Alan Sacks, the co-creator of Welcome Back, Kotter, has sadly passed away following a battle with cancer.
Sacks passed away peacefully on Tuesday morning at the age of 81, following complications from lymphoma.
Sacks, who was also known for his work on several Disney Channel projects and other film ventures, died in his hometown of New York City.
He had been battling mantle cell lymphoma for over two decades.
Initially diagnosed 22 years ago, he spent many years in remission before the cancer returned.
His wife, talent agent Annette van Duren, confirmed his passing in a statement to Deadline, revealing that his condition had recently worsened.
"In recent weeks, his mantle cell lymphoma took an aggressive turn," van Duren said.
She added that Sacks had been undergoing treatment, which allowed him to take part in a significant family milestone: "It was treated for him to dance at our daughter's June wedding and walk her down the aisle. After that, the chemotherapy stopped being effective."
Sacks began hospice care last week, and his final days were spent in peace.
"He died peacefully listening to Tibetan music for the final few days and nights at age 81," van Duren shared.
Born in Brooklyn, Sacks began his career in the research department at ABC Television before moving to Los Angeles to work as a program executive, per the Daily Mail.
It was during this time that he co-created Welcome Back, Kotter, a sitcom based on the lives of his Brooklyn high school friends and comedian Gabe Kaplan’s stand-up routines.
Kaplan starred as Mr. Kotter, a teacher who returns to his alma mater to teach a group of unruly students known as the "Sweathogs."
The show aired for four seasons from September 1975 to June 1979.
In addition to Welcome Back, Kotter, Sacks contributed to a range of television and film projects.
He worked on Chico and the Man and later created and produced Riders in the Sky, a Saturday morning children's show that aired in 1991.
Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, he produced several made-for-TV movies, including Women at West Point, Rosie: The Rosemary Clooney Story, and A Cry for Love.
Sacks also had a connection to the Los Angeles punk scene of the 1980s.
In 1984, he directed Du-Beat-e-o, a film centered on a director racing against the clock to complete a movie about Joan Jett, a member of the all-female rock band The Runaways.
The film featured scenes from a failed project by the band and incorporated elements of the city's hardcore punk scene.
He also wrote and produced Thrashin', a 1986 skateboarding film that featured a young Josh Brolin and the first musical performance and appearance of the Red Hot Chili Peppers in a film.
Our thoughts are with Sacks' loved ones at this time.
