What was Sherwood Schwartz's Net Worth?
Sherwood Schwartz was an American television producer who had a net worth of $175 million at the time of his death. Sherwood Schwartz is best known for creating the sitcoms "Gilligan's Island" and "The Brady Bunch." He also created the short-lived series "It's About Time," "Dusty's Trail," and "Harper Valley PTA," and earlier in his career wrote for "The Red Skelton Show." Following his television career, Schwartz ventured into playwriting with his play "Rockers," which opened in 2006. Sherwood Schwartz died on July 12, 2011 at the age of 94.
In 1965 Sherwood created the series "Gilligan's Island." The show eventually aired 98 episodes over three seasons. In 1969 he created "The Brady Bunch." The show eventually aired 117 episodes over five seasons. These shows, while never popular among critics, were huge hits, and continue to be popular in reruns, reunion specials, and movies to this very day. More importantly, those two shows would live-on indefinitely through global syndication and those syndication deals and royalties earned Sherwood a fortune. As we explain in the next section, Sherwood reportedly earned $90 million in rerun royalties off "Gilligan's Island" alone. He presumably earned an equally-large haul off "The Brady Bunch."
Gilligan's Island Rerun Royalties
Sherwood's cast were paid a salary of $750 per week while working on the show. That's the same as making around $7,300 per week in today's dollars. Assuming each season required 40 weeks (there were 36 episodes in season one, 32 in season two and 30 in season three), that worked out to an annual income of $30,000. That's the same as making around $300,000 in today's dollars.
Contrary to popular belief, the cast members did not receive any significant income in the form of residuals. As the show's creator, Sherwood on the other hand, made out extremely well. As Dawn Wells explained to a reporter in 2014:
"A misconception is that we must be wealthy, rolling in the dough, because we got residuals. We didn't really get a dime… Sherwood Schwartz, our producer, reportedly made $90 million on the reruns alone."
Early Life
Sherwood Schwartz was born on November 14, 1916 in Passaic, New Jersey to Jewish parents Herman and Rose. He had an older brother named Al and a younger brother named Elroy, both of whom also became screenwriters.
Career Beginnings in Radio
As a young adult, Schwartz moved to Southern California to pursue a master's degree in biology. To pay for his expenses, he began writing for Bob Hope's radio program, "The Bob Hope Show," which his brother Al also worked on. Schwartz wrote for the show from 1938 to 1942. Schwartz continued writing for radio programs throughout the 40s, with credits including "The Adventures of Ozzie and Harriet" and "The Alan Young Show." He also wrote for the Armed Forces Radio Network during his service in the US Army.
Start of Television Career
In the 50s, Schwartz transitioned to television writing. From 1952 to 1955, he wrote for the NBC sitcom "I Married Joan," starring Joan Davis and Jim Backus. Subsequently, from 1956 to 1962, Schwartz served as the head writer of the comedy variety program "The Red Skelton Show." He won an Emmy Award for his work in 1961. After his tenure on that show ended, he became a script supervisor on the CBS sitcom "My Favorite Martian" for a year.
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Gilligan's Island
Schwartz created his first television series in 1964: the CBS sitcom "Gilligan's Island." Focused on the comic misadventures of seven castaways on an island in the Pacific Ocean, it starred Bob Denver, Alan Hale Jr., Jim Backus, Dawn Wells, Tina Louise, Russell Johnson, and Natalie Schafer. In addition to creating "Gilligan's Island," Schwartz produced and wrote for the show, which aired for three seasons through April of 1967. Its popularity grew over the subsequent decades when it ran in syndication, garnering new generations of fans. In 1995, Schwartz reunited with the surviving "Gilligan's Island" cast members in an episode of the sitcom "Roseanne" dedicated to him.
(Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images)
The Brady Bunch
The other major show created by Schwartz was "The Brady Bunch." The ABC sitcom, about a large blended family in Los Angeles, aired for five seasons from 1969 to 1974. It starred Robert Reed, Florence Henderson, Ann B. Davis, Susan Olsen, Christopher Knight, Barry Williams, and Maureen McCormick, among others. Like "Gilligan's Island," Schwartz's "The Brady Bunch" reached its peak popularity during its years in syndication. That newfound success resulted in a number of television reunion films and spinoff series, as well as a pair of theatrical films in the 90s.
Further Television Career
Schwartz created a few other series during his life. In 1966, he created the science-fiction fantasy series "It's About Time," about two astronauts who travel back in time to the prehistoric era. It starred Frank Aletter, Jack Mullaney, Imogene Coca, Joe E. Ross, Cliff Norton, and Mike Mazurki. Although it was a success at first, the show soon declined in ratings and ended in 1967 after a single season. Another show created by Schwartz was "Dusty's Trail," which also only lasted for a single season, airing from 1973 to 1974. A Western-themed spin on "Gilligan's Island," it starred that show's Bob Denver in addition to Forrest Tucker, Ivor Francis, Jeannine Riley, Lori Saunders, Bill Cort, and Lynn Wood.
Schwartz returned to television in 1976 to produce the Saturday-morning sitcom "Big John, Little John," starring Herbert Edelman and Robbie Rist as the titular characters. The show only lasted for one season. Schwartz continued working behind the scenes in television in the 80s. Early in the decade, he created the sitcom "Harper Valley PTA," based on the film of the same name. The show, starring Barbara Eden, aired on NBC for two seasons. Schwartz's final series was the CBS sitcom "Together We Stand," which he co-created with Michael Jacobs and Al Burton in 1986. Starring Elliott Gould and Dee Wallace, it focused on a couple and their various adopted children. Ultimately, the show was short-lived, running for a single season through April of 1987.
Personal Life and Death
In late 1941, Schwartz married Mildred Seidman. Together, they had four children: Donald, who became an ophthalmologist; Lloyd, a television producer and writer; Ross, an attorney; and Hope, a writer and producer.
Schwartz passed away of natural causes on July 12, 2011 in Los Angeles, California. He was 94 years of age.
