Norman Lear At Sentinel Health Awards

Legendary screenwriter, Norman Lear, attended the Sentinel Health Awards presented by Hollywood, Health and Society (HHS) at the Writers Guild Bld. at 3rd and Fairfax (WGA)this past week. The Sentinel awards are presented by HHS, USC's Norman Lear Center (Lear's names sake) and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Writers from Grey's, Private Practice, Law & Order:SVU, telenovellas and Sesame Street were on hand to receive their awards and all remarked about how influential Lear has been in the development of their careers and their lives. Lear has created numerous top 10 TV shows including All In The Family, Sanford And Sons, Good Times, One Day At A Time, Square Pegs and Silver Spoons just to name a few.

The night began with a light buffet style dinner and a chance to network. I sat on a table with a medical doctor who was on the judges panel. Then we gathered in the hall for presentation of the awards followed by a Q&A panel with the various award recipients. Afterwards there were more opportunities to network with more health professionals and screenwriters. I met Lear afterwards and had a chance to tell him personally how his TV shows impacted me. I raved about All In The Family and it's spin offs like Maude and I told him of my encounter with Rob Reiner in August. He raved at length of his visits to Caneel Bay in ST. John. Lear is still so very energetic and interested in the craft of writing and world causes that it's hard to believe that he is 88 years old. I got photo of us together, too. Simply amazing!