Lorne Michaels – Net Worth 2024, Biography, Personal Life, Professional Career, and Everything
Lorne Michaels is a television writer and producer best known for creating Saturday Night Live. He has been part of the television industry for decades and has become a prominent figure in the entertainment world. He became the producer of numerous shows, including Late Night, The Kids in the Hall, and The Tonight Show.
He received 106 Primetime Emmy Award nominations and won 21, becoming the most nominated individual in the show’s history.
Let’s explore Michaels’s net worth, personal life, professional career, and more.
| Attribute | Details |
|---|---|
| Real Name | Lorne David Lipowitz |
| Profession | Producer, writer, comedian |
| Date of Birth | November 17, 1944 |
| Age | 79 years |
| Birth Place | Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Parents | Henry Abraham Lipowitz, Florence Lipowitz |
| Siblings | Mark Lipowitz, Barbara Lipowitz |
| Spouses | Alice Barry (m. 1991), Susan Forristal (m. 1981–1987), Rosie Shuster (m. 1971–1980) |
| Children | Sophie Michaels, Henry Michaels, Edward Michaels |
| Net Worth | Estimated $500 million |
Net Worth 2024
Currently, Michaels’s net worth is estimated at around $500 million. His primary source of income comes from film and television productions. His long contract with NBC also contributed a significant percentage to his income. He has also made a contract with Paramount Pictures and NBC Universal, which made him the highest-paid figure in the industry.
Michaels owns a luxurious apartment in Central Park and a home in East Hampton.
Early Life
Michaels was born to Florence and Henry Abraham Lipowitz on November 17, 1944, in Toronto, Canada. Some sources state that he was born on a kibbutz, and his family migrated to Canada when he was an infant. He and his two siblings spent their childhood there.
Michaels attended Forest Hill Collegiate Institute and completed his English graduation from University College, Toronto, in 1966.
Professional Career
Michaels started his career on CBC Radio, where he worked as a writer and broadcaster. In 1968, he moved to Los Angeles and began writing for The Beautiful Phyllis Diller Show and Rowan & Martin’s Laugh-In. In the early 1970s, he appeared in the CBC comedy special series The Hart and Lorne Terrific Hour.
In 1975, Michaels created the TV show NBC’s Saturday Night after collaborating with the NBC employee Dick Ebersol and the president, Herb Schlosser. In 1977, the show was renamed to Saturday Night Live.
The show was filmed live in front of a studio audience, which built a rapid reputation for its unpredictable material. The show became a turning point for many successful comedians in the United States to start their careers.
Michaels originally served as the show’s producer but also worked as the writer and later became the executive producer. Sometimes, he started to appear on-screen for SNL and became famous for his deadpan humor.
The show has received 156 Emmy Award nominations and won 36. It became the highest-rated television program on the network. He has been part of the show’s all seasons except 6 to 10, as he took a break in the early 1980s.
In 1979, he launched Broadway Video, which has produced SNL since 1981. The company also produced the Canadian sketch comedy The Kids in the Hall, which premiered on CBC in 1988.
In 1984, Michaels created another sketch show, The New Show, but it was canceled after nine episodes because it failed to get ratings like SNL. In the 1980s, he appeared in the HBO mockumentary The Canadian Conspiracy. He also became the executive producer of the NBC shows Late Night and 30 Rock and Up All Night.
Personal Life
In the early 1960s, he started a relationship with Rosie Shuter, the daughter of his comedy mentor, Frank Shuter. They married in 1967 and divorced in 1980. In 1981, he married Susan Forristal, a model, and they ended their marriage in 1987. In 1991, he married Alice Barry, his former assistant, and they have three children.
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