* Sumner Long; Author of Plays, TV Scripts

Sumner Long, 71, Broadway playwright and television writer. Born near Boston, Long served in the Navy during World War II, and then taught himself to write by reading classic literature. He began his career in television, scripting episodes of “Father Knows Best,” “The Danny Thomas Show,” “Dobie Gillis,” “Lassie,” and “The Donna Reed Show.” His greatest Broadway success was “Never Too Late,” which opened Nov. 27, 1962, and ran for 1,000 performances starring Maureen O’Sullivan. The play won him the annual Gold Medal Award of the Theater Club Inc. in 1963. He also wrote the screenplay for the film of the same name. On Wednesday in Los Angeles of liver cancer.