Gene Shalit

Eugene Shalit (March 25, 1926 – June 12, 2026) was an American journalist, television personality, film and book critic, and author. After starting to work part-time on NBC's The Today Show in 1970, he appeared regularly there from January 15, 1973,[ 1] [ 2] until retiring on November 11, 2010.[ 3] [ 4] He was known for his frequent use of puns and his comical "absent-minded professor" appearance, which consisted of an oversized handlebar moustache, fuzzy hair, large glasses, and colorful bow ties.

Shalit was born on March 25, 1926, in New York City, and raised in Newark and Morristown, New Jersey;[ 1] he was of Latvian Jewish ancestry.[ 5] In high school, he wrote a humor column titled "The Korn Krib" for the school newspaper.[ 6] Shalit wrote for The Daily Illini at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, graduating in 1949 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in science and letters.[ 7]

Shalit, according to a Dick Clark interview in The New York Times Magazine, was Clark's press agent in the early 1960s. Shalit reportedly "stopped representing" Clark during a Congressional investigation of payola. Clark never spoke to Shalit again, and referred to him as a "jellyfish".[ 8]

Shalit began reviewing the arts in 1967 and wrote for such publications as Look magazine, Ladies' Home Journal (for 12 years), Cosmopolitan, TV Guide, Seventeen, Glamour, McCall's, and The New York Times.[ 9]

From 1970 to 1982, Shalit broadcast a daily essay, Man About Anything, for the NBC Radio Network, which was NBC's most widely carried radio feature.[ 1]

From January 15, 1973, to November 11, 2010, Shalit served as the film and book critic for NBC's Today, marking a tenure of over 37 years during which he reviewed thousands of films and conducted interviews with prominent actors and directors.[ 10] [ 11] [ 12] Shalit's generally positive assessments of films, often avoiding outright pans, drew both acclaim for accessibility and criticism from peers for lacking rigor, as evidenced by parodies from rival film critics like Siskel and Ebert.[ 13] [ 14] Among his notable reviews, Shalit praised John Cusack's performance in the 1989 film Say Anything..., describing the film as an "unpretentious and perceptive little jewel of a movie" that captured the nuances of young romance.[ 15] He similarly lauded the 1987 Mel Brooks film Spaceballs in an interview with Brooks, highlighting its satirical take on science fiction tropes while noting its modest $20 million budget.[ 16]

In 1986, Shalit hosted a videocassette and laserdisc collection from MCA Home Video, Gene Shalit's Critic's Choice Video.[ 17] Four images (five on the laserdisc covers) of Shalit appeared in a filmstrip on the front of the box with his reviews on the back. Titles included Touch of Evil, Destry Rides Again, Double Indemnity, and The Ipcress File.[ 18]

Shalit announced that he would leave The Today Show after 40 years, effective November 11, 2010.[ 19] [ 20] He was quoted as saying "It's enough already", about his retirement.[ 21] He largely stayed out of the public eye thereafter, only appearing once for Willard Scott's retirement from NBC on December 15, 2015.[ 22]

In 2005, Shalit gave an adverse review to the film Brokeback Mountain, in which he described Jack Twist (the character played by Jake Gyllenhaal) as a "sexual predator" who "tracks Ennis (Heath Ledger's character) down and coaxes him into sporadic trysts".[ 23]

The Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) stated that Shalit's "baseless branding of Jack as a 'sexual predator' merely because he was romantically interested in someone of the same sex is defamatory, ignorant, and irresponsible" and that he "used the occasion to promote defamatory antigay prejudice to a national audience".[ 24] Shalit's son Peter, who is gay, wrote a letter to GLAAD defending his father and stating he had not defamed anyone and was not homophobic, and further said the organization had defamed him by "falsely accusing him of a repellent form of bigotry".[ 25] Shalit himself apologized for the wording of his review.[ 26] [ 27] [ 28]

Shalit was married to Nancy Lewis from 1950 until her death from cancer in 1978.[ 29] [ 30] For much of his career, he lived in Leonia, New Jersey.[ 31] He also resided in Stockbridge, Massachusetts.[ 32] [ 33] [ 34] [ 35]

Shalit and Lewis had six children. They include the artist and businesswoman Willa Shalit (born 1955),[ 32] [ 36] Peter (born 1954), who is a physician and recognized authority on gay men's health and lives with HIV,[ 25] [ 37] [ 38] [ 39] and Emily, who was born in August 1957 and died of ovarian cancer in November 2012, at the age of 55.[ 30] [ 40]

On October 24, 2012, Shalit crashed his car in Lenox, Massachusetts, after falling asleep at the wheel.[ 41] [ 42] [ 43] Misdemeanor charges of negligent driving to endanger were later dismissed after he agreed to stop driving until the dismissal, and he was to follow a "safety condition" approved by his attorney and the police chief.[ 35] [ 44] [ 45]

Shalit turned 100 on March 25, 2026.[ 46] [ 47] Today commemorated the milestone in a special segment in which Al Roker sent birthday wishes using a personalized Smucker's jar, referencing Shalit's association with the brand through earlier promotions.[ 48] Shalit marked the occasion surrounded by his family and looked forward to watching his favorite baseball team, the New York Mets.[ 48] Shalit died on June 12, 2026, at the age of 100.[ 49]