Mel Ferber
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Mel Ferber (1922–2003) was an Emmy-nominated TV director and producer, who oversaw the landmark live two-hour TV presentation of Wonderful Town and the pilot for 60 Minutes as well as many other shows and was an executive producer of Good Morning America. He was a long-standing and active member of the Directors Guild of America.
Ferber was born on October 2, 1922. Raised in New York, he was a graduate of City College of N.Y. and became a World War II hero when, after landing at Utah Beach, he and four other members of his unit captured 464 German soldiers and used their weapons to rearm a French battalion (a feat that earned him the Croix de Guerre with Silver Star). He entered the TV industry after he was discharged.
As a member of CBS, Ferber directed "Wonderful Town," the first live two-hour show on TV, in 1958. Subsequently, he earned Emmy nominations for his work as executive producer and creator of Good Morning America and executive producer of CBS' Calendar. He produced the pilot of 60 Minutes and directed the pilot of Happy Days. The 1972 Democratic National Convention's TV and radio work was produced by Ferber as well.
Ferber also directed and/or produced many television shows, including Studio One, That Was the Week That Was, Walter Cronkite's 21st Century, National Geographic, The Odd Couple, McMillan and Wife, The Mary Tyler Moore Show, Archie Bunker's Place, Quincy, Alice, Diff'rent Strokes and many more. He died on June 19, 2003 in Los Angeles from heart failure.
