Samuel Denoff (July 1, 1928 – July 8, 2011) was an American

screenwriter A screenwriter (also called scriptwriter, scribe, or scenarist) is a person who practices the craft of writing for visual mass media, known as screenwriting. These can include short films, feature-length films, television programs, television ...

and

television producer A television producer is a person who oversees one or more aspects of a television show, television program. Some producers take more of an executive role, in that they conceive new programs and pitch them to the television networks, but upon acce ...

Biography

Denoff was born to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family in

Brooklyn, New York Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, the son of Esther (Rothbard) and Harry Denoff, a salesman. With his long-time collaborator Bill Persky he wrote and created the television show '' That Girl'' starring

Marlo Thomas Margaret Julia "Marlo" Thomas (born November 21, 1937) is an American actress, producer, author, and social activist. She is best known for starring on the sitcom ''That Girl'' (1966–1971) and her Children's television series, children's franc ...

. Their writing collaboration on episodes of '' The Dick Van Dyke Show'' resulted in some of the show's most popular episodes. Denoff also wrote for the 1976

Danny Thomas Amos Muzyad Yaqoob Kairouz, (born January 6, 1912 – February 6, 1991) known professionally as Danny Thomas, was an American comedian, actor, singer, producer, and philanthropist. He created and starred in ''The Danny Thomas Show''. In additio ...

situation comedy 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 character (arts), characters as they navigate humorous situations within a consistent settin ...

The Practice ''The Practice'' is an American legal drama television series created by David E. Kelley centering on partners and associates at a Boston law firm. The show ran for eight seasons on ABC, from March 4, 1997, to May 16, 2004. It won an Emmy i ...

''.

Personal life

Denoff married twice. His first wife was Bernice Levey; they had two children, Leslie Denoff and producer Douglas Denoff. His second wife was dancer Sharon Shore with whom he had two children, Melissa Denoff and Matthew Denoff. Denoff died from complications of

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disease and the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in remembering recent events. As the disease advances, symptoms can include problems wit ...

at his home in the Brentwood section of Los Angeles, at the age of 83.

References

External links

*
Sam Denoff
interview at the Archive of American Television
Find a Grave
{{DEFAULTSORT:Denoff, Sam American male screenwriters Jewish American screenwriters American television producers American television people Primetime Emmy Award winners 1928 births 2011 deaths 21st-century American Jews Burials at Eden Memorial Park Cemetery