Frank Peppiatt (March 19, 1927 – November 7, 2012) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

(naturalized

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

)

television producer A television producer is a person who oversees one or more aspects of video production on 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 net ...

and

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

, considered a pioneer of the

variety show Variety show, also known as variety arts or variety entertainment, is entertainment made up of a variety of acts including musical theatre, musical performances, sketch comedy, magic (illusion), magic, acrobatics, juggling, and ventriloquism. It is ...

genre. His credits included ''

The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour ''The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour'' was an American variety show that starred American pop singers Sonny Bono and Cher, who were married to each other at the time. The show ran on CBS in the United States, and premiered in August 1971. The show was ...

''. Most notably, co-created the variety show, ''

Hee Haw ''Hee Haw'' is an American television variety show featuring country music and humor with the fictional rural "Kornfield Kounty" as the backdrop. It aired first-run on CBS from 1969 to 1971, in syndication from 1971 to 1993, and on TNN from 199 ...

'', in 1969 with

John Aylesworth John Bansley Aylesworth (August 18, 1928 – July 28, 2010) was a Canadian television writer, producer, comedian, and actor, best known as co-creator of the American country music television variety show ''Hee Haw'', which appeared on network tel ...

. Peppiatt was born to Frank and Sarah Peppiatt in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, on March 19, 1927. He attended the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

, where he earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in 1949. He took a job with his Toronto classmate,

Norman Jewison Norman Frederick Jewison (born July 21, 1926) is a retired Canadian film and television director, producer, and founder of the Canadian Film Centre. He has directed numerous feature films and has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best D ...

, after college working on college stage productions. Peppiatt then worked as an advertising copywriter at MacLaren Advertising where he met and worked with

. Their work on television advertising led the

Canadian Broadcasting Corporation The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

to approach them to write comedy sketches for a variety show called '' After Hours''. This led to a long professional partnership with Aylesworth. Peppiatt made the jump from Canadian to American television by the mid-1950s. In addition to ''Hee Haw'',

Peppiatt and Aylesworth Peppiatt and Aylesworth were a Canadian television comedy team. The team consisted of Frank Peppiatt (March 19, 1927 – November 7, 2012) and John Aylesworth (August 18, 1928 – July 28, 2010). John Aylesworth was born on August 18, 1928, in T ...

teamed up to write or produce

Perry Como Pierino Ronald "Perry" Como (; May 18, 1912 – May 12, 2001) was an Italian-American singer, actor and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century, he recorded exclusively for RCA Victor for 44 years, after signing ...

's ''

Kraft Music Hall ''The Kraft Music Hall'' was a popular old-time radio variety program, featuring top show business entertainers, which aired first on NBC radio from 1933 to 1949. Radio ''The Kraft Program'' debuted June 26, 1933, as a musical-variety progra ...

'', ''

The Judy Garland Show ''The Judy Garland Show'' is an American Variety show, musical variety television series that aired on CBS on Sunday nights during the 1963–1964 television season. Despite a sometimes stormy relationship with Judy Garland, CBS had found succes ...

'', '' Frank Sinatra: A Man and His Music'', ''

The ABC Comedy Hour ''The ABC Comedy Hour'' is an American television variety series that aired on ABC in 1972. Seven of the 13 episodes featured a guest host and a team of comedy impressionists known as The Kopykats (Rich Little, Frank Gorshin, Joe Baker, Marily ...

'', ''

The Julie Andrews Hour ''The Julie Andrews Hour'' was a television variety series starring Julie Andrews that was produced by ATV and distributed by ITC Entertainment. It aired on the ABC network in the United States. Known as the Julie Andrews Show in the UK and air ...

'', and '' Hullabaloo''. They were known as one of the most prolific writing and producing teams in television variety show history. Peppiatt died from bladder cancer in

Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida Ponte Vedra Beach is a wealthy unincorporated seaside community and suburb of Jacksonville, Florida in St. Johns County, Florida, United States. Located southeast of downtown Jacksonville and north of St. Augustine, it is part of the Jackso ...

, on November 7, 2012, at the age of 85. He was survived by his third wife, Caroline Peppiatt; from a previous marriage to Marilyn Peppiatt, his daughters Francesca Robyn and Marney Peppiatt, while youngest daughter, Melissa Peppiatt MacIsssac died in 2000; and four grandchildren. His

autobiography An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life. It is a form of biography. Definition The word "autobiography" was first used deprecatingly by William Taylor in 1797 in the English peri ...

, ''When Variety Was King: Memoir of a TV Pioneer'', was published posthumously by

ECW Press ECW Press is a Canadian book publisher located in Toronto, Ontario. It was founded by Jack David and Robert Lecker in 1974 as a Canadian literary magazine named ''Essays on Canadian Writing''. They started publishing trade and scholarly book ...

in April 2013.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Peppiatt, Frank 1927 births 2012 deaths American television producers American male screenwriters University of Toronto alumni Canadian emigrants to the United States Writers from Toronto CBC Television people Deaths from cancer in Florida Deaths from bladder cancer Canadian television producers Canadian male screenwriters