Mr. Shalit, the bushy-haired, mustachioed TV personality who reviewed books and movies on the “Today Show” for 40 years, died Friday. His family told NBC News that he “passed away peacefully today after 100 years of a remarkable life.”
Sharit appeared on NBC’s “The Today Show” from 1970 until his retirement in 2010, donning his signature bow tie and large glasses and introducing many puns into his film and book reviews in the “Critics Corner” segment.
In addition to reviews, he has interviewed celebrities from Steven Spielberg to the Grateful Dead to Helen Hayes.
“Seeing Gene on screen was always magical,” CBS Evening News anchor Katie Couric said upon her retirement in 2010. “I think Gene was a master at interviewing celebrities. He interviewed Sophia Loren and you could tell he was completely fascinated by her.”
His long appearance on “The Today Show” made him one of the few prominent film critics, which led to him appearing on several animated shows. In “SpongeBob SquarePants,” Shalit was given the nickname Gene Scallop, the fish critic voiced by Shalit. He was parodied in four episodes of Family Guy, lent his voice to The Critic, and was played in The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence.
Shalit was also played on Saturday Night Live by Jon Lovitz and later Horatio Sands, parodying the popular critic. He was played by Eugene Levy, who also had bushy eyebrows, on “Second City Television.”
Born in New York City, he graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and a few years later, like fellow critic Roger Ebert, wrote for the Daily Illini. Earlier in his career, he served as Dick Clark’s press secretary, but that job ended during a payola investigation by Congress.
He began writing about entertainment in the late 1960s, writing for publications such as Look, Ladies’ Home Journal, TV Guide, and The New York Times. He also wrote four humor books.
Shalit also aired a daily essay called “Man About Anything” on the NBC radio network from 1970 to 1982.
He is survived by a son and a daughter. Another daughter and his wife, Nancy Lewis, preceded him in death.
