Howard Leeds

Howard Leeds
Howard Leeds
Born	Howard Michael Leeds; June 27, 1919; Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada
Died	February 11, 2017 (aged 97); Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Occupation(s)	Television producer, screenwriter, creator
Years active	1952–1989
Notable work	Diff'rent Strokes (producer/writer); The Facts of Life (producer/co-creator); Silver Spoons (producer/co-creator); Small Wonder (executive producer/creator)
Spouse	Joan Hajny (?-2017, his death)
Children	John

Howard Michael Leeds (June 27, 1919 – February 11, 2017) was a Canadian-American television producer, writer, and series creator. Among Leeds' most notable work, he served as a producer and writer for the

Embassy Television, including co-creating NBC's The Facts of Life and Silver Spoons. Leeds also served as the creator and executive producer of the syndicated 1980s family sitcom, Small Wonder

.

Life and career

Leeds was born on June 27, 1919, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and as a youth, he and his family re-located to Los Angeles, California. Leeds graduated from Fairfax High School in 1938, and later enlisted in the United States Army during World War II, rising to the rank of sergeant before being honorably discharged in 1946.

The Queen & I. After The Brady Bunch concluded production for good in 1974, Leeds joined Tandem Productions as a writer and producer for several of their series, including first working on the Sanford and Son spinoff, Grady

, and then became one of the lead producers of the NBC sitcom Diff'rent Strokes, when the series debuted in 1978.

Along with veteran writer/producer

Bob Cummings and Julie Newmar

, in which the latter portrayed a lifelike adult android under the care of Cummings' character.

From 1976 to 1978, Leeds also worked as a production executive for

Reg Grundy Productions

.