Lucille Kallen (1922–1999)

Lucille Kallen was born in Los Angeles and moved with her mother to Toronto at age three when her parents separated and divorced. She was raised by her grandparents after her mother's death. As a teenager, she founded a theater troupe, for which she wrote songs and sketches. Ms. Kallen moved to New York City at age 16 to pursue further training as a concert pianist at the Juilliard School. She wrote a musical revue that was spotted by producer Max Liebman, who became her mentor. She was teamed up with Mel Tolkin, who would become her longtime writing partner, and the two were hired in 1948 to write for a television show produced by Mr. Liebman, ''The Admiral Broadway Review,'' starring Sid Caesar and Imogene Coca. The following year, Ms. Kallen became the only female writer for ''Your Show of Shows,'' the next vehicle for Caesar and Coca, a 90-minute comedy variety show that was broadcast live each week on NBC-TV. She helped create a series of now-classic sketches alongside many writers who later became famous, including Neil Simon, Carl Reiner, Mel Brooks, and Woody Allen. In 1952, she married Herbert Engel, a businessman with whom she had two children. She wrote and freelanced for several other 1950s TV shows before embarking on a second career as a mystery novelist. She also wrote the novel Outside There, Somewhere (1964), exploring the competing demands of career and motherhood.