Robert Emmett; Writer for ‘That Was the Week That Was’

Robert Emmett, 78, television writer for “That Was the Week That Was.” Born Robert McMenamin in Monterey, Calif., the writer and actor legally adopted his father’s first name, Emmett, as his surname. A graduate of UC Berkeley, Emmett served in the Navy and then acted in several plays in New York’s Broadway and off-Broadway theaters. In 1953, he also began writing for television and later for the stage. One of his best known television programs was the satirical series on news events called “That Was the Week That Was” in the mid-1960s. The show won Emmett Emmy nominations for outstanding writing in 1964 and 1965. In 1965, he also worked with Jule Styne and Bob Merrill to create an ABC musical, “The Dangerous Christmas of Red Riding Hood,” starring Liza Minnelli and Cyril Ritchard. As an actor, Emmett made his final appearance a year ago opposite his wife, actress Kim Hunter, in “On Golden Pond” at the New Jersey Repertory Theater. On April 8 in New York of complications following surgery for acute appendicitis.