Jay Sommers
Jay Sommers (January 3, 1917September 25, 1985) was an American producer, director and comedy writer whose career spanned four decades. He wrote more than 90 television comedy episodes, produced 63, and was creator and producer of the Green Acres television show. He also wrote for and executive produced Petticoat Junction during its second and third seasons, and also worked for The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.
Jay Sommers
- Name
- Jay Sommers
- Born
- 3 January 1917
- Birthplace
- Troy, New York, U.S.
- Died
- 25 September 1985
- Place of death
- Los Angeles, California, U.S.
- Nationality
- United States
- Occupation
- film director · writer · screenwriter · television producer
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Documentary summary
Jay Sommers (January 3, 1917September 25, 1985) was an American producer, director and comedy writer whose career spanned four decades. He wrote more than 90 television comedy episodes, produced 63, and was creator and producer of the Green Acres television show. He also wrote for and executive produced Petticoat Junction during its second and third seasons, and also worked for The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet.
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Jay Sommers (1917–1985) was a film director, screenwriter and television producer, among other activities, of American nationality. The film director was born in Troy and died in Los Angeles.
Composed from admitted, traceable facts · 27 September 2026
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wikidata · Q3163264 · wikipedia · Jay Sommers
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Jay Sommers • Born — 3 January 1917 • Birthplace — Troy, New York, U.S. • Died — 25 September 1985 • Place of death — Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Early years
Early years
Sommers studied chemistry at City College of New York before becoming a comedy writer.
Career
Career
In 1940, he got a break by being brought in to write for a Milton Berle radio show. (Berle at the time was one of the most popular radio personalities.) He wrote for The Alan Young Show, Eddie Cantor, Spike Jones, and Red Skelton on the radio, and for the radio comedy series Lum and Abner. In 1950, he was the producer, writer and director for the Granby's Green Acres radio show. Although it only ran for two months, it later served as the basis for the highly successful Green Acres television show that he created 15 years later, on which he served as main producer and writer. His first television work was in 1955, as a writer for The Great Gildersleeve. He wrote three episodes of Hello, Larry toward the end of his life. He is credited for the story and screenplay for the movie Gordy, released 10 years after his death.
Pilot
Pilot
Sommers produced, created and co-wrote Pioneer Spirit, a pilot that was broadcast on NBC television July 21, 1969.
Recognition
Recognition
In 1984, the USC School of Cinematic Arts honored Sommers by giving a retrospective of Green Acres.
Death
Death
Sommers died of a heart disease September 25, 1985, at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California. He was survived by his wife, five sons and a grandson.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Troy.
Birth place
Los Angeles.
Death place
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Farming's Fun On Green Acres. The Bristol Daily Courier. 31. October 30, 1965.
- 2.Sies, Luther F. (2014). Encyclopedia of American Radio, 1920-1960, 2nd Edition, Volume 1. McFarland & Company, Inc. . P. 16.
- 3.Dunning, John. On the Air: The Encyclopedia of Old-Time Radio. Oxford University Press. 289. 1998. 978-0-19-507678-3.
- 4.Westhoff, Jeffrey. Bea. Nostalgia Digest. 40. 1. 42–48. Winter 2014.
- 5.NBC-TV to test six series ideas. Broadcasting. 57. May 26, 1969.
- 6.Six Pilot Projects Slated This Summer. Pottstown Mercury. 25. May 31, 1969.
- 7.Deaths. Broadcasting. 94. October 7, 1985.
- 8.Folkart, Burt A. 'Lum and Abner,' 'Green Acres' Among Credits : Jay Sommers, Prolific Writer for Radio, TV Shows, Dies at 68. Los Angeles Times. September 28, 1985.
References
Citations
References
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The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 05 September 2026.
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