Robert Achille Schiller (November 8, 1918 – October 10, 2017) was an American screenwriter. He worked extensively with fellow producer/screenwriter

Bob Weiskopf Bob Weiskopf (March 13, 1914 – February 20, 2001) was an American screenwriter and producer for television. He has credits for '' I Love Lucy'' which he and his writing partner Bob Schiller joined in the fifth season. They also wrote for ''The ...

on numerous television shows in the United States, including ''

I Love Lucy ''I Love Lucy'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes, spanning six seasons. The show starred Lucille Ball, her husband, Desi Arnaz, along wit ...

'' (1955–1957) and ''

All in the Family ''All in the Family'' is an American television sitcom that aired on CBS for nine seasons, from January 12, 1971, to April 8, 1979. Afterwards, it was continued with the spin-off series ''Archie Bunker's Place'', which picked up where ''All in ...

'' (1977–1979) on the

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

network. For the latter series, he received an Emmy Award in 1978 as one of the writers of the episode "

Cousin Liz "Cousin Liz" is an episode of the American television sitcom ''All in the Family''. The story concerns Edith Bunker's inheritance of a silver tea service from her deceased cousin Liz and her decision to let her lesbian lover keep the tea service ...

." His second wife was American politician, actress and attorney Sabrina Scharf.

Life and career

Schiller was born in San Francisco, California, the son of Lucille E. (Block) and Roland E. Schiller, a manufacturer. Schiller began writing for television in 1950. He starred on the 1955 CBS

sitcom A sitcom, a portmanteau of situation comedy, or situational comedy, is a genre of comedy centered on a fixed set of characters who mostly carry over from episode to episode. Sitcoms can be contrasted with sketch comedy, where a troupe may use ...

Professional Father A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and skil ...

'' That same year, he wrote for two competing series,

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

's ''

The Jimmy Durante Show ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

'' and CBS's ''

It's Always Jan ''It's Always Jan'' is an American situation comedy that aired on CBS during the 1955-1956 television season. The series stars Janis Paige as a widowed nightclub singer struggling to make ends meet. Synopsis Janis Stewart is a war widow and str ...

.'' During 1954–1955, Schiller was one of the writers for '' That's My Boy'', starring

Eddie Mayehoff Edward Mier Mayehoff (July 7, 1909 – November 12, 1992) was an American actor, perhaps best known for his role as Harold Lampson, the henpecked husband and incompetent lawyer in ''How to Murder Your Wife'' (1965). Mayehoff could also be s ...

and

Gil Stratton Gil Stratton Jr. (June 2, 1922 – October 11, 2008) was an actor and sportscaster who was born in Brooklyn, New York. He most recently resided in Toluca Lake, California, until his death from congestive heart failure. Early life Stratton was ...

. Schiller's producing credits include '' The Good Guys'' and '' All's Fair''. Schiller also penned radio scripts for such classic shows as ''

Duffy's Tavern ''Duffy's Tavern'' is an American radio situation comedy that ran for a decade on several networks ( CBS, 1941–42; NBC-Blue Network, 1942–44; and NBC, 1944–51), concluding with the December 28, 1951, broadcast. The program often featured ...

'', '' Abbott and Costello'', ''

The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet ''The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet'' is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC from October 3, 1952, to April 23, 1966, and starred the real-life Nelson family. After a long run on radio, the show was brought to television, where it ...

'', ''

The Mel Blanc Show ''The Mel Blanc Show'' was a radio situation comedy in the United States. It was broadcast on CBS from September 3, 1946 to June 24, 1947. Format Although Mel Blanc "did countless character impersonations on other radio programs, as well as bein ...

'', '' Sweeney and March'', ''

'', and ''

December Bride ''December Bride'' is an American sitcom that aired on the CBS television network from 1954 to 1959. It was adapted from the original CBS radio network series of the same name that aired from June 1952 through September 1953. Overview ''De ...

'', and then for TV stars such as

Danny Thomas Danny Thomas (born Amos Muzyad Yaqoob Kairouz; January 6, 1912 – February 6, 1991) was an American actor, singer, nightclub comedian, producer, and philanthropist. He created and starred in one of the most successful and long-running sitc ...

Ed Wynn Isaiah Edwin Leopold (November 9, 1886 – June 19, 1966), better known as Ed Wynn, was an American actor and comedian. He was noted for his ''Perfect Fool'' comedy character, his pioneering radio show of the 1930s, and his later career as a d ...

Garry Moore Garry Moore (born Thomas Garrison Morfit; January 31, 1915 – November 28, 1993) was an American entertainer, comedic personality, game show host, and humorist best known for his work in television. He began a long career with the CBS netwo ...

, and

Red Buttons Red Buttons (born Aaron Chwatt; February 5, 1919 – July 13, 2006) was an American actor and comedian. He won an Oscar and a Golden Globe for his supporting role in the 1957 film '' Sayonara''. He was nominated for awards for his acting work ...

Creative partnership with Bob Weiskopf

The creative partnership and friendship with

began in 1953. Weiskopf, also a comedy writer, had just relocated to Los Angeles from New York City. Schiller's first wife recommended a school to Weiskopf's wife, and also mentioned that Schiller was looking for a partner. The two writers first collaborated on a radio script for the ''

Our Miss Brooks ''Our Miss Brooks'' is an American sitcom starring Eve Arden as a sardonic high-school English teacher. It began as a radio show broadcast on CBS from 1948 to 1957. When the show was adapted to television (1952–56), it became one of the medi ...

'' show before delving into the new medium of network television. They wrote for popular 1950s shows such as ''

Make Room for Daddy ''The Danny Thomas Show'' (titled ''Make Room for Daddy'' for its first three seasons) is an American sitcom that ran from 1953 to 1957 on ABC and from 1957 to 1964 on CBS. Starring Danny Thomas as a successful night club entertainer, the show ...

'', ''

The Bob Cummings Show ''The Bob Cummings Show'' (also known in reruns as ''Love That Bob'') is an American sitcom starring Bob Cummings, which was broadcast from January 2, 1955, to September 15, 1959. The program began with a half-season run on NBC, then ran for tw ...

'', ''

'', the television adaptation of the popular radio series ''

My Favorite Husband ''My Favorite Husband'' is the name of an American radio program and network television series. The original radio show, starring Lucille Ball, evolved into the groundbreaking television sitcom '' I Love Lucy''. The series was based on the novels ...

'', ''

The Lucy-Desi Comedy Hour ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

'', ''

The Ann Sothern Show ''The Ann Sothern Show'' is an American sitcom starring Ann Sothern that aired on CBS for three seasons from October 6, 1958, to March 30, 1961. Created by Bob Schiller and Bob Weiskopf, the series was the second starring vehicle for Sothern, who ...

'' (which they co-created), and '' Pete and Gladys''. Further success would continue into the 1960s and 1970s with such series as ''

The Lucy Show ''The Lucy Show'' is an American sitcom that aired on CBS from 1962 to 1968. It was Lucille Ball's follow-up to '' I Love Lucy''. A significant change in cast and premise for the fourth season (1965–1966) divides the program into two distin ...

'', ''

The Red Skelton Show ''The Red Skelton Show'' is an American television comedy/variety show that aired from 1951 to 1971. In the decade prior to hosting the show, Richard "Red" Skelton had a successful career as a radio and motion pictures star. Although his televi ...

'', '' The Good Guys'' (where they were also co-producers), ''

The Phyllis Diller Show ''The Pruitts of Southampton'' is an American situation comedy that aired during the 1966-67 season on the ABC network. The show was based on the novel ''House Party'' (1954) by Patrick Dennis. It was ABC's attempt to turn female stand-up comi ...

'', ''

The Carol Burnett Show ''The Carol Burnett Show'' is an American variety/sketch comedy television show that originally ran on CBS from September 11, 1967, to March 29, 1978, for 279 episodes, and again with nine episodes in fall 1991. It starred Carol Burnett, Har ...

'', ''

The Flip Wilson Show ''The Flip Wilson Show'' is an hour-long variety show that originally aired in the US on NBC from September 17, 1970, to June 27, 1974. The show starred American comedian Flip Wilson; the program was one of the first American television programs ...

'', '' Maude'' (which they also co-produced), ''

'' and its spinoff series, '' Archie Bunker's Place''. Schiller and Weiskopf were honored with two Emmy Awards, a pair of Peabody Awards, a Golden Globe, and the Writers’ Guild of America's Paddy Chayefsky Laurel Award for Television Achievement."LucyLibrary Profile: Bob Schiller and Bob Weiskopf: ''I Love Lucy'' Writers," LucyLibrary.com article
, accessed July 7, 2013.

Personal life

Schiller's first wife Joyce Harris died in 1965. They had two children, including director

Tom Schiller Tom Schiller is an American writer best known for his eleven-year stint writing and directing short films for ''Saturday Night Live'' (following the show's original short film makers Albert Brooks and Gary Weis). His films, often featuring membe ...

. He was married to actress Sabrina Scharf (née Trentman) from May 25, 1968, until his death on October 10, 2017, in Pacific Palisades,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. They also had two children.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Schiller, Bob 1918 births 2017 deaths American male screenwriters American radio writers American television writers American male television writers People from Pacific Palisades, California Primetime Emmy Award winners Writers from San Francisco Screenwriters from California