Leonard Katzman

 Leonard Katzman (September 2, 1927 – September 5, 1996)

He began his career in the 1940s, while still in his teens, working as an assistant director for his uncle, Hollywood producer Sam Katzman. He started out on adventure movie serials such as Brenda Starr, Reporter (1945), Superman (1948), Batman and Robin (1949), The Great Adventures of Captain Kidd (1951), Riding with Buffalo Bill (1954), et al. During the 1950s he continued working as assistant director, mostly with his uncle. In 1960, Katzman made his production debut, serving not only as assistant director, but also as associate producer, on all four seasons of adventure drama Route 66 (1960-1964). He went on to produce, direct and write Gunsmoke, for which he won the Western Heritage Award for the episode "Pike." He also produced the television series Hawaii Five-O. In 1978, Katzman served as producer for the five-part miniseries Dallas, which would evolve into one of television's longest running dramas, lasting until 1991. While the series was created by David Jacobs, Katzman became the de facto show runner during the second season of the show, as Jacobs stepped down to create and later run Dallas spin-off series Knots Landing. His last work was the 1996 "Dallas" reunion movie J.R. Returns, which he also wrote and directed. Leonard Katzman and his wife, LaRue had three children. His daughter, actress Sherril Lynn Rettino (1956-1995), predeceased her father by one year. Katzman died of a heart attack in Malibu, California on September 5, 1996, three days after his 69th birthday. He is buried at Mount Sinai Memorial Park in Los Angeles.