In honor of Norman Lear, the legendary television producer who passed away on Tuesday at 101 years of age, CBS has scheduled a new “Entertainment Tonight” special titled “Norman Lear: A Life on Television,” set to air Friday, December 8 on the network and stream on Paramount+.
The one-hour special features new interviews with stars of the long-running comedies Lear created, including Jimmie Walker from “Good Times” and Mackenzie Phillips from “One Day at a Time,” along with never-before-seen interviews from the “ET” vault. Also included with this new footage and interviews is an in-depth sit-down interview with Lear that “ET” host Kevin Frazier conducted when Lear celebrated his 100th birthday, in which he reflected on his lengthy, groundbreaking career.
“Norman Lear: A Life on Television” replaces the previously scheduled episode of “The Price is Right at Night,” which features college students home for the holidays. The episode will now air on Monday, December 11 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT, followed by the season premiere of “Big Brother Reindeer Games” airing at a new time, 9:00 p.m. ET/PT.
Lear was an iconic screenwriter and producer who produced, wrote, created and developed over 100 shows, including creating and producing such favorites as “All in the Family” (1971-1979), “Sanford and Son” (1972-1977), “Maude” (1972-1978), “Good Times” (1974-1979), “One Day at a Time” (1975-1984) and “The Jeffersons” (1975-1985), all of which aired on CBS. His shows introduced political and social themes to the sitcom, the network noted.
Throughout his career, Lear received numerous awards, including six Primetime Emmy Awards, two Peabody Awards, the National Medal of Arts in 1999, the Kennedy Center Honors in 2017 and the Golden Globe Carol Burnett Award in 2021. He was a member of the Television Academy Hall of Fame.
Known for his political activism and funding of liberal and progressive causes and politicians, Lear founded the advocacy organization People for the American Way in 1980 to counter the influence of the Christian right in politics, and in the early 2000s, he mounted a tour with a copy of the Declaration of Independence.
Lear passed away on Tuesday, December 5 of natural causes. He was 101 years old.
On Wednesday, December 6, the five English language broadcast networks simulcast an on-air in memoriam card dedicated to Lear at the start of primetime (8:00 p.m. ET/PT).
Watch the clip below.