Composer, writer, lyricist, performer, storyteller, pianist and raconteur Lan O’Kun of Malibu passed away at home of heart failure on Jan. 9, 2020. He was 87. He was surrounded by his wife of 60 years, Barbara O’Kun, and his loving family.
Among his numerous credits were hundreds of scripts and songs for ventriloquist Shari Lewis and her beloved puppets Lamb Chop, Charlie Horse and Hush Puppy.
Born Jan. 13, 1932, in New York City, the only child of Sydney (Syd) and Helen O’Kun, he began playing the piano at age seven and later enrolled in New York’s High School of Music and Art. He graduated from Syracuse University in New York.
In his 50-year career he wrote scripts for many popular television shows. His Hallmark Hall of Fame special, “The Littlest Angel,” is regarded as a TV classic, as is his children’s series, “Tales of the Riverbank,” a much beloved British TV show. He also produced and wrote the book, lyrics and music for “The Juggler of Notre Dame,” for which he won an Emmy. For many years he was musical director at NBC Television.
O’Kun’s longest-running collaboration with performer-ventriloquist Shari Lewis lasted 44 years. O’Kun was Ms. Lewis’s brother-in-law, having married her younger sister, Barbara, in 1960. Their collaboration defined the popular puppets Lamb Chop, Charlie Horse and Hush Puppy and resulted in numerous Emmy, Peabody and other prestigious awards. After Lewis’s passing in 1998, O’Kun continued to write and work with her daughter (his niece) Mallory Lewis and, through their efforts, Lamb Chop lives on, for which Lamb Chop is eternally thankful.
O’Kun also worked with many high-profile artists and wrote two Broadway musicals, designed events and programming for the New York and Canadian World’s Fairs, the animated feature “Puss ‘n’ Boots,” and children’s books and videos in partnership with Shari Lewis.
In later years, he wrote and narrated audiobooks of short fantasy stories.
Mr. O’Kun is survived by his wife, Barbara O’Kun; niece Mallory Lewis, grand-nephew Jamie Hood, and a large extended family. The O’Kuns’ son, Shawn, predeceased his father in 2017.