William R. Finnegan - 27 East
logo logo logo logo

News / Obituaries / Southampton Press / 1474181

William R. Finnegan

author on Dec 2, 2008

Film and television producer William R. Finnegan died at his Sag Harbor home on November 28, of Parkinson’s disease. He was 80.

Best known for producing the 1970s prime-time hit series “Hawaii Five-0,” Mr. Finnegan also produced “The Fabulous Baker Boys,” starring brothers Jeff and Beau Bridges and Michelle Pfeiffer, who was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Actress for her role.

Over the course of his long career in Hollywood, he was nominated for five Academy Awards. More recent films for which he was producer or co-producer include “Reality Bites” from 1994 and “Ed” from 1996.

Born in Kansas City, Missouri, he served in the U.S. Navy after World War II. In the 1950s, he wrote for the Hollywood Citizen News, the Associated Press and CBS. He formed a production company, Finnegan-Pinchuk Co. with his wife, Patricia, and business partner, Sheldon Pinchuk, which supplied movies for network and cable stations in the 1980s.

In addition to his wife of 57 years, Patricia, he is survived by three sons, Michael, William, and Kevin; a daughter, Colleen; three grandchildren; and a brother, Charles Robinson.

Funeral services in New York were private. A memorial service will be held in January in Los Angeles.

You May Also Like:

Southampton Police Reports for the Week of May 15

SOUTHAMPTON VILLAGE — A Village Police officer spotted a commercial pickup truck traveling on North Sea Road with flames leaping up out of the rear of the vehicle on May 7. The officer stopped the truck, whose driver had not noticed the flames, and extinguished the fire before it caused serious damage to the vehicle. SOUTHAMPTON VILLAGE — A caller told Southampton Village Police that they had seen a suspicious person “hiding in the bushes” outside a Windmill Lane bank on May 7. An officer responded to the scene and reported back that there was an employee washing the building’s ... 14 May 2025 by Staff Writer

The East End's Founding Industries: Fishing and Farming, in the Spotlight at Express Sessions

Sitting over the waters of Montauk Harbor, champions of the local farming and fishing communities ... by Michael Wright

The Bounty That Surrounds Us

When the Community Preservation Fund gets its well-earned accolades for the good it has done for the East End in the past quarter century, the focus often is on the preservation of land, keeping it from being developed and thus protecting the region from becoming too intensely suburban. Without question, that effort to maintain the region’s rural appeal is a significant, historic accomplishment. But sometimes we forget the importance of the CPF in keeping agriculture alive as a major contributor to the region’s agroeconomy, which has quality-of-life benefits of its own for both farmers and those who live among their ... by Editorial Board

Election Realignment Would Upend Town Votes

An upstate appellate court has thrown out a challenge to a realignment of town and ... by Michael Wright

East Quogue School District Budget of $32.3 Million on the Ballot Tuesday

The East Quogue School District will ask voters to approve the district’s proposed $32.3 million budget for the 2025-26 school year, which hikes spending by more than 5 percent but does not pierce the state tax cap. The proposed budget is a $1,578,988 increase in spending over the current school year’s budget, driven mostly by contractual salary hikes for staff and increasing costs of health insurance, rising tuition costs for students who attend the Westhampton Beach School District’s middle school and high school, and expanding the English language arts and science curriculum, according to the district’s budget documents. The district’s ... by Staff Writer

Quogue School District Budget Proposal Is $10 Million

The Quogue School District has proposed a 2025-26 operating budget of just under $10.1 million that includes a 4.5 percent increase in spending and a 3.29 percent increase in the tax levy but remains within the state-mandated tax cap. The growth in spending is driven primarily by increases in the cost of health insurance premiums, busing costs and tuition for students who have graduated from the Quogue School and moved up to the Westhampton Beach School District’s middle school and high school. To cover the nearly $1 million in additional spending over the amount that the state tax cap would ... by Staff Writer

Four Competing for Three Seats on Quogue School Board

There are three seats on the five-member Quogue Board of Education up for election this ... by Michael Wright

Southampton Village and Village PBA Agree to Terms on New Contract

Southampton Village Mayor Bill Manger announced at last Thursday night’s Village Board meeting that the ... by Cailin Riley

New NYU Langone Office Is Now Open in Westhampton Beach

Residents of Westhampton Beach and the surrounding area now have new options at their disposal ... by Cailin Riley

Westhampton Doubles Team of Volpe and Groth Place Third in Division Tournament

Giancarlo Volpe is headed back to the Suffolk County tennis tournament. And this year, the ... by Desirée Keegan