Jack Elinson (April 21, 1922 – November 17, 2011) was an American producer and screenwriter.

Life and career

Elinson was born and raised in New York. He served in the army during World War II.^[1]

Elinson had sold a joke to Walter Winchell's newspaper column at the age of 16.^[2][3] He later wrote for radio programs,^[4] moving on to television programs in the 1950s, writing and producing episodes for The Danny Thomas Show with his brother.^[5] His credits include producing and writing for The Real McCoys, The Johnny Carson Show, The Colgate Comedy Hour, Hey, Jeannie!, and One Day At A Time.^[6]

In the 1960s and 1970s Elinson wrote for The Andy Griffith Show,^[7] Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C., Hogan's Heroes, The Doris Day Show and The Danny Thomas Show. In 1961 he was nominated for a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Writing Achievement in Comedy.^[8]

In 1985, Elinson was executive producer of the NBC sitcom television series 227.^[9] He retired in 1990, his last work being writing and developing the television series New Attitude.^{[citation needed]}

Death

Elinson died in November 2011 of natural causes at his home in Santa Monica, California, at the age of 89.^{[10][11][12][13][14]}