Jess Oppenheimer

Birth Name:

Jessrun James Oppenheimer

Birth Place:

San Francisco, California, United States

Profession

Writer, Producer, Director, Actor, Music department

Joined the United States Coast Guard during World War II, where he met agent Ray Stark while stationed in the Public Relations department
Won a Laurel Award from the Writers Guild of America for TV Writing Achievement in 1992
Was part of a Stanford University program for gifted children in California run by Professor Lewis M․ Terman, who created the I․Q․ test
Started out as a writer for radio shows in 1936, writing for shows like "The Packard Hour," "Jack Benny," and "Chase & Sanborn․"
Was producing and directing the radio show "My Favorite Husband," starring Lucille Ball, when he was asked to create a show for her and her husband, Desi Arnaz, in 1951
Best known as the creator and executive producer of "I Love Lucy" and the 1960s "Angel․"
Spent five years working on "I Love Lucy" before leaving in 1956 to become a programming executive at NBC
Was also an inventor with more than 20 patents, including an in-the-lens prompter, a device similar to the Teleprompter which was used primarily in Britain
Wrote a memoir called "Laughs, Luck․․․and Lucy: How I Came to Create the Most Popular Sitcom of All Time," which was finished after his death by his son, Gregg Oppenheimer, and published in 1999

Fast Facts