MIAMI BEACH — For generations of Philadelphians and for many longtime television industry veterans, the name Lew Klein is one of high reverence. It is because of Klein that American Bandstand is permanently etched into the fabric of U.S. culture. It is also because of Klein, who pioneered the Action News format at WPVI-6 in Philadelphia, that the National Association of Television Program Executives (NATPE) even exists.
Klein in 1963 founded NATPE. Now, a leadership award has been established in memory of the TV industry legend, who passed away on June 12, 2019 at the age of 91. The first recipient is a TV industry figure who entered station ownership in the early 1990s with the acquisition of a Scranton-Wilkes Barre property: Perry Sook.
