Richard S. Kline
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Richard S. Kline (March 24, 1940 – March 21, 2020) was an American television producer and director whose most notable work was in game shows. He directed and produced programs for Barry & Enright Productions until 1984, after which he formed his own production company, Kline & Friends.
Early work
Prior to breaking into game shows, Kline worked as a producer for CBS News in the 1960s, then for The Dick Cavett Show in the early 1970s.[1]
Jack Barry Productions
One of Richard S. Kline's early shows where he worked as a director was on
Barry & Enright Productions
After Jack Barry and Dan Enright revived their partnership, Kline was assigned to direct a new series for them called Break the Bank, which only lasted 15 weeks on ABC in the Spring of 1976 despite being the second-highest rated daytime game show for the '75-'76 season. However, Break the Bank went into syndication that Fall, but faded after one season.
Kline also directed syndicated revivals of both The Joker's Wild and
Jack Barry's death and the formation of Kline and Friends
Jack Barry died in May 1984, not too long after completing production of the 1983-84 season of Joker. Upon his death, Dan Enright immediately succeeded his longtime producing partner and began making many changes that Kline and other staffers opposed, including the choice of
With Kline running his own company, Break the Bank (completely unrelated to the earlier game) premiered in the fall of 1985, with Gene Rayburn as host. By year's end, Rayburn was let go due to conflict with Kline over the show's format and replaced by Joe Farago. After that, Kline tried again with Strike it Rich (unrelated to the 1950s game show) in the fall of 1986, with Joe Garagiola as host. That show did not see success either, but was exported to Britain as Strike It Lucky, which ran until 1994; it was revived in 1996, now as Michael Barrymore's Strike it Rich (to coincide with far better prizes) and ran until 1999; Australian and South African versions also ran.
After that show ended, he teamed up with
In March 1990, Kline and Friends began production of their only non-game show project,
Death
Kline died on March 21, 2020, at the age of 79 at his home in Connecticut following a long illness.[1]
References
- ^ a b c "Richard S. Kline, Emmy-Nominated Producer and Director of News and Game Shows, Dies at 79". The Hollywood Reporter. March 24, 2020. Retrieved March 24, 2020.
External links
- Richard S. Kline at IMDb