Wed, 09/07/2011

Noted TV director Charles Dubin, best known for his work on M*A*S*H, dies at 92

Sad news: noted director Charles Dubin passed away on September 5th at the age of 92. Dubin began his career as an actor, and transitioned to television as an assistant director at ABC in 1950. He directed many productions including episodes of Omnibus featuring Leonard Bernstein and Agnes DeMille. He also worked with Bernstein on his Young People's Concerts. He briefly worked as a director on the quiz show series Twenty-One, which became the epicenter of TV's quiz show scandals -- although Dubin himself was unaware of the backstage practices that led to the show's demise. During the McCarthy Era, Dubin was called to appear before the House Un-American Activities Committee, in which he plead the Fifth and was blacklisted from the industry for five years. Upon his return to directing, he helmed episodes of The Defenders, M*A*S*H (where he directed 44 episodes), Kojak, Hawaii Five-O, and other major series. He was interviewed by the Archive of American Television by Gary Rutkowski on September 9, 2003. The entire interview is available here.

In this interview excerpt, Dubin discusses directing the M.A.S.H episode "Point of View":