Gene Shalit
Eugene Shalit (born March 25, 1926)[1] is an American retired journalist, television personality, film and book critic, and author. After starting to work part-time on NBC's The Today Show in 1970, he filled those roles from January 15, 1973,[1] until retiring on November 11, 2010.[2][3] He is known for his frequent use of puns, his oversized handlebar moustache and fuzzy hair, and for wearing colorful bow ties.
Gene Shalit
March 25, 1926
- Journalist
- film critic
- literary critic
- television personality
- author
- press agent
c. 1960–2010
6, including Willa
Early life and education[edit]
Shalit was born in New York City and raised in Newark and Morristown, New Jersey.[1] Shalit is of Jewish ancestry.[4]
In high school, Shalit wrote a humor column for the school newspaper, which Gannett has identified as "The Korn Krib".[5]
Shalit wrote for The Daily Illini from 1945 to 1949.[6]
Shalit has written and edited various books.
Personal life[edit]
Shalit was married to Nancy Lewis from 1950 until her death from cancer in 1978.[13] For much of his career he lived in Leonia, New Jersey, although as of 2012 he was listed as a resident of Stockbridge, Massachusetts.[14][15][16]
Nancy Lewis' and Gene Shalit's children include the artist and entrepreneur Willa Shalit.[14][17] Another child is Peter Shalit, a physician and recognized authority on gay men's health and living with HIV.[18][19][12] Their daughter Emily died of ovarian cancer in November 2012.[13]
Shalit crashed his car in Lenox, Massachusetts, on October 24, 2012, after falling asleep at the wheel. Misdemeanor charges of negligent driving to endanger were later dismissed after he agreed to stop driving until the dismissal, and he was to follow a "safety condition" approved by his attorney and the police chief.[16]
In popular culture[edit]
Shalit guest-starred as the voice, and was portrayed in the form of a fish food critic named "Gene Scallop" in the SpongeBob SquarePants episode "The Krusty Sponge".[20]
Shalit has been parodied in several episodes of Family Guy in cutaway gags, including "Brian Sings and Swings",[21] "The Book of Joe",[22] and "Big Man on Hippocampus",[23] though Shalit did not provide voice acting for the series.
Shalit also voiced a character portraying himself in three episodes of the animated series The Critic.[24]
A Muppet character based on him appeared in The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence (1975).[25]
Shalit was portrayed in two episodes of Saturday Night Live by Jon Lovitz,[26] and later in nine episodes by Horatio Sanz in sketches and Weekend Update sequences.[27][28]
Shalit was also portrayed on Second City Television several times by cast member Eugene Levy.[29]
On Late Night with David Letterman Shalit had his head squashed between two giant comedy hammers during an interview with David Letterman.[30][31]