attended Emerson College in Boston, Massachusetts. However, he dropped out in 1942 and enlisted in the US Air Force. He performed 52 missions while serving as a radio operator and gunner in the Mediterranean theatre and was awarded the Air Medal for his efforts.
Soon after the war, Lear went to work in public relations and finally ended up in Los Angeles, where he met his cousin Elaine and eventually settled down there as well. Lear worked door-to-door with Elaine Simmons’ husband, aspiring comedian Ed Simmons. The two collaborated on several comedic projects in the 1950s, including Rowan and Martin and Martin and Lewis. To write for three Martin and Lewis comedy specials, Norman and Ed were paid a record-breaking $52,000 each in 1953 (equivalent to $500,000 in today’s dollars).
He joined the new CBS sitcom “Honestly, Celeste!” in 1954 as a writer but the show was canceled soon after. Additionally, Lear produced the short-lived sitcom “Martha Raye Show” and penned some opening monologues for “The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show” during this period. A year later, in 1959, he produced his first television series, “The Deputy,” which starred Henry Fonda in a western role.
Norman Lear has built an incredible legacy in the entertainment industry! The producer is celebrating his 100th birthday today.https://t.co/p7Rfdsf4iz
— Closer Weekly (@closerweekly) July 27, 2022
Norman Lear
| Net Worth: | $200 Million |
| Date of Birth: | Jul 27, 1922 (99 years old) |
| Gender: | Male |
| Profession: | Screenwriter, Film Producer, Television producer, Television Director, Actor, Political activist |
| Nationality: | United States of America |
Personal Life
In 1999, President Bill Clinton presented him with the National Medal of Arts. In 2001, he paid $8.1 million for one of the original copies of the Declaration of Independence. It was in 1981 that Norman Lear founded People for the American Way, an anti-poverty organization. In 2004, he founded Declare Yourself, a nonpartisan non-profit, and BornAgainAmerican.org, a non-partisan non-profit, in 2009. According to some, Lear was instrumental in increasing the number of African-Americans working on television. The Kennedy Center Honors recognized Lear in 2017.
He has six children from three marriages and three divorces. During his first marriage, which lasted from 1944 to 1956 with Charlotte Rosen, The years 1956-1986 were spent together as husband and wife as he married Frances Loeb a second time. Since 1987, he and Lyn Davis have been married.
Television in the 1970s
He tried to market an idea for an ABC sitcom about a blue-collar family after writing and producing “Divorce American Style” in 1967 and directing “Cold Turkey” in 1971. After two pilot episodes, the network rejected the show; CBS took up the show, titled “All in the Family,” after a third pilot episode.
Despite its low ratings when it premiered in 1971, the show won several Emmys, including the Outstanding Comedy Series. Summer reruns boosted ratings, and by the following season, the show had taken off. All in the Family was the most-watched show on television for a decade, from 1972 to 1977. After the original series ended in 1979, “Archie Bunker’s Place” was created as a spin-off.
Throughout the 1970s, Lear had a string of successful sitcoms. Sanford and Son,” portraying an African-American working-class family in Los Angeles’ Watts district, was on NBC; “Maude,” a spinoff of “All in the Family,” was on CBS; and “The Jeffersons,” a spinoff of “Maude.”
Another long-running sitcom in the history of U.S. television, The Jeffersons ran from 1975 until 1985. The spin-off series “Good Times” and “One Day at a Time” were both developed by Lear. “Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman” was first rejected by the networks because it was thought too controversial. In addition to these shows, Lear co-founded T.A.T. Communications, one of the most successful independent television producers of the 1970s, with talent agency Jerry Perenchio.
A career in the 80s
A 14-month run of “Quiz Kids,” a famous game show from the 1940s, was hosted by Lear in 1981. His “I Love Liberty” television show, which aired the next year, was intended to take on right-wing organizations. He founded Act III Communications in 1986, which produced multiple films, including Rob Reiner’s The Sure Thing, Stand By Me, and The Princess Bride, among many others.
A career in the 1990s and Beyond
When Lear returned to television production in the 1990s, he made three sitcoms that were neither critically acclaimed nor commercially successful: Sunday Dinner, The Powers That Be, and 704 Hauser. Channel Umptee-3″ was created by Lear and Jim George in 1997 as a Saturday morning cartoon for children. Despite favorable reviews, the show was canceled after only one season due to poor viewership.
In his senior years, Lear has remained active in the media. “One Day at a Time” was reimagined by him as executive producer for Netflix in 2017. “All of the Above with Norman Lear” was also started that year.
Political Activism
For many years, Lear has been an outspoken supporter of liberal causes. In the 1970s and 1980s, he was a member of the “Malibu Mafia,” a group of affluent Jewish men dedicated to supporting progressive causes and politicians. People for the American Way, Lear’s anti-Christian right lobbying group, was created in 1981. Against Reagan’s wishes, the group was able to derail his 1987 Supreme Court nominee of Robert Bork.
The following year, in 1989, Lear launched the Industry Enterprise Trust, an educational program highlighting social advances in American business. When he donated an endowment to the University of Southern California in 2000, he called it the Normal Lear Center. One of Lear’s many contributions was the non-profit campaign Declare Yourself, which aims to get young people in the United States to join up to vote.
Embassy Pictures and Coca-Cola Sale
Avco Embassy Pictures was purchased by Lear and Jerry Perenchio in 1982. For $485 million in Coca-Cola stock, Columbia Pictures bought it in 1985. The pre-tax inflation-adjusted value of $600 million each was received by Norman and Lear from the sale.
At Act III Communications, created by Norman Lear in 1986, he produced movies like The Sure Thing and Stand By Me.
Divorce Settlement
After a 28-year marriage, Norman and his second wife Frances filed for divorce in 1985. With today’s exchange rates, Norman was compelled to pay Francis a staggering $112 million divorce settlement. Lear’s, a magazine for women over the age of 45, was launched by Frances with $30 million of her settlement money (approximately $70 million with inflation). Within six years, the magazine was out of business.
Norman Lear’s Real Estate
Norm and Lyn spent $6.5 million in 1995 to buy a huge mansion in Los Angeles’ Brentwood district. A 14,000-square-foot main house, a guest house, a pool, a gym, a spa, tennis courts, security offices, and a 35-car garage are all located on the 8-acre site. In 2015, he put it on the market for $55 million. This time he put the house up for sale in November 2019 for a little less than $40 million.
For $10.2 million in 2008, Norman and Lyn purchased a two-bedroom condo near Central Park in New York City.
It was in 2001 when Lear and his wife paid $8.1 million for a first-edition copy of the United States Declaration of Independence. After that, Lear took the paper on an organized tour of the country, visiting presidential libraries and museums, as well as the Winter Olympics and Super Bowl, to spread awareness of the document.
Conclusion
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