Anne Beatts, one of the foremost comedy writers on SNL in the 1970s, has passed away. She was 74.
The news of her passing was confirmed by former SNL cast member Laraine Newman, who took to Twitter to share, “Our Anne- an OG SNL writer passed away yesterday.” No cause of death has been revealed.
In a further statement provided to The Hollywood Reporter, Beatts’ friend Rona Edwards wrote “Anne was a pioneer – she truly paved the way for women in comedy and female comedy writers in particular who may not have had their shot if Anne hadn’t come before them – but overall, she was my friend – my heart is completely broken.”
She continued, “she was one of a kind and no one can ever replace her wit, her wisdom, and her talent, but to me, nothing can ever replace her friendship and humanity.”
Anne Beatts was one of the few female comedy writers to work on SNL in the 70. She cut her teeth as the first female writer-editor at The National Lampoon. Beatts, joined the SNL writing staff with her collaborative partner Rosie Shuster in 1975, where she remained until 1980. Over the course of her tenure, Beatts earned five Emmy nominations, winning two awards.
In 1982, Beatts would go on to create the cult television series, Square Pegs. The Sarah Jessica-Parker-led show aired for one season on CBS.
She also taught film and television writing at USC’s School of Cinematic Arts and the School of Cinema and Television Arts at California State University at Northridge.
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Heartbroken to see that Anne Beatts has died. Always wanted to talk to her about Square Pegs, an incredibly formative TV experience for me, so formative that I wrote about her when @NYMag did its Lost Canon series.https://t.co/8IepYqZoim
— Jen Chaney (@chaneyj) April 8, 2021
