Jerry Golod, the executive producer who helped bring Tales From the Darkside to television, died Wednesday at his home in Rancho Mirage, Calif. He was 87. His daughter, Dori Golod Howell, said he died after a brief battle with cancer, Deadline reported.
Born Dec. 26, 1938, in the Bronx, Jerry Golod worked as an advertising executive, a network programmer and an independent producer. His best-known project became a cult favorite of 1980s horror television, Variety reported.
Jerry Golod’s Early Career and Rise in Television
Jerry Golod graduated from City College of New York and started at the ad agency Dancer Fitzgerald Sample, where he rose to vice president and associate director of programming. He also ran a television production company tied to the agency for three years.
In 1975, he became vice president of children’s programs at CBS. Four years later, he moved to NBC Entertainment as vice president and national program director, with duties that covered daytime and children’s shows, specials, variety programming and West Coast late-night. In the early 1980s, he started JayGee Productions.
Tales From the Darkside and the Stephen King Connection
Creepshow, the 1982 horror film written by Stephen King and directed by George A. Romero, was a hit. Golod then teamed with Romero and producer Richard P. Rubinstein to bring a similar sensibility to the small screen. The result was Tales From the Darkside.
The anthology aired in first-run syndication from 1983 to 1988 and ran four seasons. Writers included King, Harlan Ellison, Clive Barker, Robert Bloch and Michael McDowell. Romero wrote the pilot, “Trick or Treat,” which Bob Balaban directed. Modern fans of the genre can find a descendant in American Horror Story.
In 2013, Golod was among the producers of a new version for CBS Television Studios and The CW. Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci and writer Joe Hill, King’s son, also were involved. The CW ordered a pilot in 2015 but never picked it up as a series.
Other Productions and Television Work
Golod’s other credits included the Canadian adventure series Adderly, which ran from 1986 to 1988 and starred Winston Rekert. He helped develop it from Elliott Baker’s 1971 novel Pocock & Pitt, drawing on a secondary character named Adderly.
He was an executive producer on the 1985 TV movie Brass and the 1990 CBS reunion movie Return to Green Acres, which brought back Eddie Albert and Eva Gabor from the 1960s sitcom. He also executive produced the 1991 revival of Land of the Lost, which ran two seasons.
In the 1990s, he was co-chairman and co-owner of Pet Television Network, a cable and satellite service for animal lovers. Horror fans looking for more spooky TV can check out the latest American Horror Story cliffhanger or R.L. Stine’s Afraid of Clowns.
Survivors and Legacy
Jerry Golod is survived by his wife of 59 years, Ruth; their children, Dori and Jason; son-in-law Doug; daughter-in-law Danielle; four grandchildren, Gavin, Ramey, Morgan and Madison; two great-grandsons, Everett and Winslow; and several nieces and nephews.
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