Louis G. Cowan (December 12, 1909 – November 18, 1976) was a president of 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 Entertainmen ...

broadcasting network in the United States and a creator of quiz shows (including ''

Quiz Kids ''Quiz Kids'' is a radio and TV series originally broadcast in the 1940s and 1950s. Created by Chicago public relations and advertising man Louis G. Cowan, and originally sponsored by Alka-Seltzer, the series was first broadcast on NBC from Chic ...

'' radio program, '' Stop the Music'', and ''

The $64,000 Question ''The $64,000 Question'' was an American game show broadcast in primetime on CBS-TV from 1955 to 1958, which became embroiled in the 1950s quiz show scandals. Contestants answered general knowledge questions, earning money which doubled as the ...

'' for television), a television producer and was director of the

Voice of America Voice of America (VOA or VoA) is the state-owned news network and international radio broadcaster of the United States of America. It is the largest and oldest U.S.-funded international broadcaster. VOA produces digital, TV, and radio content ...

from 1943–1945. He and his wife died in a house fire in New York City, believed to have been caused by “smoking carelessness”. Survivors included his sons Paul Cowan and

Geoffrey Cowan Geoffrey Cowan is an American lawyer, professor, author, and non-profit executive. He is currently a University Professor at the University of Southern California, where he holds the Annenberg Family Chair in Communication Leadership and directs ...

Early life

Cowan was born Louis Cohen in 1909 in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

but changed his name at age 21. Cowan's parents were Orthodox Jews. His father was Jacob Cohen, a failed businessman, and his mother was Hetty Smitz Cohen. He graduated from the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chicago is consistently ranked among the b ...

, where he met his wife Pauline "Polly" Spiegel, granddaughter of

Joseph Spiegel Joseph Spiegel (1840–1918) was the founder of the Spiegel catalog, a Civil War veteran, the younger brother of Union Army Colonel Marcus M. Spiegel, and patriarch of the Spiegel family. Biography Spiegel was born to a Jewish family, the son o ...

, founder of the

Spiegel catalog Spiegel was an American direct marketing retailer founded in 1865 by Joseph Spiegel. Spiegel published a catalog, like its competitors Sears and Montgomery Ward, which advertised various brands of apparel, accessories, and footwear, as well a ...

Career

He produced more than 50 programs during his three years with CBS, including ''Captain Kangaroo'', and won two Peabody Awards. After he left CBS, he founded Chilmark Press, was director of the

Brandeis University , mottoeng = "Truth even unto its innermost parts" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = NECHE , president = Ronald D. Liebowitz , pro ...

Communications Center, special lecturer at the

Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism The Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism is located in Pulitzer Hall on the university's Morningside Heights campus in New York City. Founded in 1912 by Joseph Pulitzer, Columbia Journalism School is one of the oldest journalism s ...

and founded the William E. Wiener Oral History Library for the

American Jewish Committee The American Jewish Committee (AJC) is a Jewish advocacy group established on November 11, 1906. It is one of the oldest Jewish advocacy organizations and, according to ''The New York Times'', is "widely regarded as the dean of American Jewish org ...

Personal life

In 1976, Cowan died along with his wife in a house fire. They had four children: Paul Cowan,

, Holly Cowan Shulman, and Liza Cowan.

Legacy

Cowan's papers and archives, along with the archives of Chilmark Press, are held at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

References

External links

* 1909 births 1976 deaths 20th-century American Jews Presidents of CBS Entertainment Accidental deaths in New York (state) University of Chicago alumni Television producers from Illinois Voice of America people Spiegel family Deaths from fire in the United States Brandeis University people {{US-tv-bio-stub