Jess Oppenheimer
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jess Oppenheimer, principal writer for Lucille Ball, was born on November 11, 1913 in San Francisco, California.
Oppenheimer was a subject of Stanford University researcher Lewis Terman's studies of gifted children. According to Stanford Magazine, Terman's assistant wrote in Oppenheimer's file, "I could detect no signs of a sense of humor."
Oppenheimer wrote radio and TV shows for Lucille Ball from 1948-1955, first on radio show, My Favorite Husband, and then on I Love Lucy. Oppenheimer even made a cameo appearance in an I Love Lucy episode entitled "The Audition" as a network representative.
After Lucy, Oppenheimer went on to write and produce Get Smart. He died in Los Angeles on December 27, 1988.
It should also be noted that Mr Oppenheimer was the inventor of the teleprompter, and received the patent for its invention. The Teleprompter allowed actors, and newspersonnel to read from a script which was reflected off a half silvered mirror in front of the TV lens. This allows the performer to look directly into the camera lens rather than glancing down at a script or off camera to a cue card. Although originally created for Luciile Ball to read commercials, it soon became the staple for the newscast industry.
