Fred Silverman, the legendary television producer and executive behind such hit shows as “All in the Family,” “Soap” and “Hill Street Blues,” died on Thursday. He was 82.
Silverman was a creative executive at CBS, and would later run both ABC and NBC as those networks’ president. At 25 years old, he was named head of daytime programming CBS. He got his start at WGN-TV in Chicago and WPIX in New York.
During his long career, Silverman was responsible for CBS shows including “The Mary Tyler Moore Show,” “M*A*S*H,” “The Waltons,” “Good Times,” “The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour,” “Kojak,” “Cannon,” “The Jeffersons” and the animated series “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!”
With ABC, Silverman greenlit “The Love Boat,” “Laverne & Shirley,” “Family,” “Donny & Marie,” “Three’s Company,” “Eight is Enough,” “The Bionic Woman” and “Good Morning America.”