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((Short description|American television personality (1929–2018)))
((more citations needed|date=December 2018))
((Infobox person
| name        = Lee Leonard<!-- include middle initial, if not specified in birth_name -->
| image       = <!-- just the filename, without the File: or Image: prefix or enclosing [[brackets]] -->
| alt         = 
| caption     = 
| birth_name  = Maxwell Lefkowitz
| birth_date  = ((Birth date|1929|04|03))
| birth_place = [[New York City|New York City, New York]], U.S.
| death_date  = ((Death date and age|2018|12|16|1929|4|3))
| death_place = [[South Orange, New Jersey]], U.S.
| nationality = American
| other_names = 
| occupation   = Radio and TV personality
| known_for  = 
| spouse      = Rona Rosenberg<br>(((abbr|m.|married)) 195?; ((abbr|div.|divorced)) 196?)<br>[[Salome Jens]]<br>(((abbr|m.|married)) 196?; ((abbr|div.|divorced)) 19??)<br>((marriage|[[Kelly Bishop]]<br>|1981))
| children    = 1
))
'''Lee Leonard''' (April 3, 1929 – December 16, 2018) was an [[Television in the United States|American television]] [[television host|personality]] who was involved in the launch of cable television networks [[ESPN]] and [[CNN]].

==Early life==
Leonard was born Maxwell Lefkowitz on April 3, 1929, in New York City, the son of Estelle (Cohn), a beautician, and Daniel Lefkowitz.<ref name=nytre1>((Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/12/18/obituaries/lee-leonard-dead.html|title = Lee Leonard, TV Sports Show Host Who Ushered in ESPN, Dies at 89|newspaper = The New York Times|date = 18 December 2018|last1 = Sandomir|first1 = Richard))</ref> 

After graduating from [[DeWitt Clinton High School]] in the Bronx, he attended Columbia University in New York City but did not graduate.<ref name=nytre1/>

Leonard then served in the United States Army in Germany during the Korean War and developed an interest in  broadcasting.<ref name=nytre1/>

He was a midday radio personality on New York's [[WFAN (AM)|WNBC-AM]] (660), shortly after it launched its "Conversation Station," a talk format, in 1964. He was part of a weekday talk-variety lineup that included "Big" Wilson, [[Robert Alda]], [[Mimi Benzell]], [[Sterling Yates]], [[Bill Mazer]], [[Brad Crandall]] and [[Long John Nebel]] and hosted a competition/quiz show for listeners called ''[[Fortune Phone]]''.

==At CBS and NBC==
In the early 1970s, Leonard was part of an even earlier network TV innovation, partnering on [[CBS|CBS-TV]] with [[Jack Whitaker (sportscaster)|Jack Whitaker]] on ''[[The NFL on CBS]]'', a studio-based show wrapping around the network's coverage of the [[National Football League]] with pregame features and halftime and postgame highlights from around the league. As producers changed, Leonard and Whitaker were eventually succeeded by ''[[The NFL Today]]'' with [[Brent Musburger]], [[Phyllis George]], [[Jimmy "The Greek" Snyder]] and [[Irv Cross]] on one of network TV sports' longest-running studio-based programs. The core of the team would stay until the mid-1980s, while the show itself has aired continuously ever since, except for several years in the 1990s when CBS did not have NFL television rights.

As for Leonard, he would move to NBC and be teamed with [[Bryant Gumbel]] on its ''[[The NFL on NBC Pregame Show#GrandStand|GrandStand]]'' show((Citation needed|date=September 2008)), where he would stay until just before ESPN was launched. Also during the mid-1970s, Leonard hosted ''Midday Live'', the daily talk show on WNEW-TV (now [[WNYW]]) in New York City (he was replaced by [[Bill Boggs]]). While at WNEW, Leonard was one of the original co-hosts with Bill Mazer of ''[[Sports Extra]]'' – considered a pioneering show for the Sunday Evening Sports Wrap-Up show format.

==At ESPN and CNN==
((see also|History_of_ESPN#Debut))

On September 7, 1979, Leonard was the first person to ever speak on [[ESPN]].<ref name="ESPN20">((cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=2cIgAAAAIBAJ&sjid=kWoFAAAAIBAJ&pg=2878,1316494&dq=lee-leonard+espn&hl=en|title=ESPN celebrates 20 years of reshaping sports on TV|last=Crowe|first=Steve|date=September 7, 1999|work=Sun Journal|pages=C4|accessdate=30 April 2010|location=Lewiston, Maine))</ref> He gave a brief introduction before the network aired its first program, which was the first edition of SportsCenter. Afterwards, he made occasional appearances on the show.<ref>((cite news|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=AYsNAAAAIBAJ&sjid=GXADAAAAIBAJ&pg=6690,772889&dq=lee-leonard+softball&hl=en|title=20 years later, ESPN no longer a little sport|last=Finder|first=Chuck|work=The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette|pages=D8|accessdate=30 April 2010))</ref>

A year later (1980), Leonard moved to [[CNN]], where he hosted ''People Tonight,'' the network's first Los Angeles–based live [[entertainment]] news talk show. Many of today's major name celebrities made their first national talk show appearances on ''People Tonight'', including [[Tom Cruise]], [[Tom Hanks]] and [[Pee-wee Herman]]. The show was groundbreaking in its coverage of Hollywood [[red carpet]] premieres and many important breaking stories including the deaths of [[John Lennon]] and [[Natalie Wood]]. [[Robin Leach]] cut his teeth as a New York–based correspondent before signing on to do ''[[Entertainment Tonight]]'' and later launching the pop culture hit series, ''[[Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous]].'' In the mid-to-late 1980s, Leonard co-hosted CNN's weekday entertainment-news program "[[Showbiz Today]]" with [[Liz Wickersham]].

==Later career==
From 1996 to approximately 2002, Lee Leonard hosted ''[[Jersey's Talking]]'' on News 12 New Jersey.<ref>((cite web |title=News 12 New Jersey's first anchor Lee Leonard dies at age 89 |url=http://newjersey.news12.com/story/39664885/news-12-new-jerseys-first-anchor-lee-leonard-dies-at-age-89 |website=newjersey.news12.com |accessdate=24 July 2019))</ref> Leonard also hosted a [[Public affairs programming|public affairs]] program on the New Jersey–based cable network [[CN8]].

==Personal life==
Leonard was married to actress [[Kelly Bishop]], who played [[Emily Gilmore]] on the [[The CW Television Network|CW]] show ''[[Gilmore Girls]]'' as well as Marjorie Houseman in ''[[Dirty Dancing]]''. He was married twice previously, including once to actress [[Salome Jens]]. He had one daughter. He died in South Orange, New Jersey, on December 16, 2018.<ref name=nytre1/>

==References==
((Reflist))

((CNN Anchors))
((The NFL on NBC pregame show))

((authority control))

((DEFAULTSORT:Leonard, Lee))
[[Category:1929 births]]
[[Category:2018 deaths]]
[[Category:Television personalities from New York City]]
[[Category:People from South Orange, New Jersey]]
[[Category:American television sports announcers]]
[[Category:National Football League announcers]]
[[Category:College basketball announcers in the United States]]
[[Category:College football announcers]]
[[Category:CNN people]]

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