Emmy-winning TV producer-writer Norman Lear dies at 101

Producer-writer Norman Lear, whose ground-breaking comedies such as All in the Family and Maude, addressed race, abortion and other social issues rarely seen before on US television, died on Tuesday. He was 101.

Lear, one of the most influential people in television, died at his Los Angeles home due to natural causes. Lear, who won six Emmy Awards for his work in television, was known for his campaigning for liberal causes, including voting rights and worked well into his 90s.

In addition to All in the Family and Maude, Lear dominated American TV screens in the 1970s and 80s with the situation comedies Sanford and Son, The Jeffersons and the soap-opera spoof Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman. At one point in the 1970s, Lear had eight shows on the air with an estimated 120 million viewers.

Lear produced a string of other hit shows, including Diff’rent Strokes, Fernwood 2 Night and the All in the Family spin-off Archie Bunker’s Place. — Reuters