Description
The George Tibbles Papers contains scripts written by him for television, film, and stage. There are produced works, unproduced
works, treatments, and other development materials.
Background
George Tibbles was born on June 7, 1913 in New York City. He grew up in Los Angeles and studied at Los Angeles City College.
Tibbles got his start in the entertainment industry in the 1930s and 1940s as a musician, touring and working in nightclubs.
He began as a piano accompanist and later became a songwriter. He co-write the Oscar-nominated Woody Woodpecker song with
Ramez Idriss in 1947.
Tibbles’ TV career started with writing jokes and sketches for performer Betty White, for whom he was piano accompanist. Tibbles,
White and producer Don Fedderson created two TV series’ Life with Elizabeth and Date with the Angels, both starring White.
One of Tibbles’ most notable contributions to television was his work on the TV series My Three Sons. Starring Fred MacMurray
as Steve Douglas, a widower raising his three sons, Tibbles co-created the series with Don Fedderson which premiered in 1960
and ran for 12 seasons. For his work on the show, Tibbles was nominated for the Writers Guild of America Award twice in 1961
and 1963. Tibbles wrote the pilot episode for the series and served as a producer in the earliest season. In addition, he
wrote 92 episodes over the show’s run.
Dennis the Menace and Leave It to Beaver are among Tibbles’ other early credits. He also created the 1966 show Pistols 'n'
Petticoats, a 27-episode television western for which he also wrote the theme song, and he wrote the screenplay for the 1971
Don Knott’s comedy How to Frame a Figg. He would continue to write for television sitcoms until 1986. George Tibbles also
wrote 24 stage plays, some of which were musicals, and 7 novels. He also wrote a memoir of his music career which would go
unpublished titled “Don't Shake Hands On the Job.” Tibbles passed away from cancer on February 14, 1987 leaving behind his
wife, Mildred (née Danson), children and grandchildren.