Tom Whedon was a television screenwriter known for his work on the series The Golden Girls, Benson, Captain Kangaroo and The Electric Company. He won one Emmy Award in 1973 for The Electric Company and was nominated for two more, in 1990 and 1991, both for Golden Girls. He was also nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award in 2001, for the children’s series Between the Lions.

Whedon’s father, John Whedon, was also a screenwriter, with credits that included The Andy Griffith Show, The Dick Van Dyke Show, That Girl and Walt Disney’s Wonderful World of Color. The younger Whedon also contributed to the series Music Scene, The Dick Cavett Show, Alice, It’s a Living and The Sinbad Show.

Additionally, he worked on the television specials The Alan King Show, Jim Henson’s Hey Cinderella! and Out to Lunch. He also served as a producer on many of the shows he served on as a writer, including It’s a Living, Maggie, Golden Girls and The Sinbad Show.

Whedon served as an original writer on Captain Kangaroo, which debuted on CBS in 1955. In the 1970s, he joined the Sesame Workshop, known then as the Children’s Television Workshop. There, he helped to develop the Sesame Street characters Cookie Monster and Big Bird.

Tom Whedon had five sons: screenwriter Joss Whedon (Toy Story, The Avengers), musician and screenwriter Jed Whedon (Dr. Horrible’s Sing-Along Blog), screenwriter Zack Whedon (Fringe, Deadwood) and two others, Samuel and Matthew.

Whedon died March 23, 2016. He was 83.