Stephen Sunshine, an award-winning television and film writer and producer known for his work on “The Webster,” “The New Odd Couple,” and TV newscasts, died on March 15 in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, of progressive supranuclear palsy. He was 81 years old.
Diane Weder, a family friend of Sunshine, confirmed Sunshine’s death to Variety.
Sunshine was born on March 9, 1945 in the Bronx, New York City. He received his bachelor’s degree from the University at Buffalo.
He often worked with Madeline Sunshine, his wife of 56 years and partner in television and film writing/producing. Madeline Sunshine is a novelist, children’s author, and playwright.
The couple worked together on the sitcoms “The New Odd Couple,” “The People Next Door,” “Julie,” and “Webster,” for which Sunshine won the Writers Guild of America Award for Television in the episodic comedy genre. The two also co-wrote the 1993 film Son of the Pink Panther and produced a play titled Serrano the Musical in Los Angeles in 2015.
Sunshine also co-directed the 2012 documentary “Committed” with Howie Mandel and was a senior producer on “Extra TV,” where she helped schedule guests such as Michelle and Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Marco Rubio, and Elizabeth Warren. While Sunshine served as senior producer, the show won two Daytime Emmy Awards for Outstanding Entertainment News Program.
In 1989, Sunshine was a founding member of the Creative Coalition and actively participated, collaborating with other directors, producers, writers, and actors to provide accurate and clear political information as a source for news media and speakers.
Sunshine is survived by his wife, Madeline Sunshine;
