Chris Thompson (1952 – June 26, 2015) was an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

television writer A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

, producer and

director Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''Di ...

. Beginning in 1977, he wrote and produced for the television series ''

Laverne & Shirley ''Laverne & Shirley'' (originally ''Laverne DeFazio & Shirley Feeney'') is an American sitcom television series that played for eight seasons on ABC from January 27, 1976, to May 10, 1983. A spin-off of ''Happy Days'', ''Laverne & Shirley'' star ...

'' and ''

The Larry Sanders Show ''The Larry Sanders Show'' is an American television sitcom set in the office and studio of a fictional late-night talk show. The series was created by Garry Shandling and Dennis Klein and aired from August 15, 1992, to May 31, 1998, on the HBO ...

''. He had also created, written and produced ''

Bosom Buddies ''Bosom Buddies'' is an American television sitcom starring Tom Hanks and Peter Scolari created by Robert L. Boyett, Thomas L. Miller and Chris Thompson ( Miller-Milkis-Boyett Productions). It aired on Thursday nights for two seasons on ABC f ...

'', ''

The Naked Truth The Naked Truth may refer to: Literature * ''The Naked Truth'' (novel), a 1993 fictional memoir by Leslie Nielsen * ''The Naked Truth'' (book), a 2007 commentary on film ratings Film * ''The Naked Truth'' (1914 film), a silent Italian film * ...

'', ''

Action Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 fil ...

'', ''

Ladies Man A ladies' man or lady's man is a man who enjoys spending time socially with women, who strives to please them and that women find attractive. Ladies' man or lady's man may also refer to: Literature * ''Ladies' Man'' (novel), a 1978 novel by R ...

'' and the

Disney Channel Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Compan ...

original series, ''

Shake It Up Shake It Up may refer to: * ''Shake It Up'' (Boney James & Rick Braun album), 2000 * ''Shake It Up'' (The Cars album), 1981 ** "Shake It Up" (The Cars song), the title song * "Shake It Up" (Divine song), 1983 * "Shake It Up" (Koda Kumi song), ...

'', as well co-written the feature films ''

Jumpin' Jack Flash "Jumpin' Jack Flash" is a song by the English rock band the Rolling Stones, released as a non-album single in 1968. Called "supernatural Delta blues by way of Swinging London" by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine, the song was perceived by some as ...

'' and ''

Back to the Beach ''Back to the Beach'' is a 1987 American comedy film starring Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello, directed by Lyndall Hobbs. The original music score is composed by Steve Dorff. The film generated a total domestic gross of $13,110,903. It r ...

''.

Career

Born Christopher Thompson, he began his career at the age of 23, when he was approached by a producer who was impressed by his improv performance at the Off The Wall theater in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

. Thompson thought this was his big acting break, but it was really the start of his prolific writing and producing career (the producer offered him an apprentice writing position on the series ''Sirota's Court''). Soon after, he was introduced to producer

Garry Marshall Garry Kent Marshall (November 13, 1934 – July 19, 2016) was an American filmmaker and actor. He started his career in the 1960s writing for ''The Lucy Show'' and ''The Dick Van Dyke Show'' before he developed Neil Simon's 1965 play ''The Odd Co ...

and worked as a writer on ''

Blansky's Beauties ''Blansky's Beauties'' is an American sitcom television series and ostensible spin-off of ''Happy Days'' that aired on ABC from February 12 to June 27, 1977. The main character of the series was introduced on an episode of ''Happy Days'', then ...

'' starring

Nancy Walker Nancy Walker (born Anna Myrtle Swoyer; May 10, 1922 – March 25, 1992) was an American actress and comedian of stage, screen, and television. She was also a film and television director (lending her talents to ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'', on wh ...

and

Scott Baio Scott Vincent James Baio (; born September 22, 1960) is an American actor. He is known for playing Chachi Arcola on the sitcom ''Happy Days'' (1977–1984) and its spin-off ''Joanie Loves Chachi'' (1982–1983), the title character on ...

, followed by ''

'', where he worked as a writer, and later as an executive producer, for seven years. Thompson went on to create the buddy comedy ''

'' for

Paramount Studios Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production and distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldest film studio in the world, the second-oldest ...

. His other writing and producing credits include ''

'', ''

'', ''House Rules'', ''Hard Knocks'' and over 30 pilots for various networks and studios. His feature film writing credits include ''

'', and ''

''. In 2010, Thompson created and executive produced the

dance-driven sitcom '' Shake It Up!'' He left the series after the first season leaving

Rob Lotterstein Rob Lotterstein is an American screenwriter and producer. He has written and produced for numerous television sitcoms including ''Boy Meets World'', ''Suddenly Susan'', '' Ellen'' and ''Will & Grace'', as well as serving as creator and executive ...

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 th ...

Personal life

Thompson was born in

Detroit Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at th ...

Michigan Michigan () is a state in the Great Lakes region of the upper Midwestern United States. With a population of nearly 10.12 million and an area of nearly , Michigan is the 10th-largest state by population, the 11th-largest by area, and the ...

and raised in

. During the early 1980s, Thompson was married to director

Lyndall Hobbs Lyndall Hobbs (born 1952) is an Australian film director and producer. Life and career Hobbs was born in Australia in 1952. She spent many years in the United Kingdom, during which time she directed the documentary film ''Steppin' Out'' (1979) ...

; they had one daughter, Lola Rose Thompson.''In Her Father's Eyes''

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

.net Thompson married Tracy Bjork in 1990, and they have two children, Taylor and Richard. They were married for thirteen years. Thompson married Curran Sympson in 2008. Thompson died in actor

Tim Curry Timothy James Curry (born 19 April 1946) is an English actor and singer. He rose to prominence for his portrayal of Dr. Frank-N-Furter in the film ''The Rocky Horror Picture Show'' (1975), reprising the role he had originated in the 1973 London ...

's home on June 26, 2015 in

Toluca Lake, Los Angeles Toluca Lake is an affluent neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California, located in the San Fernando Valley northwest of downtown. The name is also given to a private natural lake fed by wells and maintained by neighboring property owner ...

after a long illness. His death provoked a slew of messages from stars he had worked with, among them

Bella Thorne Annabella Avery Thorne (born October 8, 1997) is an American actress, singer, and writer. She first received recognition for her roles as Margaux Darling in the series ''Dirty Sexy Money'' (2007–2008) and as Ruthy Spivey in the drama series ...

who said Thompson had been "like a father to her at an early age." He lived with his wife of seven years, Curran Sympson Thompson, with their dog Roscoe and cat Ichi; she survived him by four years, passing in 2019.

Filmography

*''

Sirota's Court ''Sirota's Court'' is an American television sitcom that aired on NBC on Wednesday nights from December 1, 1976 to April 13, 1977. Premise The series centered on Matthew J. Sirota, a night court judge in a large metropolitan city. Others shown we ...

'' (1976–1977) (TV) *''

'' (1977) (TV) *''

'' (1977–1979) (TV) *''

'' (1980–1982) (TV) *'' The President of Love'' (1984) (TV) *'' Slickers'' (1985) (TV) *''

'' (with

Charles Shyer Charles Richard Shyer (born October 11, 1941) is an American film director, screenwriter and producer. Shyer's films are predominantly comedies, often with a romantic-comedy overtone. His films include '' Private Benjamin'' (1980), ''Irreconcila ...

Nancy Meyers Nancy Jane Meyers (born December 8, 1949) is an American filmmaker. She has written, produced, and directed many critically and commercially successful films including ''Private Benjamin (1980 film), Private Benjamin'' (1980), ''Irreconcilable D ...

and

David Franzoni David Harold Franzoni (born March 4, 1947) is an American screenwriter and film producer. He conceived the story for, co-wrote and co-produced the 2000 film '' Gladiator'', for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Sc ...

) (1986) *'' Hard Knocks'' (1987) (TV) *''

'' (with

Peter Krikes Peter Krikes is an American screenwriter who contributed to the screenplay for '' Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home'' (1986). Filmography * '' Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home'' (1986) * ''Anna and the King'' (1999) * ''Double Impact'' (1991) * ''Ba ...

and

Steve Meerson Steve Meerson is an American screenwriter who contributed to the screenplay for '' Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home'' (1986). Filmography *''Anna and the King'' (1999) *''Double Impact'' (1991) *''Back to the Beach ''Back to the Beach'' is a 19 ...

) (1987) *''

Lola Lola may refer to: Places * Lolá, a or subdistrict of Panama * Lola Township, Cherokee County, Kansas, United States * Lola Prefecture, Guinea * Lola, Guinea, a town in Lola Prefecture * Lola Island, in the Solomon Islands People * Lola (fo ...

'' (1990) (TV) *'' Big Deals'' (1991) (TV) *''

'' (1992–1993) (TV) *''

Dave's World ''Dave's World'' is an American sitcom television series, created by Fred Barron, that aired on CBS from September 20, 1993, to June 20, 1997. The series is based on the writing of ''Miami Herald'' columnist Dave Barry. Plot The show focuses on t ...

'' (1994) (TV) *''

'' (1995-1997) (TV) *''

House Rules House rules are unofficial modifications to official game rules adopted by individual groups of players. House rules may include the removal or alteration of existing rules, or the addition of new rules. Such modifications are common in board g ...

'' (1998) (TV) *''

'' (1999) (TV) *''

Trash Trash may refer to: Garbage * Garbage, unwanted or undesired waste material ** Litter, material discarded in inappropriate places ** Municipal solid waste, unwanted or undesired waste material generated in a municipal environment Arts, enter ...

'' (2003) (TV) *''

'' (2010–2013) (TV)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Thompson, Chris 1952 births 2015 deaths American male screenwriters American television directors Television producers from California American television writers American male television writers Writers from Detroit Writers from Los Angeles Screenwriters from California Screenwriters from Michigan