Sophie B. Altman, the founder and executive producer of the
landmark television show, IT'S ACADEMIC, died on May 24 in Washington, D.C.
Altman's
work was motivated by a deep concern for education, the recognized need
for positive programming for children and the desire to project
positive images of teenagers to the community and nation. Altman got her start in television as an assistant to the
producer of "Meet the Press." Sophie Altman was born in Springfield , Massachusetts in 1913, the
youngest of six children. Her husband, Norman Altman, died in 1997, and her daughter,
Professor Janet R. Spragens of American
University passed away in 2006.
As
one of the first women to work in radio and television, Altman was a
broadcast pioneer who created and produced the long-running high school
quiz program to provide greater public recognition for academic
achievement.
Now entering its 48th season, the award-winning
IT'S ACADEMIC is in the Guinness Book of World Records as the world's
longest running television quiz show.
The program featured high school students in television markets across
the country, including New York,
Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Baltimore, Cleveland, Cincinnati, Buffalo,
Phoenix, Charlottesville, San
Diego, and Washington, D.C.
Thousands
of the nation's brightest high school students have appeared on the
show, and gone on to become leaders in law, medicine, business,
science, government and the media.
Included among its many illustrious student alumni are Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Charles Schumer, the publisher of the Washington Post, Donald Graham, writer
David Ignatius, and television host George Stephanopoulis.
Other national figures who have appeared on the show include President Ronald Reagan, Senator Jim Webb, former Senators Jack
Danforth, John Heinz, and Pat Moynihan, Supreme Court Justice Clarence
Thomas, columnists Art Buchwald and
David Broder, Cabinet secretaries Elaine
Chao and Margaret Spellings,
baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken, Jr.
Well-known television journalist Cokie
Roberts's first job in television was as an assistant producer
on IT'S ACADEMIC.
To foster education among inmates, Altman also instituted a series
of IT'S ACADEMIC programs in federal and state
prisons.
At
the advent of modern television in the early 1950's, she created and
produced a number of highly acclaimed shows, including Report Card for
Parents, Teen Talk, NIH Reports, and Meeting of the Minds, among other
shows.
In recognition of her work on radio and television,
Altman has earned numerous awards and honors, including eight Emmys,
and three Golden Mikes, and has been celebrated by leading educational
institutions, including the National School Boards Association.
Altman was named a Washingtonian of
the Year by Washingtonian
magazine.
She
also authored a book and wrote numerous articles that appeared in
newspapers and national magazines concerning her work with teenagers.
After graduating from Wellesley College
on scholarship, she was one of few women to attend Yale
Law School, graduating in
1936.
She then moved to Washington, D.C. as
part of the cadre of young lawyers who came to work here in the New Deal and remained to become part of
the Washington establishment.
She married Norman S. Altman, then also a New
Deal lawyer, in 1937, and they were married for 60 years.
In 1961, she created IT'S ACADEMIC; the program was an instant success
and has become an institution in Washington
(NBC4) and Baltimore (WJZ), as well
as elsewhere, with many area schools establishing official IT'S
ACADEMIC clubs.
She continued as its executive producer and worked daily on the show
until her recent hospitalization.
Mrs. Altman is survived by her children Susan Altman, Robert Altman and
his wife, actress Lynda Carter
Altman, Nancy Altman and her husband Professor Ira C. Lupu; her
grandchildren Robin Spragens Trepanier and her husband Oscar, Lee
Spragens Irwin and her husband Thomas, Jennifer Altman-Lupu, James
Altman, Michael Altman-Lupu, Jessica Altman; and her great
grand-son
Luke Trepanier.
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