The Young and the Restless’s Elizabeth Hendrickson, who plays Chloe Mitchell Fisher on the CBS soap, announced the passing of her beloved grandfather, Lester “Les” Colodny on Friday.
Elizabeth Hendrickson Looks Back at “Poppy”
“Lester Colodny. My Poppy. My biggest champion,” began the actress, in a post on Instagram honoring him. “My favorite person on this planet is now my guardian angel. No one will ever compare to you and the love we shared. I’m sure you’re first in line at the library, singing show tunes and casting your first play to direct in the heavens.”
Born on October 25, 1925, in Brooklyn, New York, Lester Colodny was an author, talent agent, actor, producer, director, and television writer known for such classics as Get Smart, Love American Style, and The Tonight Show. In 2010, he wrote an autobiography titled, “A Funny Thing Happened” that described his life in “a series of punchlines.”
Colodny worked his way through the ranks of such young and upcoming writers as Mel Brooks, Carl Reiner, Neil Simon, Larry Gelbart, and Woody Allen. A move to Hollywood found him on a blind date with Lana Turner and expanding his resume, working with the likes of The Beatles, Jerry Lewis, Hugh Hefner, Joan Rivers, Cary Grant, and Fred Gwynne. He produced the pilot for The Munsters before the studio handed the show off to more “seasoned writers.”
In an interview with Westport News, Colodny described his inspiration for his latest effort, saying, “Someone recently asked why I wrote the book. My life has been a series of incredible, unbelievable episodes. I asked myself, was that you? Was that Lester who did all of these things?” He added, “My book is about a plain, ordinary guy, a fellow from Brooklyn who did all of these things and never got publicity for them. I was always behind the scenes.”
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But Colodny was more than that to many people he touched along the way, including his granddaughter, Elizabeth, who added a beautiful tribute to him with the following lyrics from the song, I’ll Be Seeing You, made famous by singer Billie Holliday:
“I’ll be seeing you in every lovely summer’s day. In everything that’s right and gay. I’ll always think of you that way. I’ll find you in the morning sun. And when the night is new, I’ll be looking at the moon. But I’ll be seeing you…”
Soap Hub sends sincere condolences to Elizabeth Hendrickson, her family, and friends at this difficult time.
The Young and the Restless (YR) airs weekdays on CBS. Check your local listings for airtimes. For more about what’s coming up in Genoa City, check out all the latest that’s been posted on Y&R spoilers, and for an in-depth look at the show’s history, click here.
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