Movie critic Gene Shalit, who turned a staple of As we speak because of his bubbly persona, walrus mustache, and love for wordplay, died on Friday, June 12. In an announcement given to NBC Information by his household, the beloved TV persona “handed away peacefully at present after 100 years of an incredible life.”
A fixture on As we speak for 4 a long time, Shalit started his profession at NBC as a contributor in 1970 earlier than becoming a member of this system full-time three years later. His upbeat persona and distinctive model helped him stand out from different tv movie critics of the period, rapidly making him a family identify as The As we speak Present‘s lead film reviewer. By means of the present’s “Critics Nook” section, he turned identified for sharing his love (or disdain) for brand new films with a well-placed pun. His evaluations entertained audiences for many years and made him one among tv’s most recognizable movie critics.
Born on March 25, 1926, in New York Metropolis, Shalit was a journalist and held the place of senior movie critic for Look Journal, and wrote the “What’s Occurring” web page for Women House Journal for a dozen years. Through the years, he revealed articles in The New York Instances, Cosmopolitan, TV Information, Seventeen, Glamour, and McCall’s.
Throughout his profession, he stood out from different critics because of his love of wordplay alongside along with his trademark fuzzy mustache and hair. In his evaluate of Ishtar, he famously quipped, “Ishtar-ish tarrible!” He praised Stand by Me by saying it was totally different from different Y.A. films “as a result of as an alternative of grossing you out, Stand by Me is engrossing,” and warned audiences that Hudson Hawk was “terrible, spelled o-f-f-a-l.”
Shalit retired from As we speak in 2010, and in a touching tribute, former co-host Meredith Vieira mentioned, “It’s onerous to think about not having him right here. He is the As we speak present.”
In line with his official As we speak profile, Shalit’s 40-year run on the present was one of many longest steady tenures by any particular person on a every day community tv program, making him one of the vital enduring personalities in TV historical past.
Shalit was married to Nancy Lewis for 28 years, from 1950 till her demise in 1978.
