Bob Finkel obit

TV director-producer Robert Finkel dies at 94

 He was not on the list.

Emmy Award-winning TV director and producer Robert Finkel has died. He was 94.

Publicist Dale Olson said Friday that Finkel died April 30 of age-related complications at his home in Beverly Hills, Calif.

In his long career, Finkel produced TV series with Andy Williams, Jerry Lewis, Phyllis Diller and other stars. Finkel won a Peabody Award for a show with Julie Andrews and directed sitcoms including "Barney Miller" and "The Bob Newhart Show."

Finkel also produced specials with Bing Crosby, Elvis Presley and John Denver, among others.

A Pittsburgh, Pa., native, Finkel is survived by family members including his daughter, Terry.

Finkel's began his professional career in show business as the director of an episode of ABC's Mysteries of Chinatown in 1950. From there Finkel continued his career becoming well known for producing, directing and even writing credits on such programs as The Colgate Comedy Hour, Gruen Guild Theater, City Detective and The People’s Choice Awards. Finkel stepped into the producer’s role in 1959 on NBC's The Dinah Shore Chevy Show, a series he continued to produce and direct for the next several years. His career as a producer would crest over the next decade and a half, as he produced The Andy Williams Show during the mid-1960s.

During his latter career, Finkel worked as a writer and producer for several specials for celebrities such as Elvis Presley, Bing Crosby, Wayne Newton and John Denver. During this same time period of the 1970s and 1980s, Finkel directed episodes of Barney Miller, The Bob Newhart Show and Circus of the Stars.

Finkel's last credit was as the director of the 1996 made-for-television movie Have You Seen My Son.

Director

Circus of the Stars #10

5.2

TV Special

Director

1985

 

The Winning Hand (1985)

The Winning Hand

7.3

TV Movie

Director

1985

 

Rock Hudson and Susan Saint James in McMillan & Wife (1971)

McMillan & Wife

7.2

TV Series

Director

1975–1977

3 episodes

 

Ron Carey, Max Gail, Ron Glass, James Gregory, Steve Landesberg, Hal Linden, and Jack Soo in Barney Miller (1975)

Barney Miller

8.3

TV Series

Director

1975

1 episode

 

The Bob Newhart Show (1972)

The Bob Newhart Show

8.1

TV Series

Director

1975

1 episode

 

The Chevy Show (1960)

The Chevy Show

7.2

TV Series

Director

1961

1 episode

 

The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (1956)

The Dinah Shore Chevy Show

8.1

TV Series

Director

1959–1961

24 episodes

 

Some of Manie's Friends (1959)

Some of Manie's Friends

8.0

TV Movie

Director

1959

 

Eddie Fisher in The Eddie Fisher Show (1957)

The Eddie Fisher Show

7.0

TV Series

Director

1958–1959

4 episodes

 

The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show (1956)

The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show

7.7

TV Series

Director

1958

1 episode

 

Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall (1948)

Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall

7.5

TV Series

Director

1956–1958

3 episodes

 

Sneak Preview

6.6

TV Series

Director

1956

1 episode

 

The Dinah Shore Show (1951)

The Dinah Shore Show

6.8

TV Series

Director (as Robert S. Finkel)

1956

1 episode

 

The People's Choice (1955)

The People's Choice

8.0

TV Series

Director

1956

7 episodes

 

The Colgate Comedy Hour (1950)

The Colgate Comedy Hour

7.7

TV Series

Director

1955

4 episodes

 

The Great Gildersleeve (1954)

The Great Gildersleeve

6.8

TV Series

Director (as Robert S. Finkel)

1955

1 episode

 

And Here's the Show

TV Series

Director (as Robert S. Finkel)

1955

2 episodes

 

City Detective (1953)

City Detective

7.7

TV Series

Director (as Robert S. Finkel)

1954–1955

3 episodes

 

Jack Carson in The Jack Carson Show (1954)

The Jack Carson Show

TV Series

Director

1955

2 episodes

 

The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse (1953)

The Pepsi-Cola Playhouse

7.9

TV Series

Director (as Robert S. Finkel)

1954

1 episode

 

The Orchid Award

TV Series

Director

1953–1954

3 episodes

 

Joseph Schildkraut Presents

TV Series

Director

1953

1 episode

 

Natalie Wood, Paul Hartman, Robert Hyatt, and Fay Wray in The Pride of the Family (1953)

The Pride of the Family

7.8

TV Series

Director (as Robert S. Finkel)

1953

1 episode

 

Chevron Theatre (1952)

Chevron Theatre

6.1

TV Series

Director

1952–1953

17 episodes

 

Personal Appearance Theater

TV Series

Director

1952

2 episodes

 

Mysteries of Chinatown

TV Series

Director (as Robert S. Finkel)

1950

49 episodes

 

Producer

Have You Seen My Son (1996)

Have You Seen My Son

5.4

TV Movie

producer

1996

 

Circus of the Stars #13

6.6

TV Special

producer

1988

 

Circus of the Stars #12

6.0

TV Special

producer

1987

 

Circus of the Stars #11

6.1

TV Special

producer

1986

 

The Wildest West Show of the Stars

8.5

TV Special

producer

1986

 

Circus of the Stars #10

5.2

TV Special

producer

1985

 

Circus of the Stars #9

4.9

TV Special

producer

1984

 

John Denver with His Special Guest George Burns: Two of a Kind

6.8

TV Special

producer

1981

 

Circus of the Stars #5

6.1

TV Special

producer

1980

 

The Jimmy McNichol Special

TV Special

producer

1980

 

John Denver in John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together (1979)

John Denver and the Muppets: A Christmas Together

7.8

TV Special

producer

1979

 

The People's Command Performance

TV Special

producer

1978

 

The John Davidson Christmas Show

4.6

TV Special

producer

1977

 

Janelle Commissiong in Miss Universe Pageant (1977)

Miss Universe Pageant

7.0

TV Special

producer

1977

 

The Chevy Chase Show

5.7

TV Special

producer

1977

 

Miss Universe Pageant (1976)

Miss Universe Pageant

7.2

TV Special

executive producer

1976

 

Christmas with the Bing Crosbys

6.4

TV Special

executive producer

1974

 

Lily

TV Movie

producer

1974

 

Doctor Dan

7.8

TV Movie

producer

1974

 

Sally Struthers and Perry Como in The Perry Como Winter Show (1973)

The Perry Como Winter Show

TV Special

producer

1973

 

The Perry Como Winter Show (1972)

The Perry Como Winter Show

TV Special

executive producer

1972

 

Sid Caesar in Zenith Presents: A Salute to Television's 25th Anniversary (1972)

Zenith Presents: A Salute to Television's 25th Anniversary

TV Special

executive producer

1972

 

The 24th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards

6.6

TV Special

producer

1972

 

The 44th Annual Academy Awards (1972)

The 44th Annual Academy Awards

6.5

TV Special

executive producer: NBC (as Robert Finkel)

1972

 

Bing Crosby and His Friends

TV Special

producer

1972

 

Bing Crosby and the Sounds of Christmas (1971)

Bing Crosby and the Sounds of Christmas

7.6

TV Movie

executive producer

1971

 

Perry Como's Winter Show

TV Special

producer

1971

 

The Mickie Finn Special

TV Special

producer

1971

 

The 23rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards (1971)

The 23rd Annual Primetime Emmy Awards

7.4

TV Special

executive producer

1971

 

The Pearl Bailey Show (1971)

The Pearl Bailey Show

6.2

TV Series

producer

1971

1 episode

 

Bing Crosby - Cooling It

TV Special

executive producer

1970

 

The Jerry Lewis Show (1967)

The Jerry Lewis Show

6.3

TV Series

producer

executive producer

1967–1969

17 episodes

 

Elvis Presley in Elvis: The Comeback Special (1968)

Elvis: The Comeback Special

8.9

TV Special

executive producer

1968

 

The Beautiful Phyllis Diller Show

8.2

TV Series

executive producer

1968

3 episodes

 

Richard Harris and Eva Marie Saint in The 24th Annual Golden Globe Awards (1967)

The 24th Annual Golden Globe Awards

TV Special

producer

1967

 

The Andy Williams Show (1962)

The Andy Williams Show

7.4

TV Series

producer

1962–1966

15 episodes

 

Mickie Finn's

8.2

TV Series

executive producer

1966

2 episodes

 

The 23rd Annual Golden Globe Awards (1966)

The 23rd Annual Golden Globe Awards

TV Special

producer

1966

 

Ice Capades of 1966

TV Special

executive producer

1965

 

The Julie Andrews Show (1965)

The Julie Andrews Show

8.7

TV Special

executive producer

1965

 

The 22nd Annual Golden Globe Awards (1965)

The 22nd Annual Golden Globe Awards

TV Special

producer

1965

 

Robert Cummings in The Bob Cummings Show (1961)

The Bob Cummings Show

7.2

TV Series

producer

1961

2 episodes

 

The Chevy Show (1960)

The Chevy Show

7.2

TV Series

producer

1961

1 episode

 

The Dinah Shore Chevy Show (1956)

The Dinah Shore Chevy Show

8.1

TV Series

producer

1959–1961

19 episodes

 

The 12th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards

TV Special

producer

1960

 

Some of Manie's Friends (1959)

Some of Manie's Friends

8.0

TV Movie

producer

1959

 

Eddie Fisher in The Eddie Fisher Show (1957)

The Eddie Fisher Show

7.0

TV Series

producer

1958–1959

2 episodes

 

The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show (1956)

The Tennessee Ernie Ford Show

7.7

TV Series

producer

1958

1 episode

 

Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall (1948)

Perry Como's Kraft Music Hall

7.5

TV Series

producer

1957–1958

5 episodes

 

The Dinah Shore Show (1951)

The Dinah Shore Show

6.8

TV Series

producer (as Robert S. Finkel)

1956

1 episode

 

The Colgate Comedy Hour (1950)

The Colgate Comedy Hour

7.7

TV Series

producer

1955

1 episode

 

And Here's the Show

TV Series

producer (as Robert S. Finkel)

1955

2 episodes

 

Jack Carson in The Jack Carson Show (1954)

The Jack Carson Show

TV Series

producer

1955

2 episodes