Richard Baer (April 28, 1928 – February 22, 2008) was an American writer and screenwriter. Baer wrote for more than 56 television shows, many of which were
sitcoms
A sitcom (short for situation comedy or situational comedy) is a genre of comedy produced for radio and television, that centers on a recurring cast of characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent setting, such as a home ...
, throughout his career, including ''
The Munsters
''The Munsters'' is an American sitcom about the home life of a family of benign monsters that aired from 1964 to 1966 on CBS. The series stars Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster (Frankenstein's monster),Episodes referring to the fact that Herman is ...
'', ''
Leave It to Beaver
''Leave It to Beaver'' is an American television sitcom that follows the misadventures of a suburban boy, his family and his friends. It starred Barbara Billingsley, Hugh Beaumont, Tony Dow and Jerry Mathers.
CBS first broadcast the show ...
'' and ''
Bewitched
''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typi ...
''.
Early life
Richard Baer was born in New York City in 1928. He was the only child of Herbert Baer and Ede Sarnoff.
[ He earned his bachelor's degree in psychology from ]Yale University
Yale University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. Founded in 1701, Yale is the List of Colonial Colleges, third-oldest institution of higher education in the United Stat ...
and his master's degree in cinema from the University of Southern California
The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...
.[
]
Career
Baer's maternal uncle was David Sarnoff
David Sarnoff (February 27, 1891 – December 12, 1971) was a Russian and American businessman who played an important role in the American history of radio and television. He led the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) for most of his career in ...
, a broadcasting pioneer who headed the RCA
RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded in 1919 as the Radio Corporation of America. It was initially a patent pool, patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Westinghou ...
company.[ Sarnoff is credited with beginning Baer's career and forming his interest in television.][ According to Baer's 2005 autobiography, Sarnoff called a vice president at ]NBC
The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
at 6 a.m. and ordered him to find Baer "a job by 9 o'clock" that same morning.[ The vice president obliged. Baer was hired in 1953 for his first job in television as an assistant for the ]William Bendix
William Bendix (January 14, 1906 – December 14, 1964) was an American film, radio, and television actor, known for his portrayals of rough, blue-collar characters. He gained significant recognition for his role in ''Wake Island'', for wh ...
sitcom ''The Life of Riley
''The Life of Riley'' is an American radio situation comedy series of the 1940s that was adapted into a 1949 feature film, as well as two different television series, and a comic book.
Radio series
The radio program initially aired on the B ...
'', which aired on the NBC network.[ He later wrote several episodes for the show.][
Baer wrote the script for the film '' Life Begins at 17'' for ]Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc., Trade name, doing business as Columbia Pictures, is an American film Production company, production and Film distributor, distribution company that is the flagship unit of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group ...
in 1958.[
Baer began writing for '']Hennesey
''Hennesey'' is an American military comedy-drama television series that aired on CBS from 1959 to 1962, starring Jackie Cooper and Abby Dalton.
Cooper played a United States Navy physician, Lt. Charles W. "Chick" Hennesey, with Abby Dalto ...
'', which starred actor Jackie Cooper
John Cooper Jr. (September 15, 1922 – May 3, 2011) was an American actor and director. He began his career performing in film as a child, and successfully transitioned to adult roles and directing in both film and television. At age nine, h ...
, in 1960.[ Baer wrote scripts for a total of 38 episodes for the series.][ His work on ''Hennesey'' earned him an ]Emmy
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award catego ...
nomination.[
In the twenty five years that followed 1960, Baer wrote for over 56 separate television shows.][ This included ten episodes of the television classics '']That Girl
''That Girl'' is an American television sitcom that ran on ABC from September 8, 1966, to March 19, 1971. It starred Marlo Thomas as the title character, Ann Marie, an aspiring (but only sporadically employed) actress who moves from her hometo ...
'', twenty-three of ''Bewitched
''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typi ...
'',[ and five of '']The Munsters
''The Munsters'' is an American sitcom about the home life of a family of benign monsters that aired from 1964 to 1966 on CBS. The series stars Fred Gwynne as Herman Munster (Frankenstein's monster),Episodes referring to the fact that Herman is ...
''.[ His favorite episode of ''The Musters'' which he personally penned was '']Just Another Pretty Face
The following is an episode list for the CBS sitcom ''The Munsters''. The series began broadcast on September 24, 1964, and ended on May 12, 1966.
''Munster, Go Home!'' was a feature-length theatrical film released on June 15, 1966. A made-for ...
''.[ In the episode, the character ]Herman Munster
Herman Munster is a fictional character in the CBS sitcom ''The Munsters'', originally played by Fred Gwynne. The patriarch of the Munster household, Herman is one of Frankenstein’s monsters, created in a lab in Germany in the nineteenth ce ...
is struck by lightning
Lightning is a natural phenomenon consisting of electrostatic discharges occurring through the atmosphere between two electrically charged regions. One or both regions are within the atmosphere, with the second region sometimes occurring on ...
, which changes his face into that of a normal human being.[ The Munsters are shocked by how ugly they think Herman has become.][ His other sitcom credits included '']The Andy Griffith Show
''The Andy Griffith Show '' is an American sitcom television series that was aired on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968, with a total of 249 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons—159 in black and white and 90 in color.
The series ...
'', ''F Troop
''F Troop'' is a satirical American television Western sitcom about U.S. soldiers and American Indians in the Wild West during the 1860s. The series originally aired for two seasons on ABC. It debuted in the United States on September 14, 1965 ...
'' and ''Petticoat Junction
''Petticoat Junction'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from September 1963 to April 1970. The series takes place at the Shady Rest Hotel, which is run by Kate Bradley; her three daughters Billie Jo, Bobbie Jo, an ...
''.[
Baer began working on television movies later in his career. His writing credits included the 1972 ]ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting
* Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...
comedic television movie ''Playmates
Playmates or Playmate may refer to:
* ''Playboy'' Playmate, a female model featured in the centerfold/gatefold of ''Playboy''
Film and television
* ''Playmates'' (1915 film), directed by Mauritz Stiller
* ''Playmates'' (1918 film), starring O ...
'', which starred Alan Alda
Alan Alda (; born Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo; January 28, 1936) is an American actor. A six-time Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award winner and a three-time Tony Award nominee, he is best known for playing Captain Benjamin Franklin "Hawkeye" Pier ...
and Doug McClure
Douglas Osborne McClure (May 11, 1935 – February 5, 1995) was an American actor whose career in film and television extended from the 1950s to the 1990s. He is best known for his role as the cowboy Trampas during the entire run from 1962 to 1 ...
as divorced single fathers.[ The ]Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...
called ''Playmates'' "spiced with biting wit" in its review of the movie.[ Baer also wrote the ]CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS (an abbreviation of its original name, Columbia Broadcasting System), is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainme ...
movie ''I Take These Men
I, or i, is the ninth letter and the third vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''i'' (pronounced ), plu ...
'', which aired in 1983.[
Baer's wrote his last television sitcom script for an episode of ABC's '']Who's the Boss?
''Who's the Boss?'' is an American sitcom television series created by Martin Cohan and Blake Hunter, that aired on ABC from September 20, 1984, to April 25, 1992, with a total of 196 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons. It was produce ...
'' in the 1980s. He then successfully tried his hand as a playwright. Baer's ''Mixed Emotions'', a romantic comedy
Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a sub-genre of comedy and Romance novel, romance fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount all obstacles. Ro ...
play about two widowed friends who start a romantic relationship during their later years, debuted in 1987.[ The play first opened in Los Angeles.][ Baer's play later debuted on ]Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
** Broadway Theatre (53rd Stre ...
in New York City in 1993 and ran for more than six weeks.[ ''Mixed Emotions'' was later performed in theaters worldwide, including Eastern Europe and Australia.][
Baer was an active member of the ]Writers Guild of America
The Writers Guild of America (WGA) is the name of two American labor unions representing writers in film, television, radio, and online media:
* The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) is headquartered in New York City and is affiliated wit ...
. He served on the WGA's negotiating committee during the 1988 Writers Guild of America strike
The 1988 Writers Guild of America strike was a strike action taken by members of both the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) and the Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) against major United States television and film studios represented by ...
.[
]
Personal life
Richard Baer died at St. John's Health Center in Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
, on February 22, 2008, at the age of 79. He had suffered a heart attack in January 2008.[ He was survived by his wife, Diane Asselin Baer, a television producer, whom he married in 1994,][ as well as his children, Josh, Matthew (who married Amy Bosley Baer, daughter of ]Tom Bosley
Thomas Edward Bosley (October 1, 1927 – October 19, 2010) was an American actor, television personality and entertainer. Bosley is best known for portraying Howard Cunningham (Happy Days character), Howard Cunningham on the American Broadcasti ...
), and Judy and three grandchildren.[ His first wife of 35 years, Louise Glenn, died in 1991.][
]
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baer, Richard
1928 births
2008 deaths
American male screenwriters
20th-century American dramatists and playwrights
Jewish American dramatists and playwrights
Yale College alumni
USC School of Cinematic Arts alumni
Writers Guild of America
American male television writers
American television writers
American male dramatists and playwrights
20th-century American male writers
20th-century American screenwriters
20th-century American Jews
21st-century American Jews