He was editor of the UCLA humor magazine Satyr in the early 1960s and wrote for other campus publications.
Siegel, best known as the resident movie critic on ABC's "Good Morning America" for 25 years, was surrounded by family and friends as he passed away after a long battle with colon cancer.
He continued working almost until the end of his life without losing his cheerful personality and trademark wit, a colleague writes on the network's Web site.
"Still at work only two weeks before his death," writes Bill Blakemore of ABC News, "he had this reporter and several others chortling in an elevator over a line he was about to broadcast about there being so many new penguin movies lately that soon they would outnumber the penguins themselves."
Siegel was born on July 7, 1943 in Los Angeles where he grew up and graduated cum laude from UCLA. He started his career as a radio newscaster and reviewed books for the Los Angeles Times. He also worked as a freelance writer for Rolling Stone and Sports Illustrated and as a joke writer for Senator Robert Kennedy. Siegel worked as a copywriter for an advertising agency where he actually invented ice cream flavors for Baskin-Robbins.
He moved to New York in 1972 where he was a feature reporter for WCBS-TV. He also hosted "Joel Siegel's New York" on WCBS Radio.
Siegel began working as a film and theater critic on WABC-TV in 1976. He joined "Good Morning America" in 1981.
Funeral arrangements are currently being planned by his family.
Some takes on Joel Siegel: TheaterHopper
(PS: Under the circumstances, we've compiled this from online news sources. We'll apologize for borrowing their copy another time. First things first. RC)