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 Kelley and Michelle Pfeiffer at the 47th Emmy Awards in 1994 |
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| Born: | April 4, 1956 (age 51) Waterville, Maine |
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| Occupation: | writer, executive producer, lawyer |
| Spouse: | Michelle Pfeiffer |
| Children: | Claudia Rose Jack Henry |
David Edward Kelley (born April 4, 1956) is a multi-Emmy award winning American writer, executive producer, and creator of the well-known television series Picket Fences, Chicago Hope, The Practice, Ally McBeal, Boston Public, Boston Legal, and The Wedding Bells. Kelley's shows are renowned for their whimsical, occasionally surreal comedic touches, as well as moments of seriousness. He has also written several film scripts.
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[edit] Early life
Born in Waterville, Maine, raised in Boston, Kelley was the son of a hockey coach[1] and played the game himself. He was captain of the team at Princeton University, from which he graduated in 1979 with a degree in politics.[2]
For his senior thesis, Kelly demonstrated his knack for inventive writing by turning the Bill of Rights into a play. "I made each amendment into a character," he said. "The First Amendment is a loudmouth guy who won't shut up. The Second Amendment guy, all he wanted to talk about was his gun collection. Then the 10th Amendment, the one where they say leave the rest for the states to decide, he was a guy with no self-esteem."[2]
He graduated with a law degree from Boston University where he wrote comedy sketches for the annual follies. He began working for a Boston law firm, mostly dealing with real estate and minor criminal cases. While considering writing only a hobby, Kelly began writing a screenplay, a legal thriller, in 1983 which became optioned (the movie studio agreed to purchase) in 1986 and that script later became the Judd Nelson feature film From the Hip in 1987.[2] [3]
[edit] Television work
[edit] L.A. Law (1986-1991)
In 1986, Steven Bochco was searching for writers with a law background for his new NBC legal series, L.A. Law. His agent sent him Kelley's movie script for From the Hip. Enthusiastic, Bochco made him a writer and story editor for the show. During this first year, Kelley kept his law office in Boston as a hedge. However, his involvement in the show only expanded. In the second year, he became executive story editor and co-producer. Finally, in 1990, Bochco stepped away from the series making Kelley the executive producer. He continued an active writing role in most of the scripts.[3] While executive producer, Kelley received two Emmies for Outstanding Writing in a Dramatic Series and the show received the award for Outstanding Drama Series.
[edit] Picket Fences (1992-1996)
By 1992, after co-creating Doogie Howser, M.D. with his mentor Boccho, Kelley formed his own production company, David E Kelley Productions. Its first creation, Picket Fences on CBS, focused on the police department in the quirky town of Rome, Wisconsin and began airing in 1992.[4] Kelley took on the role of writing most of the episodes. The show was critically acclaimed but never found a sizable audience.[4] The show received back-to-back Emmies for Outstanding Drama Series for its second and third seasons.
In 1995, the fourth and final season, Kelley stopped writing episodes. "We had almost 10 writers try to come in and take over for this one man," said Holly Marie Combs who played the daughter on the show. "The quality was not nearly what it was."[5]
[edit] Chicago Hope (1994-2000)
Chicago Hope on CBS. In 1995, saying he wanted to spend more time with his family, Kelley stopped active involvement with the series. Towards the end of the fifth season in 1999, facing cancellation, Kelley fired all cast members added since he had left the show, brought back Mandy Patinkin and began writing episodes again.[6]
[edit] Ally McBeal (1997-2002)
In 1995, Kelley entered into a five year deal with 20th Century Fox Television to produce shows for both the ABC and FOX television networks, each agreeing to take two series. If one network passed on a project, the other got first refusal. Kelley retained full creative control.[7] Ally McBeal on FOX and The Practice on ABC were the first two projects to come from this deal.[8]
When Ally McBeal premiered in 1997, Kelley was also shepherding his other two shows, Chicago Hope and The Practice, although he was not actively participating in Chicago Hope at the time.[6]
The New York Times felt that the show uniquely emphasized "character and caricature."[9]
[edit] The Practice (1997-2004)
Premiering as a midseason replacement for the 1996-1997 season, The Practice on ABC was Kelley's chance to write another courtroom drama but one focusing on the less glamorous realities of a small law firm.[4] Receiving critical applause (along with two Emmies for Outstanding Drama Series) but low ratings in its starting seasons, it eventually became a popular top 10 program.[10] The New York Times described the show as "the profoundly realistic, unending battle between soul-searching and ambition".[9]
During the first two years of the series, Kelley was the sole full-time writer. He felt that, at first, the show creator can best flesh out the characters in a "voice-specific show." Later, the writing staff would grow to 10, most with law degrees.[11] By the fifth season, he worked on the final script and was generally not on the set during filming.[12]
In 2003, ABC cut Kelley's budget in half for the eighth and final season. He responded by firing most of the cast and hiring James Spader for the role of Alan Shore,[13] who the New York Times described as "a lecherous, twisted antitrust lawyer with a breezy disregard for ethics."[14] The final episodes of The Practice were focused on introducing the new characters from his next show, Boston Legal.
[edit] Boston Public (2000-2004)
In 2000, 20th Century Fox Television extended its arrangement with Kelley.[15] The deal, which ran for six years, reportedly made Kelley the highest paid producer in TV history -- up to $40 million a year -- in return for a first-look at his projects.[16]
Premiering on FOX in 2000, Boston Public, which follows the lives of teachers and administrators at a Boston high school, joined The Practice and Ally McBeal for the season meaning Kelley was responsible for writing or overseeing 67 episodes.[10]
The program received excellent ratings and critical acclaim.[17]
[edit] Boston Legal (2004-present)
Boston Legal on ABC
[edit] Recent Projects
[edit] Methods
[edit] Delegation
At first criticized for not delegating, he became more comfortable bringing in writers for ideas and taking over the writing responsibilities.[11] Kelley described this as a natural evolution:
| “ | There's a period at the beginning of a series (when) you're doing most of the writing and then you go through another period where you have the ideas and you're assigning those stories and ideas to other people and hopefully they execute them. Then, if you're lucky, you get a staff where they come into the room with their own ideas and specific takes on how to execute them and they do.[11] | ” |
[edit] Story elements
Kelley structures his episodes with multiple storylines. An episode may include a self-contained sub-plot plus other story arcs that either began in a previous episode or will continue subsequently -- some will continue the entire season. The viewer, thereby, is rarely sure whether what appears as a simple incident will blossom into a major plot point.[18]
Kelley seeds his plots with political, social and religious "hot-button" issues. One method is by introducing provocative legal cases. Episodes have covered the gamut of contemporary issues from the culpability of tobacco companies and gun makers to assisted-suicide crusaders.[19] Another way is by undergirding the character's social interrelationships with serious explorations of (say) feminism, homosexuality or divorce.[20] He avoids a didactic narrative by not losing sight of the audience's desire to be entertained.[21] He states,
| “ | You've got to honor your relationship with your audience -- that they sit down because they want to be entertained. And that doesn't mean you can't provoke them and antagonize them and challenge them in the course of the entertainment as long as you keep the entertainment part of the equation alive.[21] | ” |
[edit] Crossover episodes
Kelley frequently crossed the cast of different shows. One crossover program event (which uniquely crossed networks also) involved characters from Kelly's Ally McBeal on the Fox network appearing on his ABC show, The Practice, and, in turn, The Practice characters appeared on Ally McBeal. This was done in spite of the two shows' different tones (one a comedy, the other a drama).[22] This crossover was partially credited for raising the ratings for The Practice which it sustained.[10]
Subsequently, Kelly repeated this stunt with Boston Public and Ally McBeal. Many other crossovers occurred including shows not created by Kelley.[22]
[edit] Casting
David E. Kelley's shows tend to be revolving door ensemble casts with no single principal character. Even on Ally McBeal there were episodes in which the title character had few lines or was even omitted. Every season (sometimes even more often) some of the old regular characters get written out and are replaced by new regular characters. As Kelley focuses on the newer characters, it can appear that he is neglecting to develop the older characters who've stayed. For example, the last season of The Practice was almost completely dominated by Alan Shore, to the point that the older regulars, Eugene Young and Jimmy Berlutti, appeared to have nothing to do except plot to fire Shore from the firm. On the first season of Boston Legal, Shore and Denny Crane started to recede to the background as Shirley Schmidt was added. However, subsequent seasons have brought Shore and Denny Crane back to the forefront.
Kelley often uses regular actors from older shows in newer shows, and vice versa. For example, Anthony Heald and Rene Auberjonois both played judges on The Practice, and both went on to be regular cast members in later shows (Heald on Boston Public as a vice-principal and Auberjonois on Boston Legal as a partner at a law firm).
[edit] Critiques
[edit] Representation of the legal profession
The Practice is considered more accurate in its portrayal of the law than L.A. Law or Ally McBeal. The importance of legal strategy sometimes at the expense of the truth rings true. One attorney said, "[I]t's really about the tactics and the mistakes that opposing counsel makes." Judges are represented as complex, less than perfect human beings, sometimes with emotional problems. Plots demonstrate how a defendant's personality will impact the adjudication of a case.[23] Stuart Levine of Variety said, "[The Practice] isn't afraid to paint the firm's clients as the dregs of society."[4] Kelley said,
| “ | One of the most fundamental questions people have about defense attorneys is, 'How can you do that? How can you go to bat everyday for a person that you may not know is guilty but you have a pretty good idea that he's not so innocent.[4] | ” |
Other aspects of the legal profession in Kelley's shows have been criticized as unrealistic. Attorneys complain that:
- Ex parte meetings (where lawyers meet in a judge's chambers without opposing counsel present) do not happen,
- Judges would not allow attorneys to badger or attack witnesses,
- His shows overplay prosecutorial and law enforcement misconduct and
- Many of the cases would never had made it to trial.[23]
[edit] Catholicism
catholic league bs -- see imdb news for dk
Sometimes assumed to be a Catholic (because of his surname and the character Bobby Donnell on The Practice having a Catholic background and a personal estrangement from the Church over the issue of sexually abusive priests), Kelley is actually a Protestant.
[edit] Feminism
[edit] Representation of the public education system
NYT article
[edit] Feature films
[edit] Personal life
Kelley married actress Michelle Pfeiffer in 1993. They have two children, a daughter and a son.
[edit] Pop culture reference
- DVDA, a parody band featuring South Park co-creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, performed a live song dedicated to David Kelley, titled David Kelley, TV Warrior.
[edit] Filmography
| Year | Title | Involvement | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Chasing Montana | Writer | pre-production |
| 1999 | Mystery, Alaska | Co-writer, producer | |
| Lake Placid | Writer, producer | ||
| 1996 | To Gillian on Her 37th Birthday | Screenplay, producer | |
| 1987 | From the Hip | Writer, story |
[edit] Selected television work
| Year | Title | Involvement | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | Life on Mars | Creator, writer, executive producer | pre-production |
| The Wedding Bells | Creator, writer, executive producer | canceled after 7 episodes[24] | |
| 2005 | The Law Firm | Creator, writer, executive producer | canceled after 2 episodes[25] |
| 2004 | Boston Legal | Creator, writer, executive producer | ongoing |
| 2003 | The Brotherhood of Poland, New Hampshire | Creator, writer, executive producer | canceled after 5 episodes |
| 2002 | girls club[26] | Creator, writer, executive producer | canceled after 2 episodes |
| 2000 | Boston Public | Creator, writer, executive producer, executive consultant | ended 2004[27] |
| 1999 | Snoops | Creator, writer, executive producer, actor (uncredited) | canceled after 10 episodes[28] |
| 1997 | The Practice | Creator, writer, executive producer | ended 2004 |
| Ally McBeal | Creator, writer, executive producer | ended 2002 | |
| 1994 | Chicago Hope | Creator, writer, executive producer, executive consultant | ended 2000 |
| 1992 | Picket Fences | Creator, writer, executive producer | ended 1996 |
| 1989 | Doogie Howser, M.D. | Co-creator (with Steven Bochco), writer, creative consultant | ended 1993 |
| 1986 | L.A. Law | Writer, story editor, executive story editor, supervising producer, co-producer, executive producer |
ended 1991 |
[edit] Emmy awards and nominations
| Year | For | Category | Result | Other notes |
| 2000 | The Practice | Outstanding Drama Series | Nominated | Shared with Bob Breech, Jeffrey Kramer, Christina Musrey, Gary M. Strangis, Pamela Wisne |
| 1999 | The Practice | Outstanding Drama Series | Awarded | Shared with Bob Breech, Jeffrey Kramer, Christina Musrey, Gary M. Strangis, Pamela Wisne |
| Ally McBeal | Outstanding Comedy Series | Awarded | Shared with Peter Burrell, Jeffrey Kramer, Mike Listo, Jonathan Pontell, Steve Robin, Pamela Wisne | |
| Ally McBeal | Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series | Nominated | ||
| 1998 | The Practice | Outstanding Drama Series | Awarded | Shared with Bob Breech, Jeffrey Kramer, Christina Musrey, Jonathan Pontell, Ed Redlich, Gary M. Strangis, Pamela Wisne |
| Ally McBeal | Outstanding Comedy Series | Nominated | Shared with Jeffrey Kramer, Mike Listo, Jonathan Pontell, Steve Robin, Pamela Wisne | |
| Ally McBeal | Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series | Nominated | ||
| The Practice | Outstanding Writing for a Dramatic Series | Nominated | ||
| 1996 | Chicago Hope | Outstanding Drama Series | Nominated | Shared with Kevin Arkadie, Rob Corn, Bill D'Elia, Michael Dinner, Patricia Green, James C. Hart, John Heath, John Tinker |
| 1995 | Chicago Hope | Outstanding Drama Series | Nominated | Shared with Michael Braverman, Dennis Cooper, Rob Corn, Michael Dinner, James C. Hart, John Heath, Michael Pressman, John Tinker |
| 1994 | Picket Fences | Outstanding Drama Series | Awarded | Shared with Robert Breech, Ann Donahue, Geoffrey Neigher, Jack Philbrick, Jonathan Pontell, Michael Pressman, Alice West |
| 1993 | Picket Fences | Outstanding Drama Series | Awarded | Shared with Robert Breech, Mark B. Perry, Jonathan Pontell, Michael Pressman, Alice West |
| 1991 | L.A. Law | Outstanding Writing for a Dramatic Series | Awarded | |
| 1990 | L.A. Law | Outstanding Drama Series | Awarded | Shared with Robert M. Breech, William M. Finkelstein, Elodie Keene, Michael M. Robin, Rick Wallace, Alice West |
| L.A. Law | Outstanding Writing for a Dramatic Series | Awarded | ||
| 1989 | L.A. Law | Outstanding Drama Series | Awarded | Shared with Steven Bochco, William M. Finkelstein, Michele Gallery, Phillip M. Goldfarb, Scott Goldstein, Judith Parker, Rick Wallace, Alice West |
| L.A. Law | Outstanding Writing for a Dramatic Series | Nominated | ||
| 1988 | L.A. Law | Outstanding Drama Series | Nominated | Shared with Steven Bochco, Terry Louise Fisher, Phillip M. Goldfarb, Scott Goldstein, Gregory Hoblit, Rick Wallace |
| L.A. Law | Outstanding Writing for a Dramatic Series | Nominated | Shared with Terry Louise Fisher |
[edit] Notes
- Several shared writing nominations not included.
- In 1999, he was the first producer ever to take home Emmys for both Best Comedy Series (Ally McBeal) and Best Drama (The Practice).[29]
[edit] Emmy winning actors and actresses in Kelley's series
Among the actors and actresses who have won Emmys for playing roles in Kelley's series are Peter MacNicol, Tracey Ullman, Sharon Stone, William Shatner, James Spader, Alfre Woodard, Charles S. Dutton, Michael Emerson, James Whitmore, Beah Richards, Edward Herrmann, Michael Badalucco, Holland Taylor, John Larroquette, Camryn Manheim, Christine Lahti, Hector Elizondo, Mandy Patinkin, Kathy Baker, Ray Walston, Paul Winfield, Richard Kiley, Fyvush Finkel, Leigh Taylor-Young, Tom Skerritt, Richard Dysart, Jimmy Smits, and Larry Drake.
[edit] Footnotes and references
- ^ Kelly's father, Jack Kelly, was the coach of the Boston University hockey team from 1962 to 1972 and of the World Hockey Association's New England Whalers in their inaugural season of 1972-1973.[1]
- ^ a b c Carter, Bill (March 2, 1998). The Unintended Career Of TV's Prolific Writer; From Real Law Office to Two Fictional Ones. New York Times. Retrieved on April 1, 2007.
- ^ a b Carter, Bill (February 7, 1990). He's a Lawyer. He's a Writer. But Can He Type?. New York Times. Retrieved on April 1, 2007.
- ^ a b c d e Levine, Stuart (May 3, 2001). Kelley acts as judge, jury for series quality. Variety. Retrieved on April 2, 2007.
- ^ Urankar, Stan (July 10, 1997). Outside those "Picket Fences". Sun News Ohio. Retrieved on April 1, 2007.
- ^ a b Carter, Bill (May 23, 1999). Calling Dr. Geiger. New York Times. Retrieved on April 2, 2007.
- ^ Caves, Switching Channels: Organization and Change in TV Broadcasting. p. 26
- ^ The other two projects were Boston Public on FOX and the quickly cancelled Snoops on ABC.
- ^ a b James, Caryn (April 27, 1998). Ally McBeal Teams Up With Less Flitty Lawyers. New York Times. Retrieved on April 2, 2007.
- ^ a b c Kissel, Rick (May 3, 2001). 'Practice's' good legal standing. Variety. Retrieved on April 2, 2007.
- ^ a b c Levine, Stuart (May 3, 2001). As former lawyers, writers on same page. Variety. Retrieved on April 2, 2007.
- ^ Wethington, Jessica (May 3, 2001). Script-to-b'cast a race vs. deadline. Variety. Retrieved on April 2, 2007.
- ^ Kelley Defends The Practice. TV Guide (September 17, 2003). Retrieved on April 6, 2007.
- ^ Stanley, Allesendra (September 27, 2003). Same Old Law Firm, New Snake. New York Times. Retrieved on April 2, 2007.
- ^ Carter, Bill (January 12, 2000). TV NOTES. New York Times. Retrieved on April 6, 2007.
- ^ Flint, Joe (January 12, 2000). TV NOTES. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved on April 6, 2007.
- ^ Schneider, Michael (January 30, 2001). Fox will go 'Public' for 2nd season. Variety. Retrieved on April 2, 2007.
- ^ Ellis, Seeing Things: Television in an Age of Uncertainty, p. 123
- ^ Millman, Joyce (September 20, 1999). Kelleyvision. Salon.com. Retrieved on March 31, 2007.
- ^ McNiff, Eamon; Cuomo, Chris (November 3, 2006). David E. Kelley Likes Stirring the Pot. ABC News. Retrieved on April 1, 2007.
- ^ a b Orlik, Electronic Media Criticism: : Applied Perspectives, p. 125
- ^ a b Caldwell, Television After TV: Essays on a Medium in Transition, p. 64
- ^ a b Speier, Michael (May 3, 2001). Attorneys quick to offer reality check. Variety. Retrieved on April 2, 2007.
- ^ 'Bells' stop ringing after seven episodes. CNN (April 3, 2007). Retrieved on April 3, 2007.
- ^ The remaining episodes were aired on Bravo.
- ^ Lower case letters in "girls club" are correct.
- ^ The last two episodes aired in 2005 in syndication on TV One.
- ^ Episodes 11 through 13 did air overseas.
- ^ Stevens, Dana (October 1, 2001). The Kelley Curse. Slate.com. Retrieved on April 1, 2007.
[edit] Bibliography
- Caldwell, John: "Convergence Television: Aggregating Form and Repurposing Content in the Culture of Conglomeration". Television after TV: Essays on a Medium in Transition. Ed. Lynn Spigel and Jan Olsson. Duke University Press, 2004 ISBN 978-0822333937
- Caves, Richard E.: Switching Channels: Organization and Change in TV Broadcasting. Harvard University Press, 2005. ISBN 978-0674018785
- Ellis, John: Seeing Things: Television in the Age of Uncertainty. I. B. Tauris, 2000 ISBN 978-1860641251
- Levine, Josh: David E. Kelley: The Man Behind Ally McBeal. ECW Press, 1999 ISBN 978-1550223729
- Orlik, Peter B.: Electronic Media Criticism: : Applied Perspectives. LEA, Inc., 2000 ISBN 978-0805836417
