Gene Shalit, the television personality whose distinctive mop of hair and oversized handlebar mustache made him one of the most recognizable faces in American broadcast journalism, died on Friday. He was 100.
His family confirmed the death to NBC News, saying in a statement that Shalit "passed away peacefully today after 100 years of an amazing life.”
Shalit spent four decades at NBC's "Today" show, where he carved out a singular niche as the program's arts reporter and movie critic. He came aboard as a contributor in 1970, was named arts editor in 1973, and anchored the beloved "Critic's Corner" segment until his retirement in 2010—making him one of the last major film critics on a flagship network broadcast.
Before cameras ever found him, it was his words on the page that opened the door to television. He built his reputation as an entertainment columnist for McCall's magazine, rose to senior film critic at Look magazine in 1968, and contributed to Ladies' Home Journal.
His producer for more than two decades, Guy Ludwig, described what set Shalit apart. "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 wrote in an essay at the time of Shalit's retirement.
Shalit's influence on American film criticism extended far beyond his own reviews. The Plain Dealer credited him with reshaping where cinematic opinion was formed in the United States, writing that he was "instrumental in changing the balance of critical power in America," noting that when he began his "Today" tenure, print media dominated movie criticism. The paper dubbed him "Daniel Boone in a bow tie and Groucho glasses."
Born in New York and raised in Morristown, New Jersey, Shalit showed an early instinct for journalism—he launched his grammar school's first newspaper before going on to write a humor column for his high school paper. He graduated from the University of Illinois in 1949.
He is survived by six children. His wife, Nancy Lewis, preceded him in death in 1978.