What can you __(verb)___ when a legendary and multi-talented ____(noun)___ (verb, present tense)? It’s hard even for a (adjective) DaVinci to (verb) the (plural noun) to describe his or her (noun).
Leonard Stern, the co-inventor of the wildly popular and creative word game Mad Libs, passed away on June 7, 2011 at the age of 87. He not only helped launch this salvation of summer campers and English teachers everywhere, he actually wrote many of the games himself for many years. And yet, this claim to fame was not even Stern’s main creative activity.
Leonard Stern’s life as a hugely influential television writer, director and producer spanned over 6 decades and included writing for The Honeymooners, being executive producer of Get Smart, and a myriad of other accomplishments. He also launched and ran a publishing house, Tallfellow Press, which produced books centered mostly around the crafts of Hollywood — how to be a writer, and how funny (or frustrating) that life can be. Mad Libs was published by Tallfellow until Stern sold the publishing rights (while still writing or vetting the games). He also created the similarly wacky Droodles, another brainchild of Stern’s, with his partner Roger Price.
To experience this gentle comic DaVinci’s unique brand of silliness, look for the DVD release of his nearly-forgotten 1962 sitcom, I’m Dickens, He’s Fenster, coming out in the fall of 2011. Even posthumously, Stern is still creating laughs.
