Andy Friendly, the primary son of famed CBS newsman Fred Friendly who served as the primary producer on Entertainment Tonight and labored as a programming govt at CNBC and King World, has died. He was 74.
Friendly died Sunday at his house in Bel-Air, his brother, David Friendly, a journalist turned movie and tv producer, introduced. No explanation for demise was revealed.
His spouse of 39 years, actress Patricia Crowley, who starred on the Nineteen Sixties NBC collection Please Don’t Eat the Daisies, died in September at age 91.
Born on Nov. 6, 1951 — the identical week his dad and Edward R. Murrow launched their pioneering documentary collection See It Now on CBS — Friendly graduated from USC and started his profession at age 22 as a junior researcher at WNBC-TV in New York.
He met then-anchorman Tom Snyder on the station, and after changing into a author, he produced Snyder’s Tomorrow Show within the early Seventies.
Friendly helped get Entertainment Tonight off on the fitting foot when he was named the primary producer of the first-run syndicated program, which went on to develop into the longest-running every day leisure information present in historical past. He obtained an Emmy nomination for his work in 1982.
From 1990-95, he served as vp primetime packages at CNBC, the place he oversaw discuss exhibits hosted by Snyder, (*74*) Russert, Geraldo Rivera and others.
“Andy was a brilliant producer and an exceptional leader who helped define CNBC during a pivotal period of growth and creativity,” Warner Bros. Discovery CEO and president David Zaslav mentioned in an announcement. “He had a unprecedented skill to identify expertise, nurture concepts and convey out the perfect within the individuals round him.
“But beyond his professional accomplishments, Andy was a special person and a dear and loyal friend. He led with generosity, humor and heart, and he cared very deeply about people. Andy made everyone feel valued, and his unique kindness and integrity will be remembered, just as powerfully as his creative legacy.”
As president of programming and manufacturing at syndication powerhouse King World Productions from 1995-2001, Friendly was answerable for programming technique, improvement and manufacturing.
Friendly additionally was president of the Hollywood Radio & Television Society and an adjunct professor on the USC School of Cinematic Arts, and he served on the boards of the USC Shoah Foundation and the Saban Community Clinic.
His memoir, Willing to Be Lucky: Adventures in Life and Television, was printed in 2017.
In addition to David, survivors embody his mom, Ruth, and his different siblings, Lisa, Richard, Michael and Jon.