Heather Gray, Executive Producer of CBS’ ‘The Talk, Dies at 50

Kimberly Nordyke
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Heather Gray, executive producer and showrunner on CBS’ daytime talk show The Talk, has died. She was 50.

Gray died Saturday in Los Angeles of an “unforgiving disease,” according to CBS, without providing further details.

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Gray joined The Talk, which debuted in 2010, midway through season one as senior supervising producer. The following season, she was promoted to co-executive producer, then named an executive producer in August 2019.

For her work on The Talk, Gray earned Daytime Emmy Awards for best talk show, entertainment, in 2016 and 2018, along with an NAACP Image Award in 2016.

Before joining The Talk, Gray was a development producer at Endemol USA from 2010-11 and served as supervising producer for The Tyra Banks Show from 2006-10.

A letter praising Gray’s contributions to the show was sent to The Talk staff and crew from CBS president and CEO George Cheeks, CBS Studios president David Stapf, CBS Network Entertainment president Kelly Kahl, CBS Network Entertainment senior executive vp programming Thom Sherman, CBS Network Entertainment executive vp current programs Amy Reisenbach and CBS Network Entertainment senior vp daytime programs Laurie Seidman. Read it in full below.

Dear Talk Family,

On behalf of all of us at CBS, we want to extend our deep condolences to you for the painful loss of our beloved Heather. She was an inspiration to us all, living and thriving while bravely battling an unforgiving disease. She showed us what true courage looks like.

Heather has been the heart and soul of “The Talk” from day one. Her brilliance as an innovative producer was only outmatched by her huge smile and infectious laugh. She was an admired, beloved mama bear of your family and a leader that all looked up to. Her contributions to the success of the show are immeasurable, but more importantly, she was a boss that proved you can lead with kindness, caring and friendship. Heather was everyone’s friend, everyone’s champion, everyone’s favorite person on the set. We will miss her terribly.

We recognize and share the pain and shock you are feeling at this moment, as well as the grief you will feel in the days ahead. While the show is starting its hiatus as of August 1 (Monday), we do not want you to grieve and mourn alone. The set will be open, and HR will have staff and grief counseling available in person and by phone. HR support will be on site as well. We understand how difficult this will be for all of you and want you to all know, that we are here for you.

George, Kelly, David, Thom, Amy, Laurie

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