George Newall, who was an advertising agency creative director in the early 1970s when he helped create what would become one of TV’s most beloved and educational children’s titles with Schoolhouse Rock!, died Nov. 30 at a hospital near his home in Hastings-on-Hudson, NY. He was 88.
His death was announced to The New York Times by his wife Lisa Maxwell, who said the cause was cardiopulmonary arrest.
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The series of interstitial animated shorts that ran on Saturday mornings from 1973-84 (later revived in the ’90s) got their start in the early 1970s when ad exec David McCall of the McCaffrey & McCall asked Newall, the agency’s creative director, to set multiplication tables to music to assist McCall’s young son.
His death was announced to The New York Times by his wife Lisa Maxwell, who said the cause was cardiopulmonary arrest.
Related Story Hollywood & Media Deaths In 2022: Photo Gallery Related Story Al Strobel Dies: 'Twin Peaks' One-Armed Man Was 83 Related Story Quentin Oliver Lee Dies: Broadway Actor, Opera Singer Was 34
The series of interstitial animated shorts that ran on Saturday mornings from 1973-84 (later revived in the ’90s) got their start in the early 1970s when ad exec David McCall of the McCaffrey & McCall asked Newall, the agency’s creative director, to set multiplication tables to music to assist McCall’s young son.
- 12/8/2022
- by Greg Evans
- Deadline Film + TV
George Newall, who co-created the celebrated kids’ educational cartoon Schoolhouse Rock for ABC, has died. The New York Times reports that he passed away at 88 years old due to cardiopulmonary arrest, according to his wife, Lisa Maxwell. The series ran from 1973 until 1984 and was known for helping kids learn through song. Generation X grew up on these cartoons every Saturday morning, with songs like “Three Is The Magic Number”, “Conjunction Junction”, and “How A Bill Becomes Law” still remembered today. The series came about when the president of McCaffrey & McCall advertising agency, David McCall, complained to his creative director about the lack of education his kids received in media. He asked if Newall could set the multiplication table to music as his kids had an easier time memorizing song lyrics than learning math. Newall searched for a musician to make it happen, eventually finding Bob Dorough, who quickly wrote “Three Is The Magic Number.
- 12/8/2022
- TV Insider
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