Donald Shepard Hewitt
USA- Biography of Donald Shepard Hewitt
- Early Life
- Journalism Career
- Television Production
- 60 Minutes and Later Life
Biography of Donald Shepard Hewitt
Donald Shepard Hewitt was an American television producer, best known as one of the creators of the program "60 Minutes," a popular news magazine show on CBS. At the time of his death, "60 Minutes" was considered the longest-running prime-time show of its kind on American television.
Early Life
Donald Hewitt was born in New York City to Frida Hewitt (née Pike) and Elay Hewitt. His father was a Jewish immigrant from Russia, while his mother was of German-Jewish descent. Shortly after his birth, his family moved to Boston, Massachusetts, where his father worked as an advertising manager for the "Boston Herald American." The family later lived in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and New Rochelle, New York, where Donald attended a local school and even had his own sports column.
Journalism Career
After graduating from New York University, Hewitt pursued a career in journalism. In 1942, he found a position at the "New York Herald Tribune." In 1943, Donald joined the United States Marine Corps as part of the Marine Corps Combat Correspondents. When World War II ended in 1945, Hewitt returned to the "New York Herald Tribune" in his previous role. He then briefly worked for "The Associated Press" in Memphis, Tennessee but his wife insisted on returning to New York. Following her wishes, Hewitt found a position at the photo agency "ACME Newspictures," later acquired by "United Press International."
Television Production
After some time, representatives from CBS contacted Hewitt, as they were looking for an experienced employee for a producer position. He started in the news division of the company and spent fourteen years as the director-producer. Hewitt became the first director of the show "See It Now," which launched in 1952. He suggested using two projectors with alternating images and zooms to break the monotony of continuous news reading. In 1956, Donald captured the final moments of the ship "Andrea Doria." In the 1960s, he hosted televised debates between presidential candidates Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy, which received significant coverage on television.
60 Minutes and Later Life
Hewitt went on to become the executive producer of the show "Evening News with Walter Cronkite," where he covered the legendary assassination of John F. Kennedy and the events that followed. It was after this that Donald launched his main project, "60 Minutes." The program earned eight Emmy Awards and solidified its place as one of the top ten most popular television shows nationally.
In 1996, Hewitt became one of the key figures in the tobacco industry scandal, which was later depicted in a film released in 1999. As the popularity of "60 Minutes" declined over time, it was decided to move Donald to other projects. In March 2009, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, which ultimately led to his death. Donald passed away on August 19, 2009, at his home in Bridgehampton, New York. He was survived by his wife, Marilyn Berger, and four children. In January 2010, a special episode of "60 Minutes" dedicated to Donald Hewitt's biography was released.
