Bill Clotworthy, Also Known As 'Dr. No,' Dead At 95; 'SNL' Executive's Death Mysterious
Bill Clotworthy, an executive of "Saturday Night Live" for standards and practices, has passed away at 95.
According to his son Robert Clotworthy, as reported by Deadline, the writer died on Thursday in a hospice located in Salt Lake City, Utah. His cause of death remains unknown; however, it was reported that he was living with Type 2 diabetes for 40 years, but it wasn't confirmed whether this is the reason behind his death.
Born William Griffith Clotworthy, the executive spent his early days in Westfield, New Jersey. He was born on January 13, 1926. He attended Westfield High School and became a U.S. veteran as he served for the Navy at the end of World War II.
While serving for the country, he studied at Wesleyan University and Yale. He finally got his theatre degree at Syracuse University in 1948.
Clotworthy is known as "Dr. No" by "SNL's" cast and crew members as he's in charge of on-set censor for more than a decade until he decided to retire.
During his time in the comedy program, he also handles other shows such as "Late Night With David Letterman" and "The Cosby Shows."
Clotworthy is also known for working in the field of advertising before going back to NBC as he spent over three decades at Madison Avenue firm, BBDO.
The executive is also a renowned writer as he already published several books in the past like "Saturday Night Live: Equal Opportunity Offender," "In The Footsteps of George Washington, "Censurato! Come ho messo il bavaglio ai," and many more.
#RIP Bill Clotworthy, 95; he spent 13 years as the Studio 8H on-set censor for 'Saturday Night Live,' where the cast & crew lovingly called him "Doctor No." Fun story in here about a farting sketch that never made it on the air. https://t.co/xbI1NF0dJG
— Mike Barnes (@MikeBarnes4) August 23, 2021
Per Hollywood Reporter, in his memoir, Clotworthy opened up the importance of censors in television shows. He mentioned that executives from the field of standards and practices like him are trying to make TV "acceptable to a large and culturally diverse audience."
In addition, he stated that it is not easy to work in the field of censorship because there's a hindrance from the creative community that wants to "push the envelope."
In a 2002 interview, he recalled one hilarious "SNL" skit that was never broadcasted. He said that the sketch was about a bunch of fraternity boys "trying to light farts."
"You didn't see anything, but you heard the voiceover and then there was this big explosion, and Joe Piscopo was dressed as Smokey the Bear, and he came out and said that should be a lesson to everyone - don't fart with fire." He recalled.
