Lloyd Shearer

Lloyd "Skip" Shearer (December 20, 1916 – May 27, 2001[1]) was an American celebrity gossip columnist. From 1958 to 1991, he wrote "Walter Scott's Personality Parade" in Parade magazine.[2] In this column he used the name Walter Scott, and discussed rumors about celebrities using a question-and-answer style.[1] Shearer also wrote profiles of famous people under his real name.[1]

Career

Shearer began writing in high school.[3] He attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill,[1] and in 1936 he graduated with a bachelor's degree in the English language.[3] His first job was for the Durham Sun in North Carolina.[3] In 1941, Shearer was drafted into the Army.[1] When the military magazine Yank was established, Shearer joined the staff in New York City.[1][3] Later, he was transferred to Los Angeles where he wrote for Armed Forces Radio, as part of the Pacific Theater division. He also became a correspondent for The New York Times while still serving in the Army and after serving, until 1953.[3] Then he became the West Coast correspondent of Parade, then starting his "Walter Scott's Personality Parade" column in 1958.[1] Shearer retired from writing the column in 1991, due to Parkinson's disease.[3]

Life

Shearer was born in New York City on December 20, 1916.[1] Shearer's parents had immigrated from Austria, and his father worked as a typesetter. Elaine Woo stated that the neighborhood where Shearer was raised was "working class".[3]

Shearer married fellow writer, Marva Peterson. They had three children. Their firstborn, Derek (former U.S. Ambassador to Finland), followed by twins, Cody, and his sister, Brooke (now deceased). Lloyd Shearer died of a heart attack at his Los Angeles home on Thursday May 27, 2001.[1]

Shearer was mentioned in the book See Here Private Hargrove and Woo stated that as a result Shearer "gained some notoriety".[3]

References
  1. Wadler, Joyce. "Lloyd Shearer, Longtime Celebrity Columnist, Dies at 84." The New York Times. May 27, 2001. Retrieved on August 5, 2014.
  2. Cockburn, Alexander. "Why People Are Talking About Gossip." New York magazine. May 3, 1976. p. 2. Retrieved on October 5, 2014.
  3. Woo, Elaine. "Lloyd Shearer; Leader of the 'Personality Parade'" (Obituaries). Los Angeles Times. May 26, 2001. p. 1. Retrieved on August 5, 2014. Also printed in: "Lloyd Shearer, Wrote `Personality Parade'" In: Sun Sentinel. May 28, 2001.
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