Perry Rosemond, Order of Canada Recipient and “King of Kensington” Creator, Dies at 89
He was not on the list.
Perry Rosemond, the Canadian television writer, producer, and director whose four-decade career spanned some of the country’s most enduring programming, died on August 20, 2026, at the age of 89.
Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, on November 15, 1936, Rosemond began his career as a stage and television performer, becoming a founding member of John Hirsch’s Manitoba Theatre Centre at age 18 before moving into producing, directing, and writing. His A&E production of the Broadway play ‘Cold Storage,’ starring Len Cariou and Martin Balsam, earned him an ACE Award, and he went on to produce screen adaptations including ‘Breakfast with Les and Bess,’ starring Dick Van Dyke and Cloris Leachman, and ‘Some Men Need Help,’ with Treat Williams and Philip Bosco. He also produced the PBS series ‘Meeting of Minds,’ which won a Peabody Award.
Rosemond’s American television work spanned a remarkable range of programming, including the groundbreaking PBS series ‘Freestyle,’ which explored androgyny; a four-hour ABC Silver Anniversary Celebration featuring Julie Andrews and John Wayne; the sitcom ‘Good Times’; and series and specials for Steve Martin, Billy Crystal, Tom Jones, Richard Pryor, Donny and Marie, Dean Martin, Howie Mandel, and Johnny Cash. He also produced dramatizations of the lives of Marilyn Monroe and Ava Gardner for the series ‘Hollywood’s Most Sensational Mysteries,’ along with syndicated programs including Norm Crosby’s ‘Comedy Shop’ and ‘Starting from Scratch,’ starring Bill Daily and Connie Stevens.
As head of CBC Television’s school and pre-school programming, Rosemond created ‘Through the Eyes of Tomorrow,’ a show that put high school students at every level of production and helped inspire many young people to pursue broadcast journalism careers, and ‘Children of the World,’ a CBC, PBS, and United Nations co-production examining children’s lives in developing nations that reached a worldwide audience of 600 million and won the Japan Prize for Best Children’s Program, a project Rosemond considered among his proudest achievements.
Rosemond served as executive producer of the landmark children’s programs ‘Mr. Dressup’ and ‘The Friendly Giant,’ and when the CBC was permitted to adapt ‘Sesame Street’ for Canadian audiences, he produced and wrote a version incorporating segments reflecting bilingual Canadians and First Nations communities. He created and wrote TVOntario’s very first broadcasts and directed several episodes of the first season of Jim Henson’s ‘Fraggle Rock.’
In documentary and public affairs programming, Rosemond produced the CBC flagship series ‘The Way It Is’ and the ACTRA Award-winning three-part documentary ‘Centennial,’ and directed profiles for CBC’s ‘Telescope’ series on figures including Oscar Peterson, Arthur Hailey, Gordon Pinsent, Glenn Gould, Ray Bradbury, and Donald Sutherland. His NBC documentary work included “The Silver Ghetto,” on aging in America, and “No Place To Die,” on overpopulation, and he scripted “Outer City: Inner Conflict” for the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights. As president of Molstar Productions, he oversaw production of ‘Hockey Night in Canada,’ the Molson Indy, and the Molson Grand Prix.
Rosemond’s most enduring contribution to Canadian television came when he was asked to develop a new comedy series for CBC, resulting in ‘King of Kensington,’ which he created, casting Al Waxman in the title role and Fiona Reid as his wife. The ACTRA Award-winning series ran for five seasons and became a landmark in Canadian television history. On CTV’s ‘The David Steinberg Show,’ Rosemond gave television debuts to numerous performers who went on to major careers, including John Candy, Andrea Martin, Martin Short, Joe Flaherty, and Dave Thomas, and served as writer-story editor on both series, ultimately writing more than 200 scripts across his career. He also directed ‘Royal Canadian Air Farce’ for fifteen seasons, executive produced the Juno Awards and the Genie Awards, and produced a tribute to Gilda Radner in support of ovarian cancer research. In 1988, he produced the Calgary Olympics Arts Festival starring Anne Murray. His most recent major work, ‘When Jews Were Funny,’ won Best Canadian Feature Film at the 2013 Toronto International Film Festival.
Rosemond earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Manitoba and completed post-graduate studies in television production at Ryerson University. He went on to teach television production and writing at Humber College, Seneca College, the University of Southern California, and Brigham Young University, and served on the advisory committees of the Humber School of Comedy and The Walrus magazine. He was also a founding board member of the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame.
Across a career that helped define children’s programming, comedy, and public affairs television in Canada, Rosemond’s work earned him both the Order of Canada and the George Foster Peabody Award, and his influence on generations of Canadian broadcasting and comedic talent remains deeply woven into the country’s television history.
Work in the United States has included the PBS series, Freestyle, a groundbreaking series on androgyny; the four-hour ABC Silver Anniversary Celebration featuring Julie Andrews and John Wayne; the situation comedy Good Times; series and specials for Steve Martin, Billy Crystal, Tom Jones, Richard Pryor, Donny and Marie, Dean Martin, Howie Mandel and Johnny Cash; and Hollywood's Most Sensational Mysteries, including dramatizations of the lives of Marilyn Monroe and Ava Gardner. Syndicated series include Norm Crosby's Comedy Shop and Starting from Scratch, starring Bill Daily and Connie Stevens.
As head of CBC Television's School and Pre-School programs, he created and produced Through the Eyes of Tomorrow, a show that featured high school students at every level of production and inspired many teens to enter the field of broadcast journalism, and Children of the World for CBC, PBS and the United Nations. It examined the lives of children in developing nations and was seen by a worldwide audience of 600 million. It won the Japan Prize as 'Best Children's Program' and remains one of Rosemond's proudest achievements.
He was executive producer of the landmark children's shows Mr. Dressup and The Friendly Giant and when CBC was allowed to alter the look of Sesame Street, he produced and wrote a Canadian edition of the series that included segments reflecting bilingual Canadians and First Nations Canadians. He created and wrote the very first telecasts for TVOntario and directed several episodes in the first season of Jim Henson's Fraggle Rock.
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