Woody Fraser, the prolific American producer and director best known for launching “The Mike Douglas Show” and “Good Morning America,” has died. He was 90.
Variety confirmed that Fraser died Saturday afternoon, via his daughter Stacy. More details will become available in the coming days.
Fraser has remained one of the most successful TV producers in entertainment history, specifically in the talk, news and variety programming spaces. In his roughly 50 years in Hollywood, Fraser amassed credits on “The Dick Cavett Show,” “The Richard Simmons Show,” “On Trial,” “What Would You Do?,” “The Family Challenge,” “That’s Incredible!,” “The Home Show” and more.
Long-time collaborator and fellow producer E.V. Di Massa Jr. took to Facebook Sunday to remember his mentor and friend.
“My mentor and a true producing genius Woody Fraser passed,” Massa wrote, sharing a picture of them together. “So many memories. Here we are accepting the Mike Douglas Lifetime Award at the Emmys..may God hold him until we have our next production meeting in heaven.”
Fraser started his career in television in 1960 as a director for NBC. That same year he would be introduced to Mike Douglas and shortly after the pair co-created “The Mike Douglas Show,” which ran over 4,000 episodes from 1961-1982.
After the launch of “Mike Douglas,” Fraser had a meteoric rise through the industry, becoming one of the most in-demand producers of the mid-’60s and early-’70s. From 1966-1973, Fraser was responsible for over 32 hours of television each week, producing series like “The Della Reese Show,” “The Bill Russel Show,” and “Kid Talk.”
In more recent years, Fraser helped launch series like “McEnroe” for CNBC and “Huckabee” for Fox News. He was also behind the 2012 revival of “Home & Family,” hosted by Mark Steines and Debbie Matenopoulos) on the Hallmark Channel. It ran for nine seasons before ending in 2021 with hosts Matenopoulos and Cameron Mathison.
Fraser is survived by his eight children and three grandchildren.
