Lee Leonard

American television personality (1929–2018)

Lee Leonard (April 3, 1929 – December 16, 2018) was an American television personality who was involved in the launch of cable television networks ESPN and CNN.

Leonard was born Maxwell Lefkowitz on April 3, 1929, in New York City, the son of Estelle (Cohn), a beautician, and Daniel Lefkowitz. After graduating from DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx, he attended Columbia University in New York City but did not graduate. He gave a brief introduction before the network aired its first program, which was the first edition of SportsCenter. Afterwards, he made occasional appearances on the show. A year later (1980), Leonard moved to CNN, where he hosted People Tonight, the network's first Los Angeles–based live entertainment news talk show. Many of today's major name celebrities made their first national talk show appearances on People Tonight, including Tom Cruise, Tom Hanks and Pee wee Herman. The show was groundbreaking in its coverage of Hollywood red carpet premieres and many important breaking stories including the deaths of John Lennon and Natalie Wood. Robin Leach cut his teeth as a New York–based correspondent before signing on to do Entertainment Tonight and later launching the pop culture hit series, Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous. In the mid to late 1980s, Leonard co hosted CNN's weekday entertainment news program "Showbiz Today" with Liz Wickersham.

From 1996 to approximately 2002, Lee Leonard hosted Jersey's Talking on News 12 New Jersey. Leonard also hosted a public affairs program on the New Jersey–based cable network CN8.

Leonard was married to actress Kelly Bishop, who played Emily Gilmore on the CW show Gilmore Girls as well as Marjorie Houseman in Dirty Dancing. He was married twice previously, including once to actress Salome Jens. He had one daughter. He died in South Orange, New Jersey, on December 16, 2018.