Carter Bays

Last updated
Carter Bays
CarterBays.jpg
Born
Carter Loard Bays

(1975-08-12) August 12, 1975 (age 48)
Alma mater Wesleyan University
Occupation(s)Author, television showrunner, producer, musician
Years active1998–present
SpouseDenise Cox Bays
Children3
Website carterbays.com

Carter Loard Bays (born August 12, 1975) [1] is an American author, composer and television showrunner.

Contents

Bays co-created the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother where he served as showrunner, writer and executive producer for all nine seasons.

Bays wrote the novel, The Mutual Friend (2022, Dutton Books).

Early life

Bays was born in Cleveland, Ohio. His father, James C. Bays, is a retired corporate lawyer, and his mother, Martha Bays, is a minister in the United Church of Christ. [2]

While at Shaker Heights High School, Bays' play Five Visits From Mr. Whitcomb was selected for the Stephen Sondheim founded Young Playwrights Inc. 1993 Young Playwrights Festival produced at Playwrights Horizon's in New York City.

Bays studied English at Wesleyan University, where he met bandmate Craig Thomas who would later become his writing partner and his co-creator for How I Met Your Mother.

Bays and Thomas co-founded the band The Solids, who perform the theme song to How I Met Your Mother, "Hey Beautiful". [3] as well as "Nothing Suits Me Like A Suit."

In the summer of 1996, Bays and Thomas worked as interns in the Development department of MTV. [4]

Career

After graduating from Wesleyan in 1997, Bays and Craig Thomas went on to write for the Late Show With David Letterman .

He and Thomas then created How I Met Your Mother, which ran from 2005-2014.

Bays also wrote for American Dad! , [5] Quintuplets [6] Oliver Beene . [7] and co-created Fox's The Goodwin Games.

In 2022, Bays served as executive producer on Hulu's How I Met Your Father, [8] starring Hilary Duff. The show is created by Isaac Aptaker and Elizabeth Berger.

Carter's debut novel, The Mutual Friend, was published June 7, 2022, through Dutton Books,. [9]

Personal life

Bays lives in New York City with his wife, Denise Cox Bays, and their three children. One of his daughters appeared at the end of "Trilogy Time", the other one at the end of "Unpause".

Bays teaches a Master Class in TV Writing at Columbia University, and is an Associate Fellow at Davenport College at Yale University. He also serves on the board of the Armed Services Arts Partnership, [10] which helps veterans return to civilian life through comedy and the arts.

Works

How I Met Your Mother

Oliver Beene

The Goodwin Games

American Dad!

How I Met Your Father

Notes

  1. "Carter Bays". IMDb .
  2. Meiser, Rebecca (November 2008). "Mr. Write". Cleveland Magazine. Retrieved 22 March 2015.
  3. Chow, Greg (1 April 2014). "5 Essential 'How I Met Your Mother' Music Moments". RollingStone. Retrieved 22 March 2015.
  4. Jordan, Jessica; Robles, Jiovani (17 September 2010). "How We Finally Met Carter Bays: Part 2". The Wesleyan Argus. Retrieved 22 March 2015.
  5. "American Dad! (TV Series 2005– ) - IMDb". IMDb .
  6. "Quintuplets (TV Series 2004–2005) - IMDb". IMDb .
  7. "Oliver Beene (TV Series 2003–2004) - IMDb". IMDb .
  8. Schwartz, Ryan (11 January 2022). "How I Met Your Father EPs Confirm New Show is Set in the HIMYM Universe". Tvline.
  9. "Carter Bays on How the End of 'How I Met Your Mother' Led to Debut Novel 'The Mutual Friend'". The Hollywood Reporter . 7 June 2022.
  10. "TV Show Co-Creator Supports Military Through Arts – Outlook Valley Sun". 2 May 2022.

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How I Met Your Mother is an American sitcom, created by Craig Thomas and Carter Bays for CBS. The series, which aired from September 19, 2005, to March 31, 2014, follows the main character, Ted Mosby, and his group of friends in New York City's Manhattan. As a framing device, Ted, in 2030, recounts to his son, Luke, and daughter, Penny, the events from September 2005 to May 2013 that led him to meet their mother. How I Met Your Mother was a joint production by Bays & Thomas Productions and 20th Century Fox Television, and syndicated by 20th Television.

The Solids are a power pop band from Middletown, Connecticut. The band consists of Carter Bays, Craig Thomas (drums), Patrick Butler (keyboards), Doug Derryberry and Josh Suniewick (bass). They have been writing, recording, and performing music since 1996. The Solids first became popular for their song "The Future Is Now," which was the theme song for the Fox television program Oliver Beene. A 12-second clip from their song "Hey, Beautiful" is the theme song for another show, the CBS sitcom How I Met Your Mother which was created by band members Bays and Thomas.

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