Harvey Laidman, a television director known for working on multiple episodes of “The Waltons,” “Matlock” and “7th Heaven,” died Jan. 3 in Simi Valley, Calif. He was 82.
Laidman’s death was confirmed to Hollywood Reporter by his son, Dan Laidman, with the cause of death being cancer.
Throughout his multiple decades in the industry, Laidman directed episodes on a wide range of shows, including “Hawaii Five-O,” “The Incredible Hulk,” “Quantum Leap,” “The Dukes of Hazzard,” “Magnum, P.I.,” “Jake and the Fatman,” “The Fitzpatricks,” “Eight Is Enough,” “The Blue Knight” and “Kojak.”
Laidman went on to direct a total of 11 episodes of “The Waltons” as well as 10 episodes of “Scarecrow and Mrs. King,” 33 episodes of “Matlock” and 16 episodes of “7th Heaven,” marking his final screen credit in 2004.
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Chester Spier, a set decorator on “Matlock,” shared a tribute to his longtime friend on Facebook, writing that “Harvey had a brilliant sense of humor and a keen eye, always looking for another angle to shoot from and added a great deal to the series’ look and humor.”
After graduating from the University of Southern California in 1964, Laidman got his start working at KTTV for three years before his acceptance into the DGA Producer Training program. In the 1970s, he worked as an assistant director on films like “Airport” and “Red Sky at Morning” before his first solo directing job on the third season of “The Waltons.”
In 2011, Laidman began teaching directing at California State University, Northridge, where he taught until last year. Laidman is survived by his son, Dan Laidman, his wife, Susan Laidman, his sister and grandchildren.