Gary David Goldberg

Last updated • 4 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
Gary David Goldberg
Born(1944-06-25)June 25, 1944
DiedJune 22, 2013(2013-06-22) (aged 68)
Alma mater Brandeis University
San Diego State University
Occupations
  • Writer
  • television producer
  • film producer
Years active1972–2011
SpouseDiana Meehan
Children2, including Shana Goldberg-Meehan

Gary David Goldberg (June 25, 1944 – June 22, 2013) was an American writer and producer for television and film. Goldberg was best known for his work on Family Ties (1982–89), Spin City (1996–2002), and his semi-autobiographical series Brooklyn Bridge (1991–1993).

Contents

Background

Gary David Goldberg was born on June 25, 1944, in Brooklyn, New York, the son of Anne (née Prossman) and George Goldberg, a postal worker. He had an older brother, Stan, who is five years older and a well-known summer camp director. [1] Goldberg grew up in Bensonhurst [2] and attended and graduated from Lafayette High School in Brooklyn. He studied at Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts, and San Diego State University, ultimately deciding to become a writer. In 1969, he met the woman who would become his wife, Diana Meehan. They founded and ran a day care center in Berkeley, California, during the 1970s. [3]

Career

Goldberg began his show business career while living in Israel in 1972, landing the lead role of Scooterman in the English teaching show The Adventures of Scooterman. His first "real job" not in front of the camera [3] came in 1976, when he became a writer for CBS's The Bob Newhart Show . This was followed by The Dumplings , The Tony Randall Show , and later CBS's Lou Grant , for which he was also producer. [3]

In 1982 he formed his own company Ubu Productions (named after his Labrador retriever Ubu Roi, who died in 1984). In 1982 he created Family Ties which ran for seven seasons and was a critical and ratings hit; it helped launch the career of Michael J. Fox. He later produced Brooklyn Bridge and Spin City . In 1989 he produced and directed the feature film with a marquée cast, Dad , starring Jack Lemmon, Ted Danson, and Olympia Dukakis. This film was followed by Bye Bye Love (which he produced but did not direct), starring Matthew Modine, Paul Reiser and Randy Quaid; and Must Love Dogs , starring Diane Lane and John Cusack. He received two Emmy Awards (1979 for Lou Grant, 1987 for Family Ties) and four Writers Guild of America Awards (1979, 1988, 1998, 2010) for his work. [3] He also received the Women in Film Lucy Award in recognition of excellence and innovation in creative works that have enhanced the perception of women through the medium of television [4] in 1994 and the Austin Film Festival's Outstanding Television Writer Award in 2001.

Controversy

Beginning in 2000, Tracy Keenan Wynn and more than 150 television writers over the age of 40 filed 23 class-action lawsuits that charged Hollywood's television industry—networks, studios, talent agencies and production companies—with age discrimination. A prominent industry quote cited in the case came from Gary David Goldberg, who told TV Guide that Spin City had "no writers on the set over the age of 29—by design." [5] [6]

On January 6, 2009, the Superior Court of the State of California, for the County of Los Angeles, granted final approval to a consent decree resolving age discrimination claims asserted against defendants International Creative Management, Inc. (ICM) and Broder Kurland Webb Agency (BKW). The consent decree affected a full and final resolution of the class claims, including all individual claims subsumed in the cases. Under the terms of the consent decree, defendants ICM and BKW paid $4.5 million into a settlement fund. [7]

Personal life

Goldberg died of a brain tumor in Montecito, California on June 22, 2013, at the age of 68. [8]

His daughter is comedy writer Shana Goldberg-Meehan.

Filmography

Film

YearTitleRoleNote(s)
1989 Dad Writer/Producer/Director
1995 Bye Bye Love Writer/Producer
2005 Must Love Dogs Writer/Producer/Director
2011 No Strings Attached Emma's Relative

Television

YearTitleRoleNote(s)
1972 The Adventures of Scooterman Scooterman6 episodes
1976 The Dumplings WriterEpisode: "Gourmet's Delight"
Phyllis Episode: "Speech 1A"
1976–1977 The Bob Newhart Show 3 episodes
1976–1978 The Tony Randall Show Producer/Executive Producer/Writer/Story Editor30 episodes
1977 Alice WriterEpisode: "Mel's in Love"
1978–1979 Lou Grant Producer/Executive Producer/Writer/Creative Consultant41 episodes
1978 M*A*S*H WriterEpisode: "Baby, It's Cold Outside"
1979–1980 The Last Resort Creator/Producer/Executive Producer17 episodes
1982 Making the Grade Executive Producer/Director2 episodes
1982–1989 Family Ties Creator/Executive Producer170 episodes
1983Famous LinesExecutive ProducerTV special
1985 Sara Creator/Executive Producer14 episodes
Family Ties Vacation WriterTV movie
1986Taking It HomeExecutive Producer
1987–1988 The Bronx Zoo Creator21 episodes
1988ShooterExecutive ProducerTV movie
1988–1989 Day By Day Creator/Executive Producer33 episodes
1990–1991 American Dreamer 17 episodes
1991–1993 Brooklyn Bridge 35 episodes
1996 Champs Creator12 episodes
1996–2002 Spin City Creator/Executive Producer/Executive Consultant145 episodes
2000 Battery Park Creator/Executive Producer7 episodes

Bibliography

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael J. Fox</span> Canadian and American actor and activist (born 1961)

Michael Andrew Fox, known professionally as Michael J. Fox, is a Canadian and American activist and retired actor. Beginning his career as a child actor in the 1970s, he rose to prominence portraying Alex P. Keaton on the NBC sitcom Family Ties (1982–1989) and Marty McFly in the Back to the Future film trilogy (1985–1990). Fox went on to star in films such as Teen Wolf (1985), The Secret of My Success (1987), Casualties of War (1989), Doc Hollywood (1991), and The Frighteners (1996). He returned to television on the ABC sitcom Spin City in the lead role of Mike Flaherty (1996–2000).

<i>Family Ties</i> American television sitcom (1982–1989)

Family Ties is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC for seven seasons, premiering on September 22, 1982, and concluding on May 14, 1989. The series, created by Gary David Goldberg, reflected the social shift in the United States from the cultural liberalism of the 1960s to the conservatism of the 1980s. Because of this, Young Republican Alex P. Keaton develops generational strife with his ex-hippie parents, Steven and Elyse Keaton.

<i>Ubu Roi</i> 1896 play by Alfred Jarry

Ubu Roi is a play by French writer Alfred Jarry, then 23 years old. It was first performed in Paris in 1896, by Aurélien Lugné-Poe's Théâtre de l'Œuvre at the Nouveau-Théâtre. The production's single public performance baffled and offended audiences with its unruliness and obscenity. Considered to be a wild, bizarre and comic play, significant for the way it overturns cultural rules, norms and conventions, it is seen by 20th- and 21st-century scholars to have opened the door for what became known as modernism in the 20th century, and as a precursor to Dadaism, Surrealism and the Theatre of the Absurd.

Ubu Productions, Inc., was an independent production company founded in 1982 by television producer Gary David Goldberg. Ubu's notable productions include Family Ties (1982–1989), Brooklyn Bridge (1991–1993), and Spin City (1996–2002).

United States v. Paramount Pictures, Inc., 334 U.S. 131 (1948), was a landmark United States Supreme Court antitrust case that decided the fate of film studios owning their own theatres and holding exclusivity rights on which theatres would show their movies. It would also change the way Hollywood movies were produced, distributed, and exhibited. It also opened the door for more foreign and independent films to be shown in U.S. theaters. The Supreme Court affirmed the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York's ruling that the existing distribution scheme was in violation of United States antitrust law, which prohibits certain exclusive dealing arrangements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">David Benioff</span> American writer and producer

David Friedman, known professionally as David Benioff, is an American writer and producer. Along with his collaborator D. B. Weiss, he is best known for co-creating Game of Thrones (2011–2019), the HBO adaptation of George R. R. Martin's series of books A Song of Ice and Fire. He also wrote 25th Hour (2002), Troy (2004), City of Thieves (2008) and co-wrote X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009).

Leonard J. Goldberg was an American film and television producer. He had his own production company, Panda Productions. He served as head of programming for ABC, and was president of 20th Century Fox. Goldberg was also the executive producer of the CBS series Blue Bloods.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Austin Film Festival</span> Film festival

Austin Film Festival (AFF), founded in 1994, is an organization in Austin, Texas, that focuses on writers' creative contributions to film. Initially, AFF was called the Austin Heart of Film Screenwriters Conference and functioned to launch the careers of screenwriters, who historically have been underrepresented within the film industry.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lee Goldberg</span> American writer

Lee Goldberg is an American author, screenwriter, publisher and producer known for his bestselling novels Lost Hills and True Fiction and his work on a wide variety of TV crime series, including Diagnosis: Murder, A Nero Wolfe Mystery, Hunter, Spenser: For Hire, Martial Law, She-Wolf of London, SeaQuest, 1-800-Missing, The Glades and Monk.

Lee Shallat Chemel, sometimes credited as Lee Shallat, is an American film and television director and television producer.

<i>The Tony Randall Show</i> American TV series or program

The Tony Randall Show is an American television sitcom that aired on ABC during its first season from September 23, 1976, to March 10, 1977, and on CBS for its second season from September 24, 1977, to March 25, 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vince Gilligan</span> American writer and producer (born 1967)

George Vincent Gilligan Jr. is an American screenwriter, producer, and director. He is best known as the creator, primary writer, executive producer, and occasional director of the AMC crime drama series Breaking Bad (2008–2013) and its spin-off prequel series Better Call Saul (2015–2022). He also wrote, directed, and produced the Breaking Bad sequel film El Camino (2019).

"Old Shep" is a song composed by Red Foley, with lyrics by Willis Arthur, published in 1935, about a dog Foley owned as a child. In reality, the dog, poisoned by a neighbor, was a German Shepherd called "Hoover." Foley first recorded the song on December 9, 1935, for American Record Corporation (ARC) in Chicago, then re-recorded it on March 4, 1941, his first session for Decca Record Company, and again for them on July 31, 1946. He recorded for Decca the rest of his life, 1941 to 1968.

Michael J. Weithorn is an American writer, director, and producer whose works include the sitcom The King of Queens.

Gavin Polone is an American film and television producer. He began producing films in the late 1990s and television in the 2000s. He has been nominated for seven Primetime Emmy Awards, of which six were for "Outstanding Comedy Series" for Larry David's Curb Your Enthusiasm. His production company is Pariah.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ian B. Goldberg</span> American television and film writer

Ian B. Goldberg is an American television and film writer, as well as a producer and showrunner.

Shana Goldberg-Meehan is an American television producer and television writer.

The Goldbergs is an American period sitcom television series that aired on ABC from September 24, 2013, to May 3, 2023, lasting ten seasons and 229 episodes. The series was created by Adam F. Goldberg and starred Jeff Garlin, Wendi McLendon-Covey, Sean Giambrone, Troy Gentile, and Hayley Orrantia. The show is produced by Adam F. Goldberg, Seth Gordon and Doug Robinson. It is based on Goldberg's childhood and family in the 1980s, with a childhood version of himself. On April 19, 2022, the series was renewed for a tenth season, which premiered on September 21, 2022. On February 23, 2023, it was announced that the tenth season would be its final season. The series finale aired on May 3, 2023.

<i>The Conjuring</i> Universe American horror media franchise

The Conjuring Universe is an American horror franchise and shared universe centered on a series of supernatural horror films. The franchise is produced by New Line Cinema, Atomic Monster, and the Safran Company, and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. The films present a dramatization of the supposed real-life adventures of Ed and Lorraine Warren, paranormal investigators and authors associated with prominent yet controversial cases of haunting. The main series follows their attempts to assist people who find themselves harassed by spirits, while the spin-off films focus on the origins of some of the entities the Warrens have encountered.

Nathan Monaster was an American scriptwriter. He wrote for radio, television, film and stage, and was president of Writers Guild of America from 1963 to 1965. The 1962 comedy That Touch of Mink, which he co-wrote with Stanley Shapiro, won the Writers Guild of America Award win for Best Written American Comedy, and was nominated for an Academy Award.

References

  1. "Gary David Goldberg Biography (1944-)". Filmreference.com. Retrieved 2013-06-24.
  2. Barnes, Mike. "'Family Ties' Creator Gary David Goldberg Dies at 68". Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 24 February 2019.
  3. 1 2 3 4 "Gary David Goldberg". Gary David Goldberg. 1944-06-25. Archived from the original on 2011-07-11. Retrieved 2013-06-24.
  4. "Past Recipients". Wif.org. Archived from the original on 2011-06-30. Retrieved 2013-06-24.
  5. Hollywood to Writers: You're Fired! Source: AARP Bulletin Today | 2005-01-06
  6. "Hollywood writers' age-discrimination case settled". Los Angeles Times. 2010-01-23. ISSN   0458-3035 . Retrieved 2019-07-06.
  7. January 6, 2009: Final Approval Granted to Settlement Spenger and Lang Attorney website
  8. Weber, Bruce (June 24, 2013). "Gary David Goldberg, Creator of 'Family Ties,' Dies at 68". The New York Times. Retrieved October 27, 2023.