The pace of change in the past two hundred years would not have been possible without the remarkable advances in communication that began with the telegraph in the 1840s, followed by the telephone, radio, and television. The last two, radio and TV, in particular accelerated change as it permitted mass communication for the first time in human history. Information, ideas, stories could be shared with millions instantaneously.
Boomers and their parents will remember that TV entertainment fare in the 1950’s and 1960’s was intended to do only that: entertain…but certainly not to challenge society’s prevailing norms. If there is any one in the entertainment business whose creativity challenged the prevailing social order TV, it was Norman Lear who died this past week at 101.
Lear is best known as the creator of the groundbreaking “All in the Family” sitcom that explored heretofore forbidden topics like race, religion, politics, and sexuality, artfully delivered as humor that attracted huge audiences that made the show number one for five consecutive years. “All in the Family” launched numerous successful spin-offs and inspired a new generation of writers who pursued opportunities of social commentary on cable and the internet.
His story is as compelling as that of any tech entrepreneur and was not without its failures. Even so, he contributed much to the dialogue of progress that has occurred in the past 50 years.
One of the oldest definitions of entrepreneurship is lifting “economic resources out of an area of lower area into an area of higher productivity and greater yield.” Norman Lear clearly did that with the sitcom. Every entrepreneur should learn more about how “Norman Lear Brought Big Issues to the Small Screen.”
Rest in Peace, Mr. Lear You made us better.
