Richard Baer (April 28, 1928 – February 22, 2008) was an American writer and screenwriter. Baer wrote for more than 56 television shows, many of which were
sitcoms
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 new ...
, throughout his career, including ''
The Munsters
''The Munsters'' is an American sitcom depicting the home life of a family of benign monsters. The series starred Fred Gwynne as Frankenstein's monsterEpisodes referring to the fact that Herman is Frankenstein's monster include #55, "Just Anoth ...
'', ''
Leave It to Beaver'' and ''
Bewitched
''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typic ...
''.
Early life
Richard Baer was born in New York City in 1928. He was the only child of Herbert Baer and Ede Sarnoff.
[ He earned his ]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 psychology
Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Psychology includes the study of conscious and unconscious phenomena, including feelings and thoughts. It is an academic discipline of immense scope, crossing the boundaries betwe ...
from Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
and his master's degree in cinema from the University of Southern California
The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in C ...
.[
]
Career
Baer's maternal uncle was David Sarnoff
David Sarnoff (February 27, 1891 – December 12, 1971) was an American businessman and pioneer of American radio and television. Throughout most of his career, he led the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) in various capacities from shortly afte ...
, a broadcasting pioneer who headed the RCA
The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
company.[ Sarnoff is credited with beginning Baer's career and forming his interest in television.][ According to Baer's 2005 autobiography, Sarnoff called a vice president at ]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 ...
at 6 a.m. and ordered him to find Baer "a job by 9 o'clock" that same morning.[ The vice president obliged. Baer was hired in 1953 for his first job in television as an assistant for the ]William Bendix
William Bendix (January 14, 1906 – December 14, 1964) was an American film, radio, and television actor, who typically played rough, blue-collar characters. He is best remembered for his role in ''Wake Island'', which earned him an Academy ...
sitcom ''The Life of Riley
''The Life of Riley'' is an American radio situation comedy series of the 1940s that was adapted into a 1949 feature film, a 1950s television series, and a 1958 comic book.
Radio
The radio program initially aired on the Blue Network (later kn ...
'', which aired on the NBC network.[ He later wrote several episodes for the show.][
Baer wrote the ]script
Script may refer to:
Writing systems
* Script, a distinctive writing system, based on a repertoire of specific elements or symbols, or that repertoire
* Script (styles of handwriting)
** Script typeface, a typeface with characteristics of handw ...
for the film ''Life Begins at 17
''Life Begins at 17'' is a 1958 American drama film starring Dorothy Johnson, Mark Damon, Edd Byrnes and Luana Anders.
Plot
Carol Peck, a 17-year-old from Indiana, has an older sister, Elaine, who is a beauty queen. Carol wins a local pageant, t ...
'' for Columbia Pictures
Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...
in 1958.[
Baer began writing for '' Hennesey'', which starred actor ]Jackie Cooper
John Cooper Jr. (September 15, 1922 – May 3, 2011) was an American actor, television director, producer, and executive, known universally as Jackie Cooper. He was a child actor who made the transition to an adult career. Cooper was the first ...
, in 1960.[ Baer wrote ]scripts
Script may refer to:
Writing systems
* Script, a distinctive writing system, based on a repertoire of specific elements or symbols, or that repertoire
* Script (styles of handwriting)
** Script typeface, a typeface with characteristics of handw ...
for a total of 38 episodes for the series.[ His work on ''Hennesey'' earned him an ]Emmy
The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
nomination.[
In the twenty five years that followed 1960, Baer wrote for over 56 separate television shows.][ This included ten episodes of the television classics '']That Girl
''That Girl'' is an American sitcom that ran on ABC from September 8, 1966 to March 19, 1971. It starred Marlo Thomas as the title character Ann Marie, an aspiring (but only sporadically employed) actress, who moves from her hometown of Brewster ...
'', twenty-three of ''Bewitched
''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typic ...
'',[ and five of '']The Munsters
''The Munsters'' is an American sitcom depicting the home life of a family of benign monsters. The series starred Fred Gwynne as Frankenstein's monsterEpisodes referring to the fact that Herman is Frankenstein's monster include #55, "Just Anoth ...
''.[ His favorite episode of ''The Musters'' which he personally penned was '' Just Another Pretty Face''.][ In the episode, the character ]Herman Munster
Herman Munster is a fictional character in the CBS sitcom '' The Munsters'', originally played by Fred Gwynne. The patriarch of the Munster household, Herman is one of Frankenstein’s monsters, created in a lab in Germany in the nineteenth ...
is struck by lightning
Lightning is a naturally occurring electrostatic discharge during which two electric charge, electrically charged regions, both in the atmosphere or with one on the land, ground, temporarily neutralize themselves, causing the instantaneous ...
, which changes his face into that of a normal human being.[ The Munsters are shocked by how ugly they think Herman has become.][ His other sitcom credits included '']The Andy Griffith Show
''The Andy Griffith Show '' is an American situation comedy television series that aired on CBS from October 3, 1960, to April 1, 1968, with a total of 249 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons—159 in black and white and 90 in color.
The ...
'', ''F Troop
''F Troop'' is a satirical American television sitcom Western about U.S. soldiers and Native Americans in the Wild West during the 1860s that originally aired for two seasons on ABC. It debuted in the United States on September 14, 1965, and ...
'' and ''Petticoat Junction
''Petticoat Junction'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on CBS from September 1963 to April 1970. The series takes place at the Shady Rest Hotel, which is run by Kate Bradley; her three daughters Billie Jo, Bobbie Jo, and B ...
''.[
Baer began working on television movies later in his career. His writing credits included the 1972 ]ABC
ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet.
ABC or abc may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting
* American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster
** Disney–ABC Television ...
comedic television movie '' Playmates'', which starred Alan Alda
Alan Alda (; born Alphonso Joseph D'Abruzzo; January 28, 1936) is an American actor, screenwriter, and director. A six-time Emmy Award and Golden Globe Award winner, he is best known for playing Captain Benjamin "Hawkeye" Pierce in the war co ...
and Doug McClure
Douglas Osborne McClure (May 11, 1935February 5, 1995) was an American actor whose career in film and television extended from the 1950s to the 1990s. He is best known for his role as the cowboy Trampas during the entire run from 1962 to 1971 o ...
as divorced single fathers.[ The ]Los Angeles Times
The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...
called ''Playmates'' "spiced with biting wit" in its review of the movie.[ Baer also wrote 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 ...
movie '' I Take These Men'', which aired in 1983.[
Baer's wrote his last television sitcom script for an episode of ABC's '' Who's the Boss?'' in the 1980s.] He then successfully tried his hand as a playwright. Baer's ''Mixed Emotions'', a romantic comedy
Romantic comedy (also known as romcom or rom-com) is a subgenre of comedy and slice of life fiction, focusing on lighthearted, humorous plot lines centered on romantic ideas, such as how true love is able to surmount most obstacles. In a typica ...
play about two widowed friends who start a romantic relationship during their later years, debuted in 1987.[ The play first opened in Los Angeles.][ Baer's play later debuted on ]Broadway
Broadway may refer to:
Theatre
* Broadway Theatre (disambiguation)
* Broadway theatre, theatrical productions in professional theatres near Broadway, Manhattan, New York City, U.S.
** Broadway (Manhattan), the street
**Broadway Theatre (53rd Stree ...
in New York City in 1993 and ran for more than six weeks.[ ''Mixed Emotions'' was later performed in theaters worldwide, including Eastern Europe and Australia.][
Baer was an active member of the ]Writers Guild of America
The Writers Guild of America is the joint efforts of two different US labor unions representing TV and film writers:
* The Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE), headquartered in New York City and affiliated with the AFL–CIO
* The Writers Guil ...
. He served on the WGA's negotiating committee during the 1988 Writers Guild of America strike The 1988 Writers Guild of America strike was a strike action taken by members of both the Writers Guild of America, East (WGAE) and the Writers Guild of America, West (WGAW) against major United States television and film studios represented by the ...
.[
]
Personal life
Richard Baer died at St. John's Health Center
Providence Saint John's Health Center, formerly St. Johns Hospital and Health Center, is a private not-for-profit, Roman Catholic hospital in Santa Monica, California, United States. The hospital was founded in 1942 by the Sisters of Charity of ...
in Santa Monica, California
Santa Monica (; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Santa Mónica'') is a city in Los Angeles County, California, Los Angeles County, situated along Santa Monica Bay on California's South Coast (California), South Coast. Santa Monica's 2020 United Sta ...
, on February 22, 2008, at the age of 79. He had suffered a heart attack in January 2008.[ He was survived by his wife, Diane Asselin Baer, a television producer, whom he married in 1994,][ as well as his children, Josh, Matthew (who married Amy Bosley Baer, daughter of Tom Bosley), and Judy and three grandchildren.][ His first wife of 35 years, Louise Golden, died in 1991.][
]
References
External links
*
*
Variety Magazine: Writer Richard Baer dies at 79
{{DEFAULTSORT:Baer, Richard
1928 births
2008 deaths
American male screenwriters
American television writers
20th-century American dramatists and playwrights
Jewish American dramatists and playwrights
Yale College alumni
USC School of Cinematic Arts alumni
Writers Guild of America
American male television writers
American male dramatists and playwrights
20th-century American male writers
20th-century American screenwriters
20th-century American Jews
21st-century American Jews