Howard Smith

Howard Smith (December 10, 1936 – May 1, 2014) was an American Oscar-winning film director, producer, journalist, screenwriter, actor and radio broadcaster. Smith was born in Brooklyn in 1936 and raised in Newark, New Jersey where his parents, Charles and Sadie (née Heitner) Smith, owned a cigar store. His parents were Jewish immigrants from Eastern Europe. He was interested in inventions when he was a youngster. He graduated from Weequahic High School in 1955 and attended Pace College in New York City but left to write poetry. Smith started his career as a photographer. His work appeared in Life, Newsweek and many other national publications.