Week of June 10: The _________ Leonard Stern

By Sylvia Gurinsky

Leonard Stern, who died this week, will probably always be best known for creating "Mad Libs," the game in which millions (including Yours Truly) have had fun filling in the blanks.

But Stern also made a mark in television - most notably with two series.

The first was "Get Smart!" which ran on NBC from 1965-70 and starred Don Adams as bumbling (but effective) Agent 86, Maxwell Smart, and Barbara Feldon as Agent 99. Stern executive-produced the first three seasons and the series, created by Mel Brooks and Buck Henry, was a pointed spoof not only of the popular spy movies of the era, but of Washington:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o5NBIyPmB0g

In 1971, Stern created his greatest television success: "McMillan & Wife," which ran as part of the "NBC Mystery Movie" and starred Rock Hudson as San Francisco Police Commissioner Stewart McMillan and Susan Saint James as his wife, Sally. It was more "Thin Man" than "Law & Order," but audiences loved it. Here's a scene from the pilot, "Once Upon a Dead Man":

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_JCRJjO8It0

"McMillan & Wife" has been widely syndicated, and the first four seasons have been released on DVD so far. Season 5 is scheduled to be released next month.
Hudson and Saint James were delightful together, and the show is a lot of fun.

Leonard Stern's programs left us with a _______ on our faces. (In "Mad Libs," I would put "smile.")

See you next week. Until then, Happy Viewing!