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| ==Early life, education and military service== | ==Early life, education and military service== | ||
| Susskind was born to a ] family of modest means<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E1TT4POdbGUC&q=briskin&pg=PA8|first=Stephen|last=Battaglio|title=David Susskind: A Televised Life|pages=251|date=12 October 2010|isbn=9781429946148}}</ref> in ] |
Susskind was born to a ] family of modest means<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E1TT4POdbGUC&q=briskin&pg=PA8|first=Stephen|last=Battaglio|title=David Susskind: A Televised Life|pages=251|date=12 October 2010|publisher=St. Martin's Publishing |isbn=9781429946148}}</ref> in ] and grew up in ]. He graduated from ] in 1938. He attended the ] and then ], graduating with honors in 1942. He served in the Navy during ] and, as communications officer on an attack transport, {{USS|Mellette|APA-156|6}}, saw action at ] and ].<ref>, oac.cdlib.org; accessed June 26, 2015.</ref> | ||
| ==Career== | ==Career== | ||
| His first job after the war was as a press agent for ]. Next he was a talent agent for Century Artists, ultimately ending up in the |
His first job after the war was as a press agent for ]. Next he was a talent agent for Century Artists, ultimately ending up in the ]'s newly minted television programming department, managing ], ], and others. In New York, Susskind formed ], representing creators of material rather than performers. Ultimately, Susskind produced movies, stage plays and television programs.<ref name=obit/> | ||
| ===Talk shows=== | ===Talk shows=== | ||
| In 1954, Susskind became producer of the ] ] '']'', based on case files of the Legal Aid Society of ]. His program ''Open End'' began in 1958 on New York City's commercial independent station ], channel 13, the predecessor to ], and was |
In 1954, Susskind became producer of the ] ] '']'', based on case files of the Legal Aid Society of ]. His program ''Open End'' began in 1958 on New York City's commercial independent station ], channel 13, the predecessor to ], and was so titled because the program continued until Susskind or his guests were too tired to continue.<ref>Bowie, Steven retrieved July 20, 2015</ref> | ||
| In 1961, ''Open End'' was constrained to two hours and went into national ]. The show was retitled '']'' for its telecast on Sunday night, October 2, 1966.<ref>{{cite news|title=TV: Return of Susskind; He Shows Up Again on Channel 5 With New Format, Kennedy and Seeger|last=Gould|first=Jack|date=October 3, 1966|work=]|page=80}}</ref> In the 1960s it was the first nationally broadcast television talk show to feature people speaking out against American involvement in the ]. In the 1970s it was the first nationally broadcast television talk show to feature people speaking out for ]. The show continued until its New York outlet cancelled it in 1986, approximately six months before Susskind died.<ref name=bat/> | In 1961, ''Open End'' was constrained to two hours and went into national ]. The show was retitled '']'' for its telecast on Sunday night, October 2, 1966.<ref>{{cite news|title=TV: Return of Susskind; He Shows Up Again on Channel 5 With New Format, Kennedy and Seeger|last=Gould|first=Jack|date=October 3, 1966|work=]|page=80}}</ref> In the 1960s it was the first nationally broadcast television talk show to feature people speaking out against American involvement in the ]. The show continued until its New York outlet cancelled it in 1986, approximately six months before Susskind died.<ref name=bat/> | ||
| During his close to three decade run, Susskind covered many controversial topics of the day, such as race relations, ] and the Vietnam War. |
During his close to three decade run, Susskind covered many controversial topics of the day, such as race relations, ], and the Vietnam War. It was the first nationally broadcast television talk show to feature people speaking out for ]. In 1971, Susskind interviewed six lesbians, including ], ], and ], who were among the first open lesbians to appear on television in the US, and debated long-held ]s about gays with Susskind.<ref>Bullough, Vern, ed. (2002) ''Before Stonewall: Activists for gay and lesbian rights in historical context''. Page 247. Harrington Park Press; {{ISBN|1-56023-192-0}}</ref> | ||
| His interview of ] Premier ], which aired in October 1960, during the height of the ], generated national attention.<ref>Bowie, Steven retrieved July 20, 2015 When Russian Premier Nikita Khruschchev appeared on the program during his 1961 visit to the United States, one critic accused Susskind of having "tried to tell Khrushchev how to run the Soviet Union."</ref> It is one of the very few talk show telecasts from the era that was preserved and can be viewed today.<ref name=bat/> | |||
| In 1961, Susskind conducted a series of interviews with former President ] in Truman's hometown of ]. After picking Truman up at his home to take him to the ] for the interviews over a number of days, Susskind asked Truman why he hadn't been invited into the home. According to presidential historian ], Truman flatly told Susskind, "This is ]'s house" and that there had never been nor would there ever be a Jewish guest in it.<ref name="isbn0-684-85705-7">{{cite book|author=Beschloss, Michael|author-link=Michael Beschloss|title=Presidential Courage: Brave Leaders and How They Changed America 1789–1989|publisher=Simon & Schuster|location=New York|year=2007|url=https://archive.org/details/presidentialcour00besc/page/210|isbn=978-0-684-85705-3|access-date=June 26, 2015|page=}}</ref> | In 1961, Susskind conducted a series of interviews with former President ] in Truman's hometown of ]. After picking Truman up at his home to take him to the ] for the interviews over a number of days, Susskind asked Truman why he hadn't been invited into the home. According to presidential historian ], Truman flatly told Susskind, "This is ]'s house" and that there had never been nor would there ever be a Jewish guest in it.<ref name="isbn0-684-85705-7">{{cite book|author=Beschloss, Michael|author-link=Michael Beschloss|title=Presidential Courage: Brave Leaders and How They Changed America 1789–1989|publisher=Simon & Schuster|location=New York|year=2007|url=https://archive.org/details/presidentialcour00besc/page/210|isbn=978-0-684-85705-3|access-date=June 26, 2015|page=}}</ref> | ||
| ], with whom Susskind was in a relationship, began working as a co-producer of a television talk show Susskind hosted locally in New York called ''Hot Line'' in June 1964. It was a different show from the ''Open End'' talk show. ''Hot Line'' was the first television show to use the recently invented ten-second broadcast delay. This gave the control room time to delete material deemed unfit for broadcast, especially from telephone call-ins.<ref name=bat/> Davidson had a hand in the on-air version of the show and among other duties screened viewer phone calls.<ref name=bat/> She also made the first approach to some of the people who appeared as guests on ''Hot Line'', including ], whom she invited for ''Hot Line'' immediately after he gave a speech at ].<ref name=bat>{{cite |
], with whom Susskind was in a relationship, began working as a co-producer of a television talk show Susskind hosted locally in New York called ''Hot Line'' in June 1964. It was a different show from the ''Open End'' talk show. ''Hot Line'' was the first television show to use the recently invented ten-second broadcast delay. This gave the control room time to delete material deemed unfit for broadcast, especially from telephone call-ins.<ref name=bat/> Davidson had a hand in the on-air version of the show and among other duties screened viewer phone calls.<ref name=bat/> She also made the first approach to some of the people who appeared as guests on ''Hot Line'', including ], whom she invited for ''Hot Line'' immediately after he gave a speech at ].<ref name=bat>{{cite news|first=Stephen |last=Battaglio|title=David Susskind: A Televised Life (excerpt; Chapter 1)|work=The New York Times |year=2010|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/17/books/review/excerpt-david-susskind.html?pagewanted=all}}</ref> | ||
| In a now notorious interview with then 25-year-old ] |
In a now notorious interview with then 25-year-old ] during a recently-unearthed 1968 appearance on the British program ''The ] Show'', Susskind displayed an intense antipathy and vitriol towards the famous boxer, whom he excoriated with withering criticism for refusing to be conscripted into the U.S. military for the Vietnam War. Some commentators have described this as a racist attack.<ref>{{Cite web|url = https://www.theatlantic.com/news/archive/2016/06/muhammad-ali-vietnam/485717/|title = The Trials of Muhammad Ali|date = 2013|access-date = September 12, 2015|publisher = Kartemquin Productions|last = Bill|first = Siegel}}</ref> | ||
| ===Producer=== | ===Producer=== | ||
| Susskind was also a noted producer, with scores of movies, plays, and TV programs to his credit. His legacy is that of a producer of intelligent material at a time when TV had left its golden years behind and had firmly planted its feet in programming which had wide appeal, whether or not it was worth watching. Among other projects, he produced television adaptations of '']'' (1957), '']'' (1958), '']'' (1960), '']'' (1966), '']'' (also 1966), '']'' (1972), '']'' (1973), and '']'' (1976); the television films ''Truman at Potsdam'' (1976), '']'' (1976), and '']'' (1977); and the feature films '']'' (1961), '']'' (1962), and '']'' (1980). In 1964, he produced ]'s acclaimed ] drama '']'', which left the air after thirteen episodes. He also produced and owned all the rights to the 1961 fourteen-episode ] CBS TV series – '']''. His production company, ], also produced '']''. | Susskind was also a noted producer, with scores of movies, plays, and TV programs to his credit. His legacy is that of a producer of intelligent material at a time when TV had left its golden years behind and had firmly planted its feet in programming which had wide appeal, whether or not it was worth watching. Among other projects, he produced television adaptations of '']'' (1957), '']'' (1958), '']'' (1960), '']'' (1966), '']'' (also 1966), '']'' (1972), '']'' (1973), and '']'' (1976); the television films ''Truman at Potsdam'' (1976), '']'' (1976), and '']'' (1977); and the feature films '']'' (1961), '']'' (1962), and '']'' (1980). In 1964, he produced ]'s acclaimed ] drama '']'', which left the air after thirteen episodes. He also produced and owned all the rights to the 1961 fourteen-episode ] CBS TV series – '']''. His production company, ], also produced '']''. | ||
| ==Personal life== | ==Personal life== | ||
| Susskind was married twice. Both of his marriages ended in divorce. In 1939, he married Phyllis Briskin;<ref>Battaglio, p. 8</ref> they had three children: Diana Susskind Laptook, Pamela Susskind Schaenen, and ].<ref name=obit/><ref> May 6, 1974</ref> They divorced in 1966.<ref>Battaglio, p. 152</ref> In the same year he married ], who had two daughters from a prior marriage,<ref>Battaglio, p. 260 ''"After the non-Jewish Joyce Davidson became Susskind's second wife, she learned how to bake challah bread to please her new mother-in-law"''</ref> Connie and Shelley.<ref name="Battaglio, p. 291">Battaglio, p. 291</ref> They had a daughter, Samantha Maria Susskind Mannion.<ref> March 7, 1993</ref><ref name="Battaglio, p. 291"/> They separated in 1982 and divorced in 1986.<ref>Battaglio, p. 334</ref> | Susskind was married twice. Both of his marriages ended in divorce. In 1939, he married Phyllis Briskin;<ref>Battaglio, p. 8</ref> they had three children: Diana Susskind Laptook, Pamela Susskind Schaenen, and ].<ref name=obit/><ref> May 6, 1974</ref> They divorced in 1966.<ref>Battaglio, p. 152</ref> In the same year he married ], who had two daughters from a prior marriage,<ref>Battaglio, p. 260 ''"After the non-Jewish Joyce Davidson became Susskind's second wife, she learned how to bake challah bread to please her new mother-in-law"''</ref> Connie and Shelley.<ref name="Battaglio, p. 291">Battaglio, p. 291</ref> They had a daughter, Samantha Maria Susskind Mannion.<ref> March 7, 1993</ref><ref name="Battaglio, p. 291"/> They separated in 1982 and divorced in 1986.<ref>Battaglio, p. 334</ref> | ||
| Susskind was first cousin to television writer and producer ].<ref name=bat/> |
Susskind was first cousin to television writer and producer ].<ref name=bat/> | ||
| ==Death== | ==Death== | ||
| In 1987 at the age of 66, Susskind suffered a fatal heart attack in New York City.<ref name=obit/> He was interred at ] in ]. | In 1987 at the age of 66, Susskind suffered a fatal heart attack in New York City, hours after Andy Warhol died, also in Manhattan.<ref name=obit/> He was interred at ] in ]. | ||
| ==Legacy== | ==Legacy== | ||
| In 1988, Susskind was inducted into the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.emmys.com/awards/hall-of-fame-honorees|title=Television Hall of Fame Honorees: Complete List|access-date=June 26, 2015}}</ref> | Susskind was among those parodied in the ] medley "Shticks and Stones," on Sherman's 1962 ] album. In 1988, Susskind was inducted into the ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.emmys.com/awards/hall-of-fame-honorees|title=Television Hall of Fame Honorees: Complete List|access-date=June 26, 2015}}</ref> | ||
| ==Sources== | ==Sources== | ||
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Latest revision as of 17:05, 26 September 2024
American producer and talk show host| David Susskind | |
|---|---|
 David Susskind circa 1980 | |
| Born | David Howard Susskind December 19, 1920 New York City, U.S. |
| Died | February 22, 1987(1987-02-22) (aged 66) New York City, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Harvard University (B.A.) |
| Known for | Television host, personality, producer |
| Spouses |
|
| Relatives | Norman Lear (first cousin) |
David Howard Susskind (December 19, 1920 – February 22, 1987) was an American producer of TV, movies, and stage plays and also a TV talk show host. His talk shows were innovative in the genre and addressed timely, controversial topics beyond the scope of others of the day.
Early life, education and military service
Susskind was born to a Jewish family of modest means in Manhattan and grew up in Brookline, Massachusetts. He graduated from Brookline High School in 1938. He attended the University of Wisconsin–Madison and then Harvard University, graduating with honors in 1942. He served in the Navy during World War II and, as communications officer on an attack transport, USS Mellette, saw action at Iwo Jima and Okinawa.
Career
His first job after the war was as a press agent for Warner Brothers. Next he was a talent agent for Century Artists, ultimately ending up in the Music Corporation of America's newly minted television programming department, managing Dinah Shore, Jerry Lewis, and others. In New York, Susskind formed Talent Associates, representing creators of material rather than performers. Ultimately, Susskind produced movies, stage plays and television programs.
Talk shows
In 1954, Susskind became producer of the NBC legal drama Justice, based on case files of the Legal Aid Society of New York. His program Open End began in 1958 on New York City's commercial independent station WNTA-TV, channel 13, the predecessor to WNET, and was so titled because the program continued until Susskind or his guests were too tired to continue.
In 1961, Open End was constrained to two hours and went into national syndication. The show was retitled The David Susskind Show for its telecast on Sunday night, October 2, 1966. In the 1960s it was the first nationally broadcast television talk show to feature people speaking out against American involvement in the Vietnam War. The show continued until its New York outlet cancelled it in 1986, approximately six months before Susskind died.
During his close to three decade run, Susskind covered many controversial topics of the day, such as race relations, transsexualism, and the Vietnam War. It was the first nationally broadcast television talk show to feature people speaking out for gay rights. In 1971, Susskind interviewed six lesbians, including Lilli Vincenz, Barbara Gittings, and Barbara Love, who were among the first open lesbians to appear on television in the US, and debated long-held stereotypes about gays with Susskind.
His interview of Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev, which aired in October 1960, during the height of the Cold War, generated national attention. It is one of the very few talk show telecasts from the era that was preserved and can be viewed today.
In 1961, Susskind conducted a series of interviews with former President Harry Truman in Truman's hometown of Independence, Missouri. After picking Truman up at his home to take him to the Truman Presidential Library for the interviews over a number of days, Susskind asked Truman why he hadn't been invited into the home. According to presidential historian Michael Beschloss, Truman flatly told Susskind, "This is Bess's house" and that there had never been nor would there ever be a Jewish guest in it.
Joyce Davidson, with whom Susskind was in a relationship, began working as a co-producer of a television talk show Susskind hosted locally in New York called Hot Line in June 1964. It was a different show from the Open End talk show. Hot Line was the first television show to use the recently invented ten-second broadcast delay. This gave the control room time to delete material deemed unfit for broadcast, especially from telephone call-ins. Davidson had a hand in the on-air version of the show and among other duties screened viewer phone calls. She also made the first approach to some of the people who appeared as guests on Hot Line, including Malcolm X, whom she invited for Hot Line immediately after he gave a speech at The Town Hall.
In a now notorious interview with then 25-year-old Muhammad Ali during a recently-unearthed 1968 appearance on the British program The Eamonn Andrews Show, Susskind displayed an intense antipathy and vitriol towards the famous boxer, whom he excoriated with withering criticism for refusing to be conscripted into the U.S. military for the Vietnam War. Some commentators have described this as a racist attack.
Producer
Susskind was also a noted producer, with scores of movies, plays, and TV programs to his credit. His legacy is that of a producer of intelligent material at a time when TV had left its golden years behind and had firmly planted its feet in programming which had wide appeal, whether or not it was worth watching. Among other projects, he produced television adaptations of Beyond This Place (1957), The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1958), The Moon and Sixpence (1960), Ages of Man (1966), Death of a Salesman (also 1966), Look Homeward, Angel (1972), The Glass Menagerie (1973), and Caesar and Cleopatra (1976); the television films Truman at Potsdam (1976), Eleanor and Franklin (1976), and Eleanor and Franklin: The White House Years (1977); and the feature films A Raisin in the Sun (1961), Requiem for a Heavyweight (1962), and Loving Couples (1980). In 1964, he produced Craig Stevens's acclaimed CBS drama Mr. Broadway, which left the air after thirteen episodes. He also produced and owned all the rights to the 1961 fourteen-episode macabre CBS TV series – Way Out. His production company, Talent Associates, also produced Get Smart.
Personal life
Susskind was married twice. Both of his marriages ended in divorce. In 1939, he married Phyllis Briskin; they had three children: Diana Susskind Laptook, Pamela Susskind Schaenen, and Andrew Susskind. They divorced in 1966. In the same year he married Joyce Davidson, who had two daughters from a prior marriage, Connie and Shelley. They had a daughter, Samantha Maria Susskind Mannion. They separated in 1982 and divorced in 1986.
Susskind was first cousin to television writer and producer Norman Lear.
Death
In 1987 at the age of 66, Susskind suffered a fatal heart attack in New York City, hours after Andy Warhol died, also in Manhattan. He was interred at Westchester Hills Cemetery in Hastings-on-Hudson, New York.
Legacy
Susskind was among those parodied in the Allan Sherman medley "Shticks and Stones," on Sherman's 1962 My Son, the Folk Singer album. In 1988, Susskind was inducted into the Television Hall of Fame.
Sources
- Battaglio, Stephen. David Susskind A Televised Life. St. Martin's Press. New York 2010. ISBN 978-0-312-38286-5
References
- ^ McFadden, Robert D. (February 23, 1987). "David Susskind, Talk-show Host, Dies at 66". The New York Times. Retrieved July 31, 2012.
David Susskind, the television producer and one of the country's earliest and best-known television talk-show hosts, was found dead, apparently of natural causes, yesterday afternoon in his hotel suite in midtown Manhattan. He was 66 years old. ... According to the police, Mr. Susskind had been under a doctor's care for a heart ailment and had been scheduled to enter Lenox Hill Hospital today.
- Battaglio, Stephen (12 October 2010). David Susskind: A Televised Life. St. Martin's Publishing. p. 251. ISBN 9781429946148.
- Susskind war service, oac.cdlib.org; accessed June 26, 2015.
- Bowie, Steven Classictvhistory.com retrieved July 20, 2015
- Gould, Jack (October 3, 1966). "TV: Return of Susskind; He Shows Up Again on Channel 5 With New Format, Kennedy and Seeger". The New York Times. p. 80.
- ^ Battaglio, Stephen (2010). "David Susskind: A Televised Life (excerpt; Chapter 1)". The New York Times.
- Bullough, Vern, ed. (2002) Before Stonewall: Activists for gay and lesbian rights in historical context. Page 247. Harrington Park Press; ISBN 1-56023-192-0
- Bowie, Steven Classictvhistory.com retrieved July 20, 2015 When Russian Premier Nikita Khruschchev appeared on the program during his 1961 visit to the United States, one critic accused Susskind of having "tried to tell Khrushchev how to run the Soviet Union."
- Beschloss, Michael (2007). Presidential Courage: Brave Leaders and How They Changed America 1789–1989. New York: Simon & Schuster. p. 210. ISBN 978-0-684-85705-3. Retrieved June 26, 2015.
- Bill, Siegel (2013). "The Trials of Muhammad Ali". Kartemquin Productions. Retrieved September 12, 2015.
- Battaglio, p. 8
- New York Times: "Pamela Susskind Is Married to Broker" May 6, 1974
- Battaglio, p. 152
- Battaglio, p. 260 "After the non-Jewish Joyce Davidson became Susskind's second wife, she learned how to bake challah bread to please her new mother-in-law"
- ^ Battaglio, p. 291
- New York Times: "WEDDINGS; Miss Susskind, Noel Mannion" March 7, 1993
- Battaglio, p. 334
- "Television Hall of Fame Honorees: Complete List". Retrieved June 26, 2015.
External links
- Museum of Broadcast Communications entry on David Susskind
- David Susskind at IMDb
- David Susskind Papers at the Wisconsin Center for Film and Theater Research.
- Speech by David Susskind given on February 15, 1970. Audio recording from The University of Alabama's Emphasis Symposium on Contemporary Issues
| Television Hall of Fame Class of 1988 | |
|---|---|
- 1920 births
- 1987 deaths
- University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni
- Harvard University alumni
- American television talk show hosts
- American film producers
- American television producers
- Jewish American military personnel
- Burials at Westchester Hills Cemetery
- 20th-century American businesspeople
- Brookline High School alumni
- 20th-century American Jews
- United States Navy personnel of World War II
- Jewish film people
- American talent agents