The Berkshire Car Crash That Forced NBC Critic Gene Shalit to Give Up Driving

The news flashed on my phone the other day that film critic Gene Shalit died. He was 100. That's not a bad run.

I met Shalit once, a long time ago, at the historic Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge, in Western Massachusetts. Well, actually, I barged into his life as he sat alone, eating soup and poring over some paperwork in front of him. A star-struck 20-something assumed Shalit wouldn't mind posing for a picture for me. He took the photo after grumbling something, then went back to his soup and his papers.

That was rude of me. I should have left the man to his soup.

Shalit was born in New York City on March 25, 1926. He was raised in New Jersey, where his father operated a drugstore.

Gene Shalit Quit Driving After 2012 Massachusetts Car Crash

Shalit joined NBC's Today in 1970, first as a part-time film critic, but by 1973, he was a full-time member of the morning crew. Shalit's "walrus mustache and exuberant wordplay made him one of television's most recognizable reviewers," NBC said in a statement.

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A High-Profile Collision on the Streets of Lenox

Shalit was married to Nancy Lewis from 1950 until her death from cancer in 1978. After that, while residing in New Jersey, he spent considerable time in the Stockbridge area, where in October 2012, Shalit crashed his car in nearby Lenox after falling asleep while driving.

Shalit's vehicle hit a utility pole and a residence. There were no injuries. Shalit was 86 at the time.

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The Berkshire Eagle reported at the time that charges against Shalit were dismissed when he agreed to give up driving.