Harris Wittels, who worked as a writer and executive producer on the NBC comedy "Parks and Recreation," was found dead Thursday of a possible drug overdose at his Los Angeles home, police said. He was 30.
Wittels' assistant found him at his home in the Los Feliz area around noon, and he was pronounced dead at the scene, police officer Rosario Herrera said. She said the death is being investigated as a possible drug overdose but the Los Angeles County coroner's office will determine the exact cause.
Wittels had talked about his struggles with drug abuse in a podcast last fall.
He was a co-executive producer and writer with occasional acting appearances on "Parks and Recreation," and his death comes just a few days before the series finale of the seven-season comedy starring Amy Poehler.
Poehler paid tribute to Wittels Thursday night when she was honored by Variety magazine at its unite4humanity event, where she told the crowd, "I don't really feel like telling any jokes."
"Today, I lost a friend," Poehler said. "I lost a dear, young friend in my life who was struggling with addiction."
Wittels also performed stand-up comedy and wrote for other TV shows including "The Sarah Silverman Program" and "Eastbound & Down."
He popularized the term "humblebrag" with his Twitter account of the same name, which eventually became the book "Humblebrag: The Art of False Modesty." He used it to mock celebrities and others who masked their braggadocio in self-deprecation.
Avid completes acquisition of Wolftech
Avid®, known for software solutions for professional media production, has completed the acquisition of Wolftech Broadcast Solutions, a leader in cloud-based multiplatform news planning, production and publishing solutions.
The acquisition enables Avid to combine its digital-first, end-to-end media solution with Wolftech’s expertise in story-centric workflow management. News organizations will be able to increase efficiency and accelerate story delivery through enhanced remote collaboration and multiplatform amplification.
Avid CEO Wellford Dillard stated, “Wolftech is unquestionably on the leading edge of where the industry is going, and this acquisition demonstrates Avid’s commitment to transform news, sports, and live production workflows. We are delighted to welcome Wolftech into the Avid family.”
Wolftech CEO Arne Berven added, “We were focused on finding a partner that could accelerate the adoption of our platform globally. We explored a number of possibilities, but when we talked to Avid, we knew it was the right match.”
The closing of the acquisition follows Avid’s announcement on October 7 that the company had entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Wolftech.
With this acquisition, Avid deepens the integration between the two toolsets while continuing to embrace an open approach in partnering with a wide range of media production tools and newsroom systems. Existing Wolftech customers will benefit from Avid’s global scale for customer support and professional services.
Ian Axton, head of production operations for ITV News, said, “As a customer of both Avid and Wolftech we’re excited about the benefits this acquisition will bring to our users and our business. Wolftech has transformed... Read More