Acclaimed television director, Jack Shea, responsible for "Sanford and Son", "The Jeffersons", and "Silver Spoons", died at the age of 84. According to MSN Entertainment, Shea died in his Los Angeles home on Sunday, after a long bout with Alzheimer's.
The three-time president of the Directors Guild of America was well known for promoting racial and gender equity. Shea helped organize the Radio & Television Directors Guild in New York, according to the Christian Science Monitor.
Shawn Shea, daughter of the Hollywood veteran, took a moment to reflect on her late father. "He loved his family and God and the Directors Guild, though not necessarily in that order," Shea said.
Jack Shea's accolades are extensive. He directed episodes of "Designing Women", "Growing Pains" and "The Waltons". He also directed 10 of Bob Hope's Christmas specials, the Los Angeles Times reported.
"He occupied a truly unique position in the history of the modern DGA," Guild president, Taylor Hackford said. "As the West Coast president of the Radio & Television Directors Guild in 1960, he was at the table sitting across from Frank Capra when the two guilds representing television and theatrical directors merged to form the modern Directors Guild of America."
After becoming the president of the DGA, Shea fought for diversity in the entertainment industry. Most notably, he hired Sherman Hemsley to portray businessman George Jefferson in the breakout comedy, "The Jeffersons".
The Los Angeles Times records Shea also removed D.W. Griffith's name from a lifetime achievement award because of his film "Birth of a Nation". The Guild called the film a "masterpiece" while Shea believed it glorified the Ku Klux Klan.
His wife, Patt, and daughter, Shawn, survive Jack Shea along with two sons, Michael Shea and John Francis Shea III. He leaves behind six grandchildren.
