Harvey Brownstone conducts an in-depth Interview with Peter K. Ackerman, Author, Son of TV Producer Harry Ackerman and Actress Elinor Donahue.
Peter K. Ackerman is descended from Hollywood royalty. He grew up in the 1960s, as close as anyone can, to the world of classic television, at the height of his parents’ careers.
His father was the legendary television producer Harry Ackerman, who brought us many classic TV shows including “I Love Lucy”, “Hazel”, “Dennis the Menace”, “The Donna Reed Show”, “Leave it to Beaver”, “Bewitched”, “The Flying Nun, “Gidget”, and many more shows.
His mother is the popular and beloved Emmy-nominated actress Elinor Donahue, who starred in many classic TV shows. She played “Betty Anderson”, the eldest child on “Father Knows Best”, she was “Ellie Walker” the pharmacist on “The Andy Griffith Show”, she played Felix Unger’s girlfriend “Miriam Welby” in “The Odd Couple”, she was “Kate Honeycutt” in “Days of our Lives”, she played “Gladys Peterson” in “Get a Life”, and every fan of “Star Trek: The Original Series” knows her as “Nancy Hedford” from the season 2 episode entitled “Metamorphosis”. She also guest starred in many other popular TV shows including “Newhart”, “Happy Days”, “Friends” and “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman”. And who can ever forget her as “Bridget”, the nice saleslady in the department store who helps Julia Roberts in “Pretty Woman”?
Peter K. Ackerman has had a fascinating career, first following in his parents’ footsteps, as an actor, then in production for TV commercials, music videos featuring iconic stars like Madonna, Aerosmith, Janet Jackson and Peter Frampton, and then in television production, working on classic shows like “Full House” and “Friends”, before leaving show business and finding his true calling in the church, and becoming an Episcopal priest in 2007.
He’s here to discuss his brand new book entitled, “Mom, Dad, Me and Classic TV: Growing Up with Classic Television’s Harry Ackerman and Elinor Donahue”.
Harvey Brownstone is a retired judge of the Ontario Court of Justice and was the first openly gay judge in Canada. He is also the bestselling author of “Tug of War: A Judge’s Verdict on Separation, Custody Battles and the Bitter Realities of Family Court” and hosted “Family Matters with Justice Harvey Brownstone,” a television talk show on matters involving the family justice system.
After a distinguished legal career, Harvey was appointed a judge at the age of 38 in 1995. He has presided in family and criminal courts. He has been a trailblazer in several ways. He was the first openly gay judge in Canada. He was the first sitting judge in the world to write a national best seller and to host a TV talk show.
Harvey has been a role model and icon in the LGBTQ community. When same-sex marriage was legalized in Canada in 2003, he was the only judge to make himself publicly available to officiate at weddings for lesbian and gay couples travelling to Toronto from all over the world to get married. In 2007, he officiated at the wedding of Edith Windsor and Thea Spyer, the American couple whose marriage triggered the 2013 United States Supreme Court decision overturning the definition of “spouse” in the federal Defense of Marriage Act.
In February 2021, Harvey launched his online talk show “Harvey Brownstone Interviews” on his own YouTube channel. He saw this as an interesting hobby. Within several months, the show attracted hundreds of thousands – and then eventually, millions – of viewers. Because of the overwhelming success of the show, Harvey decided to retire from the judiciary on December 31, 2021 after having presided as a full-time judge for 26 1/2 years. Free from the constraints imposed upon judges regarding the expression of opinions and the endorsement of private enterprise, Harvey now happily devotes his full-time attention to hosting “Harvey Brownstone Interviews” as a regular member of the public – albeit one with a rather illustrious and unique career history.
Watch Peter K. Ackerman on Harvey Brownstone Interviews on Youtube here:
The official website for Harvey Brownstone Interviews may be found at https://www.harveybrownstoneinterviews.com
Get “The Talk Show Blend” – Coffee For The Modern Day Trailblazer! By Harvey Brownstone from Breakfast At Dominique’s available at https://www.HollywoodBlends.com
For more information about Harvey Brownstone, here’s his Wikipedia page:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvey_Brownstone