Jimmy Hirschfeld

In 1951, Hirschfeld took a job as a stagehand with WCAU-TV under Bill Bode where he eventually worked his way up Assistant Director.[1] In 1954, he became a staff director (under John Facenda) and then producer and director for the "Shock Theater" which starred John Zacherle.[1] Hirschfeld was also the director of numerous WCAU-TV documentaries and for shows produced by Gene London and Jane Norman's Pixanne telecasts.[1] He directed various shows during his career including the Philadelphia segments of the CBS Thanksgiving Parade (1959 to 1979); the annual Philadelphia Orchestra Concerts series (1960 to 1989) and; NFL Football broadcasts for CBS (which owned WCAU-TV at the time) from 1960 to 1980.[1] In 1967, WCAU-TV named him Program Manager and Executive Producer; and in 1971, he was named Program Director.[1] In 1973, he moved to New York City where he was the producer of CBS-TV's Captain Kangaroo.[1] In 1978, he moved to Los Angeles where he worked for CBS-TV as the producer of the Mary Tyler Moore Comedy Hour.[1] In 1979, he became the director of "Bill Cosby's Picture Pages also for CBS-TV; and in 1981, he returned to Captain Kangaroo serving as Director and Executive Producer for CBS-TV and then PBS.[1]

Hirschfeld has won 3 Emmy Awards for Captain Kangaroo (1978, 1983, and 1984); and won the 1981 Gold Award at the International Film and TV Festival for Picture Pages.[1] On November 22, 2013, he was inducted into the Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia's "Hall of Fame."[1]

Hirschfeld was married to Janet Susan Rubner at Rodeph Shalom Synagogue in Philadelphia; one of their daughters is CNN political analyst Julie Hirschfeld Davis.[2] His wife died in 1998.[3]

• "Jimmy Hirschfeld". Broadcast Pioneers of Philadelphia. Retrieved May 23, 2018.