Television producer Dick Berg died 1 September 2009 of complications from a fall. Born Richard Joseph Berg on 16 February 1922 in Manhattan, New York, he was best-known for his history-based miniseries including Wallenberg: A Hero’s Story and the 13-hour adaptation of James A. Michener’s Space (for which he earned one of his three Emmy nominations).
Berg graduated from Lehigh University in 1942, and moved to Hollywood with dreams of becoming an actor, but he could only get work as a dialogue coach. So he moved to Connecticut and ran an art gallery. While there, he spent his free time writing spec scripts for live television, and saw more than a dozen of his dramas produced. One of those was noticed by the people at Hecht-Hill-Lancaster Studios, who brought Berg back to Hollywood as a screenwriter in 1957. Through the end of the decade and into the 1960s, he wrote dramas and detective shows, and then moved on to producing.
In 1980, Berg was the producer of the six-hour miniseries The Martian Chronicles (based on Ray Bradbury‘s work). His other genre productions include: an episode of CBS Summer Playhouse entitled “Reno and Yolanda” (1987), Are You in the House Alone? (1978), The Spell (1977), and an episode of Alfred Hitchcock Presents entitled “Six People, No Music” (1959).
Berg is survived by his wife of 63 years, Barbara Freedman, seven grandchildren, and four sons who are accomplished in their own right. A. Scott Berg won a 1999 Pulitzer Prize for his biography Lindbergh; Jeff Berg is the chairman of talent agency International Creative Management; Tony Berg is a record producer and executive; and Rick Berg is a manager and producer.