Adam Horowitz (born December 4, 1971) is an American screenwriter and producer. He is known for co-creating the ABC fairy tale drama series '' Once Upon a Time'' with his writing partner

Edward Kitsis Edward Lawrence Kitsis (born February 4, 1971) is an American television writer and producer, best known for his work with his writing partner Adam Horowitz on the popular ABC drama series ''Lost'' and '' Once Upon a Time''. Early life and e ...

. Days after the show ended its seven-year run in 2018, Kitsis and Horowitz were announced as

showrunner A showrunner (or colloquially a helmer) is the top-level executive producer of a television series production who has creative and management authority through combining the responsibilities of employer and, in comedy or dramas, typically also the ...

s for

Apple TV An apple is an edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus domestica''). Apple trees are cultivated worldwide and are the most widely grown species in the genus '' Malus''. The tree originated in Central Asia, where its wild ancesto ...

's ''

Amazing Stories ''Amazing Stories'' is an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction. Science fiction stories had made regular appearances ...

''.

Early life

Horowitz was born in New York City,Variety Magazine: "Abrams keeps it all in the fan family – J.J. and his collaborators conquer Hollywood" By Cynthia Littleton
October 16, 2009 , ''"We’re all self-deprecating short Jews, with the exception of Bob Orci”'' and graduated from

Hunter College High School Hunter College High School is a secondary school located in the Carnegie Hill neighborhood on the Upper East Side of Manhattan. It is administered by Hunter College of the City University of New York (CUNY). Hunter is publicly funded, and there ...

in 1990. He attended

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

and graduated with a B.A. in 1994, majoring in communication arts and

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and ...

. There he met his future collaborator,

. Horowitz was writer and reporter for the '' Daily Cardinal'' student newspaper, writing as many as five articles in the same issue. He often caught editors off-guard with humorous

leads Lead is a chemical element with symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead or The Lead may also refer to: Animal handling * Leash, or lead * Lead (leg), the leg that advances most in a quadruped's cantering or galloping stride * Lead (tack), a lin ...

or picking odd quotes. He worked on articles about spearfishing and the

Exxon Valdez oil spill The ''Exxon Valdez'' oil spill occurred in Prince William Sound, Alaska, on March 24, 1989. '' Exxon Valdez'', an oil supertanker owned by Exxon Shipping Company bound for Long Beach, California struck Prince William Sound's Bligh Reef, w ...

Career

Television

After graduating, Kitsis and Horowitz traveled together to Los Angeles, and worked together on ''Fantasy Island'', ''Felicity'' and ''Popular'', before joining the ''Lost'' team halfway through the first season. He is married to Erin Barrett Horowitz. Horowitz, Kitsis and the ''

Lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography * Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland *Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

'' writing staff won the Writers Guild of America (WGA) Award for Best Dramatic Series at the February 2006 ceremony for their work on the first and

second The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ea ...

seasons. They were nominated for the WGA Award for Best Dramatic Series again at the February 2007 ceremony for their work on the second and

third Third or 3rd may refer to: Numbers * 3rd, the ordinal form of the cardinal number 3 * , a fraction of one third * 1⁄60 of a ''second'', or 1⁄3600 of a ''minute'' Places * 3rd Street (disambiguation) * Third Avenue (disambiguation) * Hi ...

seasons, at the February 2009 ceremony for the fourth season of ''Lost'' and at the February 2010 ceremony for the fifth season. They also wrote ''Confessions of an American Bride'', a made-for-television movie. During Lost's run, he signed an overall deal with ABC Studios in 2007. Horowitz and Kitsis created the ABC fantasy drama series '' Once Upon a Time'', which began airing on October 23, 2011. The show focuses on a town which is actually a parallel world populated by fairytale characters who are unaware of their true identity. The two came up with the concept seven years prior to joining the staff of ''Lost'', but wanted to wait until it ended before they focused on this project. Kitsis and Horowitz also worked on the first four episodes of '' Tron: Uprising''. He explains that he has used this chance to explore the Tron universe, particularly the life of a program under CLU's regime. Kitsis, Horowitz, and Josh Gad will serve as creators and writers for a limited prequel series to Disney's 2017 film ''

Beauty and the Beast ''Beauty and the Beast'' (french: La Belle et la Bête) is a fairy tale written by French novelist Gabrielle-Suzanne Barbot de Villeneuve and published in 1740 in ''La Jeune Américaine et les contes marins'' (''The Young American and Marine ...

''. The series was conceived after the three had a discussion after the cancellation of their planned Disney+ series, ''Muppets Live Another Day''. In December 2019, it was announced that Horowitz and Kitsis were working on a new TV show set in the world of fairy tales and

Disney The Walt Disney Company, commonly known as Disney (), is an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate headquartered at the Walt Disney Studios complex in Burbank, California. Disney was originally founded on October ...

titled ''Epic''. The pilot was picked up by ABC in January 2021, however it was dropped in August of the same year.

Film

Kitsis and Horowitz worked as writers on early unused drafts of the Universal project ''

Ouija The ouija ( , ), also known as a spirit board or talking board, is a flat board marked with the letters of the Latin alphabet, the numbers 0–9, the words "yes", "no", occasionally "hello" and "goodbye", along with various symbols and gra ...

'', and co-wrote the film '' Tron: Legacy'' in 2010. He frequently collaborates with a tightly knit group of film professionals which include J. J. Abrams,

Damon Lindelof Damon Laurence Lindelof (born April 24, 1973) is an American screenwriter, comic book writer, and producer. Among his accolades, he received three Primetime Emmy Awards, from twelve nominations. In 2010, ''Time'' magazine named him one of the ...

, Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci,

, Andre Nemec, Josh Appelbaum, Jeff Pinkner, and Bryan Burk.

Credits

* '' Dead of Summer'', 2016 (with Edward Kitsis) **Episode 1.01 "Patience" (also with

Ian Goldberg Ian Avrum Goldberg (born March 31, 1973) is a cryptographer and cypherpunk. He is best known for breaking Netscape's implementation of SSL (with David Wagner), and for his role as chief scientist of Radialpoint (formerly Zero Knowledge Syst ...

) (also as director) **Episode 1.03 "Mix Tape" **Episode 1.04 "Modern Love" **Episode 1.10 "She Talks to Angels" * '' Once Upon a Time in Wonderland'', 2013–2014 (with Edward Kitsis) **Episode 1.01 "

Down the Rabbit Hole Down the Rabbit Hole is a metaphor for adventure into the unknown, from its use in ''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''. It may also refer to: Books * ''Down the Rabbit Hole'' (novel), the first book in the ''Echo Falls'' mystery series, by Pete ...

" (also with

Zack Estrin Zack Estrin (1970/1971 – September 23, 2022) was an American television producer and screenwriter. Estrin began his career as a writer and producer on ''Charmed'', ''Dawson's Creek'', and ''Tru Calling'', before serving as a co-executive prod ...

and

Jane Espenson Jane Espenson (born July 14, 1964) is an American television writer and producer. Espenson has worked on both situation comedies and serial dramas. She had a five-year stint as a writer and producer on ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' and shared a ...

) **Episode 1.08 "

Home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. ...

" (also with

) **Episode 1.13 " And They Lived..." (also with

) * '' Tron: Uprising'', 2012 ** Episode 1.01 "Beck's Beginning" with Edward Kitsis ** Episode 1.02 "The Renegade, Part 1" with Kitsis (Story – Written by

Kamran Pasha Kamran Pasha ( ur, ; born on 3 April 1972) is an American Hollywood screenwriter, director and novelist of Pakistani origin. He was a writer and producer on the NBC series '' Kings'', after working as a producer on NBC's '' Bionic Woman''.. Previ ...

, Adam Nussdorf and Bill Wolkoff) ** Episode 1.03 "The Renegade, Part 2" with Kitsis (Story – Written by

, Adam Nussdorf and Bill Wolkoff) ** Episode 1.04 "Blackout" with Kitsis * '' Once Upon a Time'', 2011–2018 (with Edward Kitsis) **Episode 1.01 " Pilot" **Episode 1.02 " The Thing You Love Most" **Episode 1.07 " The Heart Is a Lonely Hunter" **Episode 1.10 " 7:15 A.M." (story with Kitsis, teleplay by Daniel T. Thomsen) **Episode 1.14 " Dreamy" **Episode 1.18 " The Stable Boy" **Episode 1.22 " A Land Without Magic" **Episode 2.01 " Broken" **Episode 2.05 " The Doctor" **Episode 2.09 "

Queen of Hearts The queen of hearts is a playing card in the standard 52-card deck. Queen of Hearts or The Queen of Hearts may refer to: Books * "The Queen of Hearts" (poem), anonymous nursery rhyme published 1782 * ''The Queen of Hearts'', an 1859 novel by ...

" **Episode 2.14 "

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

" **Episode 2.19 "

Lacey Lacey may refer to: People Surname A–L * Andrew Lacey (1887–1946), Australian politician * Bill Lacey (American football) (born 1971), American football player and coach * Bill Lacey (footballer) (1889–1969), Irish footballer * Bob Lacey ( ...

" **Episode 2.22 " And Straight On 'til Morning" **Episode 3.01 " The Heart of the Truest Believer" **Episode 3.06 " Ariel" **Episode 3.11 " Going Home" **Episode 3.12 " New York City Serenade" **Episode 3.19 "

A Curious Thing ''A Curious Thing'' is the second album by Scottish singer-songwriter Amy Macdonald, and was released on 8 March 2010. The album's lead single, " Don't Tell Me That It's Over" (containing "Young lovers" as b-side), was released on 1 March 2010. ...

" **Episode 3.22 " There's No Place Like Home" **Episode 4.01 " A Tale of Two Sisters" **Episode 4.07 "

The Snow Queen "The Snow Queen" ( da, Snedronningen) is an original fairy tale by Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. It was first published 21 December 1844 in '' New Fairy Tales. First Volume. Second Collection'' (''Nye Eventyr. Første Bind. Anden Samli ...

" **Episode 4.11 " Heroes and Villains" **Episode 4.12 "

Darkness on the Edge of Town ''Darkness on the Edge of Town'' is the fourth studio album by American rock singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on June 2, 1978, by Columbia Records. The album marked the end of a three-year gap between albums brought on by contract ...

" **Episode 4.13 "

Unforgiven ''Unforgiven'' is a 1992 American Revisionist Western film starring, directed, and produced by Clint Eastwood, and written by David Webb Peoples. The film tells the story of William Munny, an aging outlaw and killer who takes on one more job, ...

" (as director) **Episode 4.21/22 "

Operation Mongoose The Cuban Project, also known as Operation Mongoose, was an extensive campaign of terrorist attacks against civilians and covert operations carried out by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency in Cuba. It was officially authorized on November 3 ...

" **Episode 5.01 "

The Dark Swan "The Dark Swan" is the first episode of the fifth season of the American fantasy drama series '' Once Upon a Time'', which aired on September 27, 2015. In this episode, the events of Emma Swan being consumed by the Darkness have left the residen ...

" **Episode 5.05 " Dreamcatcher" **Episode 5.11 "

Swan Song The swan song ( grc, κύκνειον ᾆσμα; la, carmen cygni) is a metaphorical phrase for a final gesture, effort, or performance given just before death or retirement. The phrase refers to an ancient belief that swans sing a beautiful so ...

" **Episode 5.12 " Souls of the Departed" (100th episode) **Episode 5.23 " An Untold Story" **Episode 6.01 " The Savior" **Episode 6.05 "

Street Rats ''Street Rats'' was the eighth studio album by the English rock group Humble Pie, released in 1975. The album went to number 100 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 album chart. Background ''Street Rats'' was created at the same time as Steve Marri ...

" **Episode 6.10 "

Wish You Were Here Wish You Were Here may refer to: Film, television, and theater Film * ''Wish You Were Here'' (1987 film), a British comedy-drama film by David Leland * ''Wish You Were Here'' (2012 film), an Australian drama/mystery film by Kieran Darcy-Smith ...

" **Episode 6.11 "

Tougher Than the Rest "Tougher Than the Rest" is a song by Bruce Springsteen from his 1987 '' Tunnel of Love'' album. It was released as a single in some countries, following " Brilliant Disguise" and the title track, but was not released as a single in the United ...

" **Episode 6.16 " Mother's Little Helper" (story with Kitsis, teleplay by Paul Karp) **Episode 6.21/22 " The Final Battle" **Episode 7.01 "

Hyperion Heights "Hyperion Heights" is the first episode of the seventh season and the 134th episode overall of the American fantasy-drama series ''Once Upon a Time''. Directed by Ralph Hemecker and written by series co-creators Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, ...

" **Episode 7.11 " Secret Garden" **Episode 7.19 "

Flower Child Flower child originated as a synonym for hippie, especially among the idealistic young people who gathered in San Francisco and the surrounding area during the Summer of Love in 1967. It was the custom of "flower children" to wear and distribut ...

" **Episode 7.22 "

Leaving Storybrooke "Leaving Storybrooke" is the series finale of the American fantasy-drama series ''Once Upon a Time''. It is the twenty-second episode of the seventh season and the 155th and final episode overall. Written by the show's creators, Edward Kitsis an ...

" (series finale) * '' Tron: Legacy'', 2010 (with Edward Kitsis) * ''

'', 2005–2010 ** Episode 1.22 "

Born to Run ''Born to Run'' is the third studio album by American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, released on August 25, 1975, by Columbia Records. As his effort to break into the mainstream, the album was a commercial success, peaking at number three ...

" teleplay with Edward Kitsis, story by

Javier Grillo-Marxuach Javier "Javi" Grillo-Marxuach (), born October 28, 1969 in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is a television screenwriter and producer, and podcaster, known for his work as writer and producer on the first two seasons of the ABC television series ''Lost'', ...

** Episode 2.04 "

Everybody Hates Hugo "Everybody Hates Hugo" is the fourth episode of the second season of the American drama television series '' Lost'', and the show's 29th episode overall. The episode was written by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, and directed by Alan Taylor. It ...

" with Kitsis ** Episode 2.12 " Fire and Water" with Kitsis ** Episode 2.18 "

Dave Dave may refer to: Film, television, and theater * ''Dave'' (film), a 1993 film starring Kevin Kline and Sigourney Weaver * ''Dave'' (musical), a 2018 stage musical adaptation of the film * Dave (TV channel), a digital television channel in the ...

" with Kitsis ** Episode 2.22 "

Three Minutes "Three Minutes" is the 47th episode of ''Lost''. It is the 22nd episode of the second season. The episode was directed by Stephen Williams, and written by Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz. It first aired May 17, 2006, on ABC. The emotionally con ...

" with Kitsis ** Episode 3.04 " Every Man for Himself" with Kitsis ** Episode 3.10 " Tricia Tanaka Is Dead" with Kitsis ** Episode 3.14 " Exposé" with Kitsis ** Episode 3.18 " D.O.C." with Kitsis ** Episode 3.21 "

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

" with Kitsis ** Episode 4.03 "

The Economist ''The Economist'' is a British weekly newspaper printed in demitab format and published digitally. It focuses on current affairs, international business, politics, technology, and culture. Based in London, the newspaper is owned by The Eco ...

" with Kitsis ** Episode 4.07 "

Ji Yeon "Ji Yeon" (; from Korean 지연 ) is the seventh episode of the American Broadcasting Company's fourth season of ''Lost'' and 79th episode overall. The episode was written by co-executive producers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz, and directed ...

" with Kitsis ** Episode 4.10 "

Something Nice Back Home "Something Nice Back Home" is the tenth episode of the American Broadcasting Company's fourth season of the serial drama television series ''Lost'' and 82nd episode overall. It was aired on May 1, 2008, on ABC in the United States and on CTV i ...

" with Kitsis ** Episode 5.02 " The Lie" with Kitsis ** Episode 5.05 " This Place Is Death" with Kitsis ** Episode 5.10 " He's Our You" with Kitsis ** Episode 5.14 "

The Variable "The Variable" is the 14th television episode of the fifth season of ''Lost'', and the 100th episode overall. It originally aired on the American Broadcasting Company (ABC) in the United States on April 29, 2009. The hundredth episode milestone w ...

" with Kitsis ** Episode 6.02 "

What Kate Does "What Kate Does" is the 106th television episode of the American Broadcasting Company's '' Lost'' and third episode of the sixth season. It was written by executive producers Edward Kitsis and Adam Horowitz and directed in September 2009 by Paul ...

" with Kitsis ** Episode 6.07 " Dr. Linus" with Kitsis ** Episode 6.12 " Everybody Loves Hugo" with Kitsis ** Episode 6.16 " What They Died For" with Kitsis and

Elizabeth Sarnoff Elizabeth "Liz" Sarnoff is an American television writer and producer. She has written episodes of ''NYPD Blue'', ''Crossing Jordan'', '' Deadwood'' and ''Lost''. She is the co-creator of the Fox crime/ mystery series ''Alcatraz''. Career Sar ...

* ''Confessions of an American Bride'', 2005 with Edward Kitsis * '' Life as We Know It'', 2004 ** Episode 1.08 "Family Hard-ships" with Edward Kitsis * '' One Tree Hill'', 2004 ** Episode 1.20 "What Is and What Should Never Be" with Edward Kitsis * ''

Black Sash The Black Sash is a South African human rights organisation. It was founded in Johannesburg in 1955 as a non-violent resistance organisation for liberal white women. Origins The Black Sash was founded on 19 May 1955 by six middle-class white ...

'', 2003 ** Episode 1.04 "Prodigal Son" with Edward Kitsis * ''

Birds of Prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predat ...

'', 2002–2003 ** Episode 1.03 "Prey for the Hunter" teleplay with Edward Kitsis, story by Adam Armus & Kay Foster ** Episode 1.06 "Primal Scream" teleplay with Kitsis, story by Adam Armus & Kay Foster ** Episode 1.07 "Split" teleplay with Kitsis, story by Adam Armus & Kay Foster ** Episode 1.08 "Lady Shiva" teleplay with Kitsis, story by Adam Armus & Kay Foster ** Episode 1.11 "Reunion" with Kitsis * '' Felicity'', 2001 ** Episode 4.03 "Your Money or Your Wife" with Edward Kitsis ** Episode 4.09 "Moving On" with Kitsis * ''

Popular Popularity or social status is the quality of being well liked, admired or well known to a particular group. Popular may also refer to: In sociology * Popular culture * Popular fiction * Popular music * Popular science * Populace, the total ...

'', 1999–2001 ** Episode 1.08 "Tonight's the Night" with Edward Kitsis and Ryan Murphy ** Episode 1.15 "Booty Camp" with Kitsis ** Episode 1.21 "What Makes Sammy Run" with Kitsis ** Episode 2.02 "Baby, Don't Do It" with Kitsis ** Episode 2.07 "Ur-ine Trouble" with Kitsis ** Episode 2.12 "The Shocking Possession of Harrison John" with Kitsis ** Episode 2.15 "It's Greek to Me" with Kitsis ** Episode 2.20 "You Don't Tug on Superman's Cape...You Don't Spit into the Wind...You Don't Pull the Mask off the Ol' Lone Ranger...And You Don't Mess Around with Big Bertha Muffin" with Kitsis * ''

Fantasy Island ''Fantasy Island'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Gene Levitt. It aired on ABC from 1977 to 1984. The series starred Ricardo Montalbán as the mysterious Mr. Roarke and Hervé Villechaize as his assistant, Tatto ...

'', 1998–1999 ** Episode 1.02 "Superfriends" with Edward Kitsis ** Episode 1.08 "Handymen" with Kitsis ** Episode 1.12 "The Real Thing" with Kitsis * Untitled ''

'' series (with Kitsis and Josh Gad)

Awards

* 2005

Writers Guild of America Award The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility ...

for Best Dramatic Series for ''Lost''. * 2000

SHINE Award The SHINE Awards ("Sexual Health in Entertainment") are annual media awards given by The Media Project since the mid-1980s, resulting from a partnership between the Kaiser Family Foundation and Advocates for Youth Advocates for Youth is a nonpr ...

for Best Comedy Episode for ''

'' episode " Booty Camp". * Nominated for 2000 Shine Award for Best Dramatic Episode for ''Popular'' episode " Tonight's the Night". * Nominated for 2008 Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series for ''Lost'' * Nominated for 2009 Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series for ''Lost'' * Nominated for 2010 Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Drama Series for ''Lost''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Horowitz, Adam 1971 births American male screenwriters Television producers from New York City Hunter College High School alumni Living people Jewish American screenwriters University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni Writers Guild of America Award winners Writers from Manhattan Screenwriters from New York (state) 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American screenwriters 21st-century American male writers Showrunners 21st-century American Jews