Bud Yorkin

Alan David "Bud" Yorkin (February 22, 1926 – August 18, 2015) was an American film and television producer, director, screenwriter, and actor.

Biography

Yorkin was born in Washington, Pennsylvania, to Jewish parents. He earned a degree in engineering from Carnegie Tech, now Carnegie Mellon University, in Pittsburgh.

In 1954, Yorkin became the producer of NBC's ''The Tony Martin Show'', a 15-minute variety program which preceded the nightly news on Monday evenings. In 1955, he produced and directed the live 11-episode half-hour military comedy, ''The Soldiers'', starring Hal March, Tom D'Andrea, and John Dehner. In 1956, he became the producer and director of Tennessee Ernie Ford's NBC half-hour comedy/variety program, ''The Ford Show''.

In 1958, Yorkin joined writer/producer Norman Lear to form Tandem Productions, which produced several motion pictures and television specials in the 1960s to 1971 with such major studios like United Artists and Warner Bros. Yorkin directed and produced the 1958 TV special '' An Evening with Fred Astaire,'' which won nine Emmy Awards. He later produced many of the hit sitcoms of the 1970s, such as ''All in the Family'', '' Maude'', ''Good Times'', and ''Sanford and Son''.

After his split with Lear, Yorkin went on to form Bud Yorkin Productions. His first sitcom after the split was the unsuccessful ''Sanford and Son'' spin-off sitcom '' Grady''. In 1976, he formed TOY Productions with Saul Turteltaub and Bernie Orenstein (who produced ''Sanford and Son'' from 1974 to 1977) and their two hits were ''What's Happening!!'' and ''Carter Country''. TOY Productions was acquired by Columbia Pictures Television in 1979.

In 1963, Yorkin directed ''Come Blow Your Horn'', starring Frank Sinatra and Lee J. Cobb. Yorkin went on to direct and produce the film '' Start the Revolution Without Me'' starring Gene Wilder and Donald Sutherland in 1970 which has become a cult classic. He also directed the film '' Twice in a Lifetime'' in 1985, starring Gene Hackman.

In 1999, he and Lear were awarded the Women in Film Lucy Award in recognition of excellence and innovation in creative works that have enhanced the perception of women through the medium of television. In 2002, Yorkin was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame.

Yorkin died of natural causes on August 18, 2015, at the age of 89. He was married to actress Cynthia Sikes, and was the father of television writer and producer Nicole Yorkin. He was a member of the Wilshire Boulevard Temple.Hollywood Reporter: "Hollywood's Hottest $150 Million Project Is an 83-Year-Old Synagogue – Studio heads, agency chieftains and top producers have come together, "Avengers"-style, to save their iconic but decaying Wilshire Boulevard Temple -- an A-list house of worship far from the Westside" by Gary Baum
May 30, 2012

Filmography

As director

*''Come Blow Your Horn'' (1963)
*'' Never Too Late'' (1965)
*''Divorce American Style'' (1967)
*''Inspector Clouseau'' (1968)
*'' Start the Revolution Without Me'' (1970)Leonard Maltin's Movie Guide
*''The Thief Who Came to Dinner'' (1973)
*'' Twice in a Lifetime'' (1985)
*'' Arthur 2: On the Rocks'' (1988)
*''Love Hurts'' (1990)

As producer

*''Cold Turkey'' (executive producer) (1971)
*''Blade Runner'' (executive producer) (1982)
*''Deal of the Century'' (1983)
*''Intersection'' (1994)
*''Blade Runner 2049'' (2017)

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Yorkin, Bud
Norman Lear
1926 births
2015 deaths
Jewish American male actors
American television directors
Television producers from Pennsylvania
Carnegie Mellon University College of Engineering alumni
Emmy Award winners
People from Washington, Pennsylvania
Film directors from Pennsylvania