Ed Spielman (born in Brooklyn, New York City, US) [1] is a writer and executive producer for television and film, an author and journalist. He is the creator of the Emmy Award winning TV series Kung Fu . [2] [3] Spielman wrote the story and teleplay for the series pilot (which was co-written with his friend Howard Friedlander). The pilot of Kung Fu has been credited as "the first American Martial Arts film." [1] He also created the Emmy Award winning TV series The Young Riders starring Stephen Baldwin and Josh Brolin. Another of his television series, Dead Man's Gun (which debuted on Showtime in 1997, and which he produced in partnership with MGM Productions, Henry Winkler, Howard Spielman, and Sugar Entertainment, Ltd.) was nominated for three cable ACE Awards (including Best Dramatic Series) and received six LEO nominations. [1] [4]
Spielman has the rare distinction of being the only writer/producer in television history to have created and placed a Western series on the air — every decade for thirty years — at a time when Westerns were not even in vogue.
Spielman authored a biography of adventurer and health philosopher Joe Greenstein titled The Mighty Atom: The Life and Times of Joseph L. Greenstein, [5] [6] released in 1979. [7] According to a reviewer with the American Library Association, The Mighty Atom was "one of the year's best books.". [1] The book was later rereleased as The Spiritual Journey of Joseph L. Greenstein: The Mighty Atom, World's Strongest Man. [6] [8]
The National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum has awarded Spielman personally the Western Heritage Award four times, and his shows seven times. [1] [9]
Spielman is currently an executive producer developing his original Kung Fu television series into a feature film at Universal Pictures. A life-long classic car and Italian motorcycle enthusiast, he is a member of the Ventura Sports & Race Car Club and he is the Master of Ceremonies at their yearly concours events. Spielman lives in Southern California with Bonnie (his wife of 50 years), a house full of rescued pets and a small fleet of vintage cars and motorcycles.
Elizabeth Victoria Montgomery was an American actress whose career spanned five decades in film, stage, and television. She portrayed the good witch Samantha Stephens on the popular television series Bewitched, which earned her five Primetime Emmy Award nominations and four Golden Globe Award nominations.
Kung Fu is an American action-adventure martial arts Western drama television series starring David Carradine. The series follows the adventures of Kwai Chang Caine, a Shaolin monk who travels through the American Old West, armed only with his spiritual training and his skill in martial arts, as he seeks Danny Caine, his half-brother.
David Carradine was an American actor, director, and musician, whose career included over 200 major and minor roles in film, television and on stage, spanning more than six decades. He was widely known to television audiences as the star of the 1970s television series Kung Fu, playing Kwai Chang Caine, a peace-loving Shaolin monk traveling through the American Old West.
Radames Pera is an American actor best known for his role as "Grasshopper," the student Kwai Chang Caine in the 1972–1975 television series Kung Fu.
James Hong is an American actor, producer and director. He has worked in numerous productions in U.S. media since the 1950s, portraying a variety of roles. He is known as one of the most prolific character actors of all time. In 2022, he received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for his contributions to the American film and television industries.
Herman Miller was a Hollywood film writer and producer.
Kung Fu: The Next Generation is a 1987 television pilot which was intended to be a follow-up to the 1972–75 television series, Kung Fu. It was the second follow-up to the series after Kung Fu: The Movie (1986). It tells the story in present day of the great-grandson of the Shaolin monk played by David Darlow and his son Johnny Caine, portrayed by Brandon Lee. The main supporting cast includes Miguel Ferrer as Mic, Paula Kelly as Lt. Lois S. Poole, and Dominic Barto as Carl Levin.
Joseph L. Greenstein, better known as The Mighty Atom, was a 20th-century strongman.
John Blyth Barrymore III is an American film and television actor. He is known for his role as Zeke in the 1970s television series Kung Fu, which was his first role on television.
Jeremy Zuckerman is an American composer of concert music, film and television music, music for modern dance, and experimental music. He is best known as the composer for the animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender and its sequel series The Legend of Korra.
Kelly Choi is a Korean-American television personality on NYC Media, the official broadcast service of the City of New York. A former host of Bravo TV's Top Chef spin-off, Top Chef Masters, she has also been presenter of the documentary series Secrets of New York.
Richard Jerome Thorpe was an American television-and-film director and producer. Actor and director Richard Thorpe was his father.
Jeff Greenstein is an American television writer, producer and director. Greenstein was the showrunner of Will & Grace and Dream On, as well as on Partners and Getting Personal, both of which he created. A member of the Writers Guild and Directors Guild of America, Greenstein also created the television series State of Georgia.
Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness is an American computer-animated television comedy series spun off from DreamWorks's Kung Fu Panda films. It serves as a bridge between the first and second films, showing Po's training to becoming a successful Dragon Warrior, whereas the second series is, according to the series' developer Peter Hastings, "not unlike a very long, super-deluxe 3-D version of one of our episodes".
Jennifer Yuh Nelson is an American story artist, character designer, television director, illustrator, and film director. She is best known for directing the films Kung Fu Panda 2, Kung Fu Panda 3, and The Darkest Minds. Yuh is the first woman to solely direct and the first Asian American to direct a major American animated film, and has been recognized as a commercially successful Asian American director.
Benjamin Wynn, known also as Deru, is an American composer, sound designer and music producer mostly known for creating the sound design for the TV series Avatar: The Last Airbender. He has collaborated with composers such as Joby Talbot. He also produces electronic music under the name "Deru". He is the grandson of neurosurgeon Joseph Ransohoff.
Hanelle M. Culpepper is an American filmmaker, best known for her work in television directing episodes of 90210, Parenthood, Criminal Minds, Revenge, Grimm, and Star Trek: Discovery along with other series. Prior to working in television, she worked as a production assistant and directed and produced short films. She also directed the thriller feature films Within (2009), Deadly Sibling Rivalry (2011), Murder on the 13th Floor (2012) and Hunt for the Labyrinth Killer (2013).
Jessica Gao is an American television writer and producer of Chinese descent, who was creator and head writer of the TV series She-Hulk: Attorney at Law. She also worked on the third season of Rick and Morty, writing the episode "Pickle Rick" and co-creating the reoccurring character of Dr. Wong, and wrote for Silicon Valley, Robot Chicken, The Mighty B!, Back at the Barnyard, Star Wars: Detours, and Kung Fu Panda: Legends of Awesomeness.
Herbert James Pilato is an American writer and talk show host best known for his books about classic television programming in the United States.