Leonard Goldberg

Leonard J. Goldberg (January 24, 1934 – December 4, 2019) was an American film and television producer.[1] He had his own production company, Panda Productions (formerly Mandy Films).[2] He served as head of programming for ABC, and was president of 20th Century Fox. Goldberg was also the executive producer of the CBS series Blue Bloods.

Leonard Goldberg
Born(1934-01-24)January 24, 1934
New York City, New York, U.S.
DiedDecember 4, 2019(2019-12-04) (aged 85)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
OccupationFilm producer
Television producer
Spouse(s)
Wendy J. Howard (m. 1972⁠–⁠2019)

Early life and education

Goldberg was born on January 24, 1934 to a Jewish family, the son of Jean (née Smith) and William Goldberg.[3] He was a graduate of New Utrecht High School in Brooklyn and the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania where he received a B.S. in economics in 1955.[3]

Career

As a producer, he was responsible for producing several television films, including the Peabody Award-winning Brian's Song (1971) and The Boy in the Plastic Bubble (1976); the latter helping to launch John Travolta's movie career. He also produced a string of hit television series while in partnership with Aaron Spelling; the best-known being Charlie's Angels, Hart to Hart, Starsky & Hutch, Fantasy Island and Family. He produced the Oscar-nominated movie WarGames (1983) as well as the comedy The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training (1977).[4]

He also produced the Emmy Award-winning television film Something About Amelia, which aired on ABC in 1984. It was one of the highest-rated television films of the year, watched by around 60–70 million people.[5]

Goldberg served as president of 20th Century Fox, during which time the studio produced such films as Broadcast News, Big, Die Hard, Wall Street and Working Girl. Under his own banner, Leonard Goldberg produced the successful motion picture features WarGames, Sleeping with the Enemy, Double Jeopardy and the Charlie's Angels films series. He also produced Unknown, starring Liam Neeson, Diane Kruger, January Jones and Frank Langella, released in theaters in February 2011.

He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6901 Hollywood Boulevard and was inducted into the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences Hall of Fame in 2007. He was a member of the Wilshire Boulevard Temple.[6]

Goldberg served on the CBS Board of Directors from 2007 to 2018.

Personal life and death

In 1972, he married Wendy Howard.[3] He had one daughter, Amanda Erin Goldberg and two stepsons, Richard Mirisch[3] and John A. Mirisch.

Goldberg died at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on December 4, 2019, as a result of injuries sustained in a fall. He was 85 years old.[7][8]

References
  1. "Leonard Goldberg". The New York Times.
  2. "Leonard Goldberg". CBS Corporation.
  3. "Goldberg, Leonard 1934-". Encyclopedia.com. Retrieved October 7, 2018.
  4. Canby, Vincent (August 20, 1977). "The Bad News Bears in Breaking Training (1977) 'Bad News Bears' Make Comeback in an Effort to Go on to Japan". The New York Times.
  5. (18 January 1984). 'Something About Amelia,' the made-for-TV movie about incest, carried..., UPI
  6. 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
  7. Leonard Goldberg, Former 20th Century Fox President and ABC Head of Programming, Dies at 85
  8. Leonard Goldberg, Producer of 'Charlie's Angels' and 'Blue Bloods,' Dies at 85
Business positions
Preceded by
Edgar J. Scherick		 Vice President, Programs ABC
1966–1969		 Succeeded by
Martin Starger
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