Subject: David Lloyd, 'Chuckles Bites the Dust' Writer Dies >From: "Matthew Kruk" <[email protected]> >Newsgroups: alt.obituaries >Subject: David Lloyd, 'Chuckles Bites the Dust' Writer Dies >Date: Wed, 11 Nov 2009 17:16:24 -0700
http://www.thewrap.com/ind-column/chuckles-bites-dust-writer-dies-9984 Published on The Wrap (http://www.thewrap.com) November 11, 2009, 4:12PM CST By: Brent Lang 'Chuckles Bites the Dust' Writer Dies The writer of "Chuckles Bites the Dust," the classic "Mary Tyler Moore Show" episode that saw the crew at WJM-TV, struggling to contain the urge to joke about the comic circumstances surrounding the death of their station colleague, Chuckles the Clown, has himself passed on. As viewers will remember, in the popular 70's sitcom, Chuckles was shucked by an elephant while wearing a peanut costume in a parade. In the episodes end, Moore, who had previously lectured her stationmates for poking fun, finds herself erupting in laughter during the minister's eulogy. David Lloyd, who received an Emmy Award in 1976 for penning what is routinely ranked as one of the top television episodes of all-time, died on Wednesday after a long illness. In a tribute to Lloyd on his personal blog, friend and "Cheers" co-writer Ken Levine wrote: "Most of what I learned about rewriting and pitching in a room I learned from observing David Lloyd. There's never been anybody like him. He was a cyclone. Once a week, on his night to consult, he'd sweep into the room (wearing his customary white shirt with red pin stripes) and completely dominate it. Always bringing positive energy, very strong opinions (about EVERYTHING), hilarious anecdotes, and the jokes that would get the best laughs in the show." In a career that spanned over thirty years, Lloyd would go on to receive two more Emmy awards (one more for his work on "Mary Tyler Moore" and another for "Frasier") and 10 nominations. He also wrote for "The Bob Newhart Show," "Cheers," "Wings," and "Taxi." Lloyd's son Christopher, joined his father in the writer's room as the showrunner for "Frasier" and later the creator of ABC's new hit "Modern Family." Lloyd, a Yale graduate, got his start crafting jokes for Jack Paar and "The Tonight Show" in New York before moving west to work on Moore's show. Though he would go on to further critical and commercial success, it was his existentially brilliant work on "Chuckles" that ensured him television immortality. Don't believe it, watch for yourself. "Chuckles" funeral below: Source URL: http://www.thewrap.com/ind-column/chuckles-bites-dust-writer-dies-9984 Links: [1] http://www.thewrap.com/users/brentlang [2] http://www.thewrap.com/column/obits [3] http://kenlevine.blogspot.com/2009/11/in-memory-of-david-lloyd.html --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "World News Now Discussion List" group. To post to this group, send email to [email protected] To unsubscribe from this group, send email to [email protected] For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/wnndl?hl=en -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
