Anton Leader, 74; TV, Film Director, Producer

Anton Morris Leader, a director and producer whose work spanned three decades of television--including the shows “The Virginian,” “Daniel Boone,” “Ironside,” “Star Trek,” “Get Smart,” “I Spy” and “Hawaii Five-O”--died Friday at his home in Los Angeles. He was 74.

Leader had been ill for the last several years and died of an undetermined liver ailment, according to his brother-in-law, Alfred Palca.

Despite his illness, Leader served on the Academy Awards nominating committees for documentary and foreign films until his death, Palca said.

He also directed movies--including “It Happens Every Thursday,” “Cockeyed Cowboys of Calico County” and the 1963 film, “Children of the Damned,” which developed a cult following and, according to Palca, drew letters to Leader from viewers around the world.

A native of Boston, Leader directed radio dramas in New York in the 1940s and moved to Los Angeles in 1948. Subsequently, he worked as a free-lancer for Universal Studios and Columbia Pictures, among others.

He is survived by his wife of 43 years, Rosalind; a son, Zachary, who is a television critic for the London Times Literary Supplement; a daughter, Zowe, who produces commercials for a New York advertising agency; two grandchildren, and his brother, Joseph, and sister, Martha Mindlin, both of Los Angeles.

A memorial service will be held Tuesday at 10 a.m. at the Westwood Village Mortuary, 1218 Glendon Ave.