Michael Ross, 89; wrote for 'All in the Family,' 'Jeffersons'
LOS ANGELES - Michael "Mickey" Ross, a writer-producer who reveled in speaking Yiddish and pushing society's buttons on the popular televisions sitcoms "All in the Family," "The Jeffersons," and "Three's Company" has died. He was 89.
Mr. Ross, who lived in West Hollywood, died Tuesday at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles of complications from a stroke and heart attack, said Carol Summers, a friend and former colleague.
Born Isidore Rovinsky in 1919 in New York City, he grew up in a Yiddish-speaking household that he once said was permeated by "the essence of Yiddishkeit," or the Jewish way of life. After his wife died in 2000, he had no heirs and decided to give most of his fortune to Jewish causes.
Last year, Mr. Ross donated $4 million to the University of California, Los Angeles, to endow an academic chair in Yiddish language and culture. He gave an additional $10 million to his alma mater, City College of New York, to create Jewish studies programs and establish another Yiddish chair.
David N. Myers, director of the UCLA Center for Jewish Studies, called the gift "nothing short of transformative," one that "allows us to do a number of really extraordinary things, beginning with the development of a first-rate program in Yiddish studies."
When Mr. Ross read in 1992 that the California State University, Northridge, Jewish studies program was to be cut drastically, he donated $35,000 and gave $10,000 a year for many years. He was instrumental to its survival and success, said Jody Myers, the program's coordinator.
In explaining his interest in the study of Jewish culture, Mr. Ross told the Los Angeles Times in 1992: "I was born of immigrant parents. I loved their attitude, their ways, their morals. I don't want to see that lost."
While working on "The Martha Raye Show" in the 1950s, Mr. Ross connected with Norman Lear, who would go on to create "All in the Family" and hire Mr. Ross as a lieutenant.
With his writing partner, Bernie West, Mr. Ross wrote more than 30 episodes between 1971 and 1975 for "All in the Family," which revolutionized TV by realistically exploring the prejudices and social mores of the day.
He received an Emmy in 1973 for co-writing the episode in which the Bunkers get invited to a wife-swapping party.
As story editors for "All in the Family," Mr. Ross and West were seen as "chief architects for the plotlines, jokes, and jabs that engage and often enrage millions of viewers," The New York Times reported in 1974.
After five seasons, Mr. Ross left "All in the Family" to launch "The Jeffersons," a spinoff that starred the Bunkers' black neighbor, George Jefferson, played by Sherman Hemsley.
When ABC wanted to do an American version of the British sitcom "Man About the House," Mr. Ross and his producing partners - West and Don Nicholl - helped create "Three's Company," which debuted in 1977.
