Steven Levitan | |
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Born | Steven E. Levitan April 6, 1962 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
Alma mater | Glenbrook South High School University of Wisconsin–Madison (B.A.) |
Occupation | Director, writer, producer |
Spouse(s) | Krista Levitan (1992-present; 3 children) |
Steven E. Levitan (born April 6, 1962) is an American director, screenwriter and producer of television comedies. He has created such TV series as Just Shoot Me!, Stark Raving Mad, Stacked, Back to You, and Modern Family.
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Early life and education[edit]
Levitan was raised Jewish in Chicago, Illinois.[1][2] He attended Glenbrook South High School and University of Wisconsin–Madison (1980–1984), graduating with a Bachelor's Degree in Journalism. He is a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon Fraternity.
Career[edit]
Levitan worked as a WKOW-TV on-air news reporter and morning anchorman in Madison, Wisconsin; and as a copywriter at Leo Burnett Advertising in Chicago. Steven moved to Hollywood in 1989.
As executive producer, Levitan won an Emmy Award in 1996 for Frasier in the Outstanding Comedy Series category. He was also nominated in that same year for Outstanding Writing in Comedy Series category for The Larry Sanders Show. He was nominated for an Emmy in the Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series category for Just Shoot Me! and two more as executive producer. Levitan won the Humanitas Prize (for writers whose work best communicates and encourages human values) in 1996 for the Frasier episode titled "Breaking the Ice". Levitan has also won a CableACE Award and a Writers Guild nomination for The Larry Sanders Show. He also garnered a Producers Guild Award and a Television Critics Association Award for Frasier, a People’s Choice Award for Stark Raving Mad and a Golden Globe nomination for Just Shoot Me!
His company, Steven Levitan Productions, has produced the series Just Shoot Me!, Stark Raving Mad, Greg the Bunny, Oliver Beene and Stacked.
Levitan and television writer/producer Christopher Lloyd joined as partners in 2006 and together created a production company named "Picture Day". It is under this company that they produced their co-creations Back to You and Modern Family. In 2010, Modern Family won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series, as well as two other Emmy Awards: Outstanding Supporting Actor in Comedy Series for Eric Stonestreet, and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for Steven Levitan and Christopher Lloyd.[3] He has also earned Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series nominations for Modern Family episodes "See You Next Fall" (2011) and "Baby on Board" (2012), winning the latter.[4]
Personal life[edit]
Levitan is married to wife Krista. Krista was raised a Catholic.[5] They have three children, two daughters Hannah and Alexa, and a son, Griffin. He and his family currently live in Los Angeles, California.
Filmography[edit]
Creator, writer, producer & director[edit]
- Goosebumps (1995–1998)[6]
- Just Shoot Me! (1997–2003)
- Stark Raving Mad (1999–2000)
- Greg the Bunny (2002)
- Stacked (2005–2006)
- Back to You (2007–2008)
- Modern Family (2009–present)
Writer & producer[edit]
- Wings (1990)
- The Larry Sanders Show (1992)
- Frasier (1993)
- Greg the Bunny (2002)
- With You In Spirit (2003) (also director) TV pilot
- Back to You (2007–2008)
- Modern Family (2009–present)
Writer[edit]
- The Critic (1994)
- Men Behaving Badly (1996)
Producer[edit]
- The Larry Sanders Show (1995–1996) (co-executive producer)
- Say Uncle (2001) (co-executive producer)
- Oliver Beene (2003) (executive producer)
Director[edit]
[edit]
- Writer
- "Pilot"
- "The Incident"
- "Fifteen Percent"
- "Fears"
- "Unplugged"
- "Caught in the Act"
- "Boys' Night"
- "Send Out the Clowns"
- "Schooled"
- "Goodnight Gracie"
- "Three Dinners"
- "Message Received"
- Director
- "Hawaii"
- "Baby on Board"
- "See You Next Fall"
- "Treehouse"
- "Send Out the Clowns"
- "Baby on Board"
- "Bringing Up Baby"
- "When a Tree Falls"
- "Best Men"
- "The Wow Factor"
- "Goodnight Gracie"
- "First Days"
- "Three Dinners"
- "Australia"
- "The Wedding (Part One)"
- "Fight or Flight"
- "Connection Lost"
- "American Skyper"
References[edit]
- ^ Steven Levitan, Hollywood's 'elite': We're not villains, USA Today, Dec. 12, 2004.
- ^ The Jewish Journal: "Politics, gender and Jewishness loom large at Emmys" by Danielle Berrin September 23, 2012
- ^ April MacIntyre (2010-08-30). "Emmy Awards 2010 Winners List, Surprises and Omissions". Monsters and Critics. Retrieved 2010-08-30.
- ^ http://www.emmys.com/nominations/2012/Outstanding%20Directing%20For%20A%20Comedy%20Series
- ^ USA TODAY: "Hollywood's 'elite': We're not villains" By Steven Levitan December 12, 2004
- ^ http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0506159/?ref_=ttfc_fc_cr6
External links[edit]
- Levitan in USAToday
- Steven Levitan at the Internet Movie Database
- Fox Flash
- Breaking the Ice
- Journal Sentinel Aug. 20, 2002
- Steve Levitan interview video at the Archive of American Television
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