Gene Shalit, known for his distinctive walrus mustache and witty movie reviews on NBC’s “TODAY” show, has died at the age of 100. Shalit’s family shared that he “passed away peacefully today after 100 years of an amazing life.”
Shalit joined the “TODAY” show in 1970 as a part-time contributor and secured a full-time position three years later. He became a national figure for his charismatic reviews of summer blockbusters, awards contenders, and other major films. Shalit continued his role as a movie critic until retiring in 2010.
Shalit’s memorable style featured colorful bow ties and a penchant for puns. In the “TODAY” show’s “Critics Corner,” his lively wordplay added charm to his reviews, winning over viewers across the country. For the 1991 horror classic “The Silence of the Lambs,” he quipped, “The Silence of the Lambs may be all wool and a yard wide, but it makes a terrific yarn.”
When a film failed to impress him, Shalit did not hold back. He dismissed the original “X-Men” movie by suggesting it “should not be taken seriously. In fact, it should be taken with two aspirin.” His review of Judd Apatow’s “Funny People” summed it up as “passable,” adding a humorous twist with “speaking colonically.”
Beyond reviewing films, Shalit conducted interviews with numerous stars, including Oprah Winfrey and Harrison Ford. His interviews ranged in tone, as seen when he humorously asked Kermit the Frog about his marriage prospects with Miss Piggy.
Shalit began his career in print journalism. He served as the senior film critic for Look Magazine and wrote for Ladies Home Journal’s “What’s Happening?” page for 12 years. His articles appeared in The New York Times, Cosmopolitan, TV Guide, Seventeen, Glamour, and McCall’s.
From 1969 to 1982, Shalit delivered a daily “Man About Anything” essay on NBC’s radio network. He also appeared regularly as a panelist on game shows like “What’s My Line?” and “To Tell The Truth.”
Born on March 25, 1926, in New York, Eugene Shalit grew up in New Jersey, where his father owned a drug store. During elementary school, Shalit created the school’s first newspaper, The Spotlight. He later wrote for his high school newspaper, adding humor to his columns.
He graduated in 1949 from the University of Illinois, working as a sports editor and columnist for The Daily Illini. Shalit’s early career included reporting for a Twin Cities newspaper and freelance coverage of Big Ten sports for The Associated Press in Chicago.
As an on-air personality for the “TODAY” show, Shalit gained widespread recognition with his entertainment segments and spontaneous on-set antics. He retired in 2010, and former co-host Meredith Vieira noted, “It’s hard to imagine not having him here. He is the ‘TODAY’ show.”
More recently, Shalit withdrew from public life. He was married to Nancy Lewis for 28 years, from 1950 until her death in 1978.