Former CBS, ABC, NBC Executive Fred Silverman Dies At 82

Silverman Passes

The passing of FRED SILVERMAN, the legendary television programming executive, has received mostly coverage of his ground-breaking tenures at the helm of CBS and ABC and his rocky experience at NBC, but SILVERMAN, who died THURSDAY (1/30) at his home in PACIFIC PALISADES, CA of cancer at 82, was also influential in radio, as recalled by one of his NBC radio executives and friends, consultant and radio host WALTER SABO.

SILVERMAN oversaw NBC's radio division as well as its TV operations as President/CEO in 1978-81, with SABO in charge of the company's then-beleaguered FM division. SABO, in a piece at MEDIA VILLAGE, writes that SILVERMAN "committed research dollars, vast capital investment in studios and equipment and an insistence on hiring superior talent" for the FM stations to develop what became the modern Adult Contemporary format, first at WYNY/NEW YORK and then across the country.

"He believed in the under-nourished medium of FM and blessed the hiring of world class GMs and talent including DAN DANIEL, DICK SUMMER, DON BLEU, ART ROBERTS, JOEL SEBASTIAN, CATHERINE SMITH and TOM PARKER," SABO writes, adding that SILVERMAN was also supportive of DONNIE SIMPSON's wildly successful launch of the Urban format at WKYS/WASHINGTON. "Thanks for my career, FRED," SABO, who hosts a weekend show for WESTWOOD ONE as WALTER STERLING, concludes. "You were the best radio programmer who ever lived."

Read SABO's tribute by clicking here.

SILVERMAN, who was hired out of SYRACUSE UNIVERSITY by WGN-TV/CHICAGO, then joined CBS and implemented the network's "rural purge" replacing the Country-themed sitcom and variety lineup with shows like "ALL IN THE FAMILY," "THE MARY TYLER MOORE SHOW," and "M*A*S*H." He moved to ABC in 1975 and led that network's rise from a distant third place to the top of the ratings and prompting beneficial affiliation switches in several markets. His NBC tenure was less successful, with several flops including the infamous "SUPERTRAIN" along with successes like "HILL STREET BLUES," but he followed that with several hits from his own production company aimed at the older audience ("MATLOCK," "JAKE AND THE FATMAN," "THE FATHER DOWLING MYSTERIES," "DIAGNOSIS: MURDER").

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