25 Facts About Jeff Melvoin

Jeff Melvoin is an American television writer, producer, and educator.

Jeff Melvoin has written dozens and produced hundreds of one-hour episodes on over a dozen television series.

Jeff Melvoin is a past board member of the Mystery Writers of America and the Writers Guild of America, West.

Jeff Melvoin was born in Boston, MA and grew up in Highland Park, IL.

Jeff Melvoin attended Highland Park High School, and has attributed the birth of his creative career to his drama teacher Barbara Paterson.

Jeff Melvoin wrote his senior thesis on the development of the American detective in fiction.

Jeff Melvoin worked in their New York, Boston and Los Angeles bureaus before leaving the magazine in late 1982.

Jeff Melvoin began his television career in 1983 as a staff writer for the lighthearted MTM detective show Remington Steele, joining the NBC series in its second season.

Jeff Melvoin worked his way up to supervising producer by the end of the show's fourth season.

In 1986, Jeff Melvoin became co-executive producer on the final season of the NBC police drama, Hill Street Blues, produced by MTM.

Jeff Melvoin then began a four-year association with Columbia TriStar Television, developing original pilots.

In 1991, Jeff Melvoin was hired as a writer-producer on the CBS comedy-drama Northern Exposure, produced by Universal Television.

Jeff Melvoin worked on the series from episode 17 until the end four years later writing 18 episodes and rewriting a half-dozen others.

In 1995, Melvoin became Executive Producer on the fourth season of the David E Kelley drama series, Picket Fences, produced by 20th Century Fox Television for CBS.

Jeff Melvoin took over the series as showrunner for seasons two through four, from 1997 to 2000.

In 2004, Jeff Melvoin signed an overall deal with ABC Studios and became executive producer on season four of Alias, the JJ Abrams spy drama produced by Touchstone Television for ABC.

In 2007, Jeff Melvoin was hired as executive producer on Army Wives, produced by ABC Studios for the Lifetime Network.

Jeff Melvoin ran the show in its first season, then left for other opportunities, returning to run the show for seasons three through seven, ending its run in 2013.

In December 2016, Jeff Melvoin was hired as the showrunner for ABC's Designated Survivor.

Jeff Melvoin handled the second half of season 1 and stayed on as an executive producer for season 2.

In 2019, Jeff Melvoin was hired as an executive producer for season three of BBC America's Killing Eve and received an Emmy nomination for his work.

In 2005, Jeff Melvoin approached Writers Guild of America West President John Wells to create a WGA Showrunner Training Program.

Jeff Melvoin continues to chair the program, whose alumni include Lena Waithe, Tanya Saracho, Kenya Barris, Courtney Kemp Agboh, Matt Nix, Veena Sud, Gloria Calderon Kellett, and Aaron Korsh, among many others, who in the program's first seventeen years have gone on to create, co-create or executive-produce over 150 series.

Jeff Melvoin has taught at Harvard, USC School of Cinematic Arts, UCLA, and the Sundance Institute.

Additionally, in 2004, Jeff Melvoin co-authored a WGA booklet, Writing for Episodic TV, which is still in print.