David Jacobs, the writer and producer who created the primetime soap operas “Dallas” and “Knots Landing” died on August 23 at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank, CA. He was 84.

“Dallas aired for 14 seasons and 3576 episodes, starting out as a five-part miniseries in April 1978 before wrapping in May 1991. It was the No. 1 show in the Nielsen ratings after its 4^th, 5^th and 7^th seasons. Meanwhile, the spinoff, “Knots Landing,” debuted in December 1979 and also ran for 14 seasons and 344 episodes, a solid Thursday night staple through May 1993.

Alan Arkin, the star of “Get Smart” and “Little Miss Sunshine” and who appeared in more than 100 films in a career stretching over seven decades, died on June 29, in California. He was 89.

In the early 1960s, Arkin became an improv star at Chicago’s Second City, which led to scores of screen credits, including “The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming,” “Gross Pointe Blank,” and “Edward Scissorhands.” On television, he appeared in “Captain Kangaroo,” “Carol Burnett & Company,” “St. Elsewhere,” “Will & Grace,” and “BoJack Horseman.”

Toward the end of his life, Alan Arkin took up fine art painting, and he also authored a memoir. His last role was in “Minions: The Rise of Gru.”

Marlena Spieler, an American food writer of more than 70 cookbooks, died July 6 at her home near London. She was 74.

As a food writer, she was the “Roving Feast” columnist for The San Francisco Chronicle, and also worked for radio and television shows. She received the James Beard Award, and also the International Cookbook Award in Périgueux, France, in 2000. Her Jewish Heritage Cooking book was honored in 2003 by a Special Jury Award at the World Gourmand Book Awards.

Richard Ravitch, a politically savvy, civic-minded developer who helped rescue New York City from bankruptcy and its decaying subways from fiscal collapse, died on June 25 in Manhattan. He was 89.

“Mr. Ravitch never won elective office, but he left an outsize mark on government as one of the backstage wise men recruited to stave off the financial collapse of New York’s Urban Development Corporation in 1975 and, a few months later, of New York City’s overdrawn municipal accounts,” The New York Times said. By rallying public support for inventive means of raising revenue, he was also instrumental in rejuvenating the city’s mass transit system in the 1980s as chairman of the Metropolitan Transportation Authority.

He retired from the transit agency in 1983, but not from public life. He led a group of investors who restored the ailing Bowery Savings Bank to profitability in two years; was the chairman of a New York City charter revision commission that strengthened ethics and public campaign financing rules, and remained active in Jewish philanthropies.

Mr. Ravitch, who had inherited a construction company, also left his mark on the cityscape with signature apartment projects like Waterside and Manhattan Plaza.

Marvin Kitman, who survived longer as a television reviewer than most of the programs he mirthfully critiqued, died on June 29 at the Actors Fund Home in Englewood, NJ. He was 93.

He joined The New Leader as a TV critic in 1967 and began writing a syndicated column for Newsday in 1969. Over 35 years, he churned out 5,786 columns, championing groundbreaking shows like “All in the Family,” “Seinfeld,” and “Monty Python’s Flying Circus” while mercilessly panning others.

In 1982, Mr. Kitman was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for criticism. His last column was published on April 1, 2005. He also wrote a number of books, notably about Washington politics.

Joseph Pedott, a native Chicagoan and the advertising mastermind behind the iconic ‘80s products the Clapper and the Chia Pet, died in San Francisco. He was 91.

In 1980, while attending a housewares show in search of new clients, Mr. Pedott learned about a terra cotta planter, shaped like a ram, that grew chia sprouts resembling hair when watered. The inventor said it was popular but not profitable. Mr. Pedott bought the rights and tinkered with it. Two years later, the Chia ram debuted, followed by more animals over the years, including turtles, kittens and puppies, and later, pop culture figures. There is even a Chia version of President Barack Obama.

The Clapper, a gadget that turned lights on and off when someone clapped, was released in 1985.

Peg Yorkin, a U.S. feminist, philanthropist and strategist, who co-founded and served as chair of the board of the Feminist Majority Foundation, publisher of Ms, died June 25. She was 96.

Two of her campaigns were notably successful: The Feminization of Power, which saw the increase of women in the U.S. Congress from 5% in the 1980s to 29% today, and U.S. Food and Drug Administration approval of the abortion pill mifepristone and brought to the United States.

In her lifetime, she donated $10 million to the Feminist Majority Foundation, $5 million to Ms, funding to feminist, civil rights, educational and healthcare organizations, and to individuals, including political candidates.