Gary Thomas Smalley (September 16, 1940 – March 6, 2016) was an American family counselor, president and founder of the Smalley Relationship Center and author of books on family relationships from a Christian perspective. Among other issues, he taught about the
four temperaments in a format based on well known animals, the otter, lion, golden retriever, and beaver.
Biography
In 1979, Gary and Norma Smalley started an organization focused on helping families. After the formation of a board, they launched the CMI organization out of
Waco, Texas. A few years later they moved to
Phoenix, Arizona
Phoenix ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of cities and towns in Arizona#List of cities and towns, most populous city of the U.S. state of Arizona. With over 1.6 million residents at the 2020 census, it is the ...
. Gary co-authored two books with Steve Scott during that time titled, ''If Only He Knew'' and ''For Better or For Best''. In 1985 the organization was renamed ''Today's Family''.
In 1988, Gary partnered with American Telecast's Steve Scott and they launched a nationwide infomercial with
Dick Clark
Richard Wagstaff Clark (November 30, 1929April 18, 2012) was an American television and radio personality and television producer who hosted ''American Bandstand'' from 1956 to 1989. He also hosted five incarnations of the Pyramid (game show), ...
as the host of a half-hour television program. That infomercial was re-introduced in 1990 and 1992 through
John Tesh and
Connie Sellecca and then Frank and
Kathie Lee Gifford.
''The Blessing'' and ''The Two Sides of Love'' won the Gold Medallion Award for excellence in literature. ''The Language of Love'' won the Angel Award as the best contribution to family life.
Gary Smalley appeared on national televisions programs such as "
The Oprah Winfrey Show", "
Larry King Live
''Larry King Live'' is an American television talk show broadcast by CNN from June 3, 1985 to December 16, 2010. Hosted by Larry King, it was the network's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly.
Ma ...
", "
Extra", "
NBC Today Show
''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'') is an American breakfast television, morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It was the first of its genre o ...
" as well as numerous national radio programs.
Smalley and his wife, Norma, lived in
Branson, Missouri. They have one daughter and two sons. Gary Smalley died on March 6, 2016.
In 2019, Smalley's grandson
Michael Gibson published a book with
FaithWords called ''Real Life Love: Saying Goodbye to the Fairytale and Hello to True Relationships'' based on the insights he gleaned from his famous grandfather.
Bibliography
*''The DNA of Relationships''
*''Change Your Heart, Change Your Life''
References
External links
The Smalley family website
*Freedom Begins Here featuring Dr. Gary Smalley
{{DEFAULTSORT:Smalley, Gary
1940 births
2016 deaths
People from Boise, Idaho
Writers from Idaho
American Christian writers
Promise Keepers