Leland Maurice Mendelson (March 24, 1933 – December 25, 2019) was an American television producer of more than 100 programs, including A Charlie Brown Christmas (1965) and additional Peanuts specials. He won four Peabody Awards and 12 Emmy Awards with his company, Lee Mendelson Film Productions.
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Early life and education
Mendelson was born in San Francisco on March 24, 1933. He grew up in San Mateo and graduated from San Mateo High School. In 1954 graduated from Stanford University with a degree in English. He then served for three years as a lieutenant in the Air Force. He worked several years for his father, a vegetable grower and shipper.
Career
In 1961, Mendelson began his television career by creating public service announcements for KPIX-TV in San Francisco. A fortunate find of some antique film footage of the 1915 San Francisco World's Fair led him to produce his first documentary, The Innocent Fair, a program covering local history. It led to a series, San Francisco Pageant, for which Mendelson won a Peabody Award.
