Gene Shalit, a popular longtime Today movie critic, has died. He was 100.
Shalit’s family confirmed the news to NBC News on Friday, June 12, sharing that he “passed away peacefully today after 100 years of an amazing life.”
The family also reflected on his decades-long television career, describing his time on Today “an extraordinary era for him.”
A fixture on morning television for nearly four decades, Shalit became one of America’s most recognizable film critics during his tenure on the NBC program. He became famous for his trademark bushy mustache, colorful wordplay and quirky on-air personality before retiring in 2010.
Former co-host Meredith Vieira paid tribute to Shalit at the time.
“It’s hard to imagine not having him here. He is the Today show,” she said, referencing the impact he made during his career.
Just months before his death, Shalit celebrated a major milestone birthday. The veteran critic turned 100 on March 25 and was honored by Today during a special segment. The show featured him on a Smucker’s birthday jar and shared a recent photo of the beloved broadcaster.
“He is ringing in 100 by enjoying that fresh air in the Berkshires with his six kids [and] five grandchildren,” Today cohost Al Roker, 71, said at the time.
In 2010, Shalit’s longtime producer Guy Ludwig shared his memories of working with the movie critic over the years.
“Once Gene was on, he’d get letters like, ‘Who is this part-time anarchist that you have on television,’ because he was so different,” he told Today. “But what resonated above his unusual appearance was his incredible wit, his remarkable intelligence. But he didn’t pound you over the head with it. He amused you. He enlightened and amused whatever subject he was on.”
Ludwig also reflected on Shalit’s longevity on Today, praising the impressive feat.
“Gene has been on a single television program, Today, longer than any other person in the history of television,” Ludwig said. “And this is throughout the world, we believe, certainly domestic television. There’s been no one who did 41 years on one show. And certainly Gene’s done other things along the way, radio and television specials, game shows, appearances with Tom Snyder and David Letterman. But someone who appeared on one show all the way through, continuously, there’s only Gene.”
Born Eugene Shalit in New York City in 1926, the TV personality was raised in New Jersey and developed an early passion for writing. He contributed to both his high school newspaper and the student publication at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign before graduating in 1949.
Prior to finding fame as a critic, Shalit briefly worked as Dick Clark’s press agent. The professional relationship ended amid the payola investigations that brought Clark before Congress in 1960.
Clark later reflected on the split in a 2011 interview with The New York Times magazine, describing Shalit as “a jellyfish” and revealing the two never spoke again.
