{"id":128747,"date":"2019-11-05T08:59:32","date_gmt":"2019-11-05T16:59:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/lukeford.net\/blog\/?p=128747"},"modified":"2019-11-05T09:00:02","modified_gmt":"2019-11-05T17:00:02","slug":"nyt-al-burton-91-dies-sitcom-producer-with-an-eye-for-youth-culture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lukeford.net\/blog\/?p=128747","title":{"rendered":"NYT: Al Burton, 91, Dies; Sitcom Producer With an Eye for Youth Culture"},"content":{"rendered":"

From the New York Times<\/a>: <\/p>\n

Al Burton, a television producer who began his long career in 1949 with a show about teenagers in Los Angeles and later helped develop programs as diverse as \u201cMary Hartman, Mary Hartman\u201d and \u201cWin Ben Stein\u2019s Money,\u201d died on Oct. 22 at his home in San Mateo, Calif. He was 91.<\/p>\n

His daughter, Jennifer Werbe, confirmed the death.<\/p>\n

Over nearly 60 years, the upbeat Mr. Burton started the Miss Teenage America pageant; worked on sitcoms like \u201cThe Jeffersons\u201d and \u201cDiff\u2019rent Strokes\u201d for the producer Norman Lear; and was the executive producer of \u201cCharles in Charge,\u201d a comedy series starring Scott Baio.<\/p>\n

He began working with Mr. Lear in the late 1960s, booking dancers and musical acts for a variety special that he produced. A few years later, Mr. Burton pitched an idea for a half-hour comedy that Mr. Lear rejected. But, Mr. Burton recalled, Mr. Lear asked him to explore an idea that became \u201cMary Hartman,\u201d the soap-opera satire that was briefly a five-nights-a week sensation, starring Louise Lasser as a neurotic housewife.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe said, \u2018I want people who like soap operas to get addicted to it,\u2019\u201d Mr. Burton was quoted as saying in \u201cThe Producers: Profiles in Frustration\u201d (2004), by Luke Ford<\/a>. Mr. Burton explained that Mr. Lear had wanted people \u201cto call their friends after they see it and say, \u2018There\u2019s something here you\u2019ve got to see.\u2019\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

From the New York Times: Al Burton, a television producer who began his long career in 1949 with a show about teenagers in Los Angeles and later helped develop programs as diverse as \u201cMary Hartman, Mary Hartman\u201d and \u201cWin Ben … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[19],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-128747","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-hollywood"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t