Slade was born in St. Catharines, Ontario in May 1930, the son of Bessie Harriet (Walbourne) and Frederick Newbound.[1][2][3] Slade moved to England with his family at age five. After he returned to Canada, he worked as a steward on Trans Canada Airlines for a while before he went into acting as a career.[4]
Career
Slade began his career as an actor in repertory theatre in England.[4] He also acted with the Garden Center Theatre in Vineland, Ontario. In the mid-1960s, he relocated to Hollywood and began to work at Screen Gems as a writer for televisionsitcoms, including Bewitched (including the 7th episode, "The Witches Are Out," which introduced Aunt Clara). When ABC gave him the opportunity to create a series, he devised Love on a Rooftop, similar in theme to Neil Simon's Barefoot in the Park, about a young couple living in a windowless walk-up apartment with access to a rooftop with a view of San Francisco.
Despite his success in television, Slade returned to the theater in 1975 with his play Same Time, Next Year,[5] about a couple who are married to others but meet once-a-year for sex and conversation. With Charles Grodin and Ellen Burstyn in the leads, the play was a major hit and ran for 1,453 performances. Slade received the Drama Desk Award and a Tony Award nomination for Best Play.
In 1978, he followed with Tribute, the story of a man who learns to love his father, a successful actor who always had more time for his theatrical cohorts than his son. Even with Jack Lemmon heading the cast, it proved to be far less successful than its predecessor, closing after 212 performances. Slightly more successful was Romantic Comedy (1979),[5] starring Anthony Perkins and Mia Farrow. Slade wrote the screenplays for the film versions of all three plays, and was nominated for an Oscar for his screen adaptation of Same Time, Next Year.[6][7]
Book
Slade wrote an autobiography, Shared Laughter, published by Key Porter Books.[8]
Personal life
Slade was married to actress Jill Foster from July 25, 1953 until her death on March 24, 2017.[9][4] They had two children: Laurie Newbound and Christopher Newbound.[9] Slade died from Lewy body dementia at his home in Beverly Hills, California, on October 30, 2019, at the age of 89.[3]
^(Search: 'Slade, Bernard'). Academy Awards Database. Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Retrieved December 24, 2019. Results: "1978 (51st). Writing (Screenplay Based on Material from Another Medium) -- Same Time, Next Year".
^Portman, Jamie (December 24, 2000). "Same Time, Year after Year". Times Colonist. Canada, British Columbia, Victoria. Southam Newspapers. p. 47. Retrieved July 26, 2019 – via Newspapers.com.