Hugh Hamilton Wilson Jr. (August 21, 1943 – January 14, 2018) was an American film director, writer and television showrunner. He is best known as the creator of the TV series ''
WKRP in Cincinnati
''WKRP in Cincinnati'' is an American sitcom television series about the misadventures of the staff of a struggling fictional radio broadcasting, radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio. The show was created by Hugh Wilson (director), Hugh Wilson ...
'' and ''
Frank's Place
''Frank's Place'' is an American comedy-drama series that aired on CBS for 22 episodes during the 1987-1988 television season. The series was created by Hugh Wilson and executive produced by Wilson and series star and fellow ''WKRP in Cincinna ...
'', and as the director of the film comedies ''
Police Academy
A police academy, also known as a law enforcement training center, police college, or police university, is a training school for police cadets, designed to prepare them for the law enforcement agency they will be joining upon graduation, or othe ...
'' and ''
The First Wives Club
''The First Wives Club'' is a 1996 American comedy film directed by Hugh Wilson, based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Olivia Goldsmith. The film stars Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn, and Diane Keaton as three divorcées who seek retribution ...
''.
Background
Wilson was born in
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
,
Florida
Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...
. He attended
Coral Way Elementary
Corals are marine invertebrates within the class (biology), class Anthozoa of the phylum Cnidaria. They typically form compact Colony (biology), colonies of many identical individual polyp (zoology), polyps. Coral species include the important C ...
, Ponce de Leon Jr. High, and
Coral Gables Sr. High, where he was a member of the Ching Tang Fraternity. He entered the
University of Florida
The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...
in 1961 and graduated in 1964 with a degree in journalism. At Florida, he was a member of the
Blue Key Honor Society
Blue Key Honor Society is an American national honor society for college upperclassmen. Blue Key has over 50 chartered collegiate chapters within the United States.
History
Blue Key Honor Society was founded as Blue Key National Honor Frater ...
and president of his fraternity,
Phi Delta Theta
Phi Delta Theta (), commonly known as Phi Delt, is an international secret and social fraternity founded at Miami University in 1848 and headquartered in Oxford, Ohio. Phi Delta Theta, along with Beta Theta Pi and Sigma Chi form the Miami Triad ...
. Wilson received the school's Distinguished Alumnus award in 1982. He has also served as a guest professor of media studies at the
University of Virginia
The University of Virginia (UVA) is a Public university#United States, public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United S ...
.
Career
In 1966, he entered the advertising business in Atlanta at the Burton-Campbell Agency. He was a copywriter before becoming creative director in 1970 and president in 1973.
Tom Patchett
Tom Patchett is an American film director, screenwriter, actor and producer who is best known as the co-creator of '' ALF''. He co-wrote the films ''Up the Academy'', ''The Great Muppet Caper'', ''The Muppets Take Manhattan'', and '' Project ALF' ...
and
Jay Tarses
Michael Jay Tarses (born July 3, 1939) is an American screenwriter, producer, actor. He created and produced ''The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd'' and ''The Slap Maxwell Story'', co-created ''Buffalo Bill'' (with Tom Patchett), and was an exec ...
, producers of the ''
Bob Newhart Show
''The Bob Newhart Show'' is an American sitcom television series produced by MTM Enterprises that aired on CBS from September 16, 1972, to April 1, 1978, with a total of 142 half-hour episodes over six seasons. Comedian Bob Newhart portrays a psy ...
'', were instrumental in getting Wilson a position with
MTM Enterprises
MTM Enterprises (also known as MTM Productions) was an American independent production company established in 1969 by Mary Tyler Moore and her then-husband Grant Tinker to produce ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'' for CBS. The name for the productio ...
in 1975. They, along with
Grant Tinker
Grant Almerin Tinker (January 11, 1926 – November 28, 2016) was an American television executive who served as chairman and CEO of NBC from 1981 to 1986. Additionally, he was a co-founder of MTM Enterprises and a television producer.
Life ...
, gave him his first writing assignment for the ''Bob Newhart Show'' in early 1976 and in 1977 made him a co-producer of the ''Tony Randall Show''. In 1978, Wilson created ''
WKRP in Cincinnati
''WKRP in Cincinnati'' is an American sitcom television series about the misadventures of the staff of a struggling fictional radio broadcasting, radio station in Cincinnati, Ohio. The show was created by Hugh Wilson (director), Hugh Wilson ...
'' (1978–1982) for CBS. Two of his ''WKRP'' scripts won
Humanitas Prize
The Humanitas Prize is an award for film and television writing, and is given to writers whose work explores the human condition in a nuanced and meaningful way. It began in 1974 with Father Ellwood "Bud" Kieser—also the founder of Paulist P ...
s and the show was nominated twice for the Emmy in the Best Comedy category. The character of
Bailey Quarters
Bailey Quarters is a character on the television sitcom ''WKRP in Cincinnati''. She was played by actress Jan Smithers, and was based on creator Hugh Wilson (director), Hugh Wilson's wife.
WKRP roles
Bailey originally came from Chicago with a ...
on ''WKRP'' was based on Wilson's wife.
Wilson attempted to break into movies by re-writing a low-budget comedy on the condition that he could direct it. The result was the first ''
Police Academy
A police academy, also known as a law enforcement training center, police college, or police university, is a training school for police cadets, designed to prepare them for the law enforcement agency they will be joining upon graduation, or othe ...
'' for the Ladd Company (Warners) and producer Paul Maslansky. It was a surprise hit of 1984. In 1985, Wilson shot the singing cowboy comedy ''
Rustlers' Rhapsody
''Rustlers' Rhapsody'' is a 1985 American comedy–Western film. It is a parody of many Western conventions, most visibly of the singing cowboy films that were prominent in the 1930s and the 1940s. The film was written and directed by Hugh Wils ...
'', starring
Tom Berenger
Tom Berenger (born Thomas Michael Moore; May 31, 1949) is an American actor. He was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Staff Sergeant Bob Barnes in ''Platoon'' (1986). He is also known for playing Jake ...
and
Sela Ward
Sela Ann Ward (born July 11, 1956) is an American actress, author, and producer. Her breakthrough TV role was as Teddy Reed in the NBC drama series ''Sisters'' (1991–1996), for which she received her first Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding ...
. The movie was filmed in Spain. "I grew up watching Roy and Gene and Hopalong Cassidy," Wilson said in the production notes. "That was my idea of a movie." The movie failed at the box office but has gained a strong cult following over the years. The same year, he created the short-lived television series ''
Easy Street
Easy Street may refer to:
Film
* ''Easy Street'' (1917 film), a Charlie Chaplin comedy
* Easy Street (1930 film), by Oscar Micheaux, US
* ''Easy Street'' (TV series), 1986–87 US sitcom
Music
*Easy Street (band), UK, 1970s
**''Easy Street'', ...
'' starring
Loni Anderson
Loni Kaye Anderson (born August 5, 1945) is an American actress who played receptionist Jennifer Marlowe on the CBS sitcom ''WKRP in Cincinnati'' (1978–1982), which earned her three Golden Globe Awards and two Emmy Award nominations.
Early ...
.
In 1988, Wilson returned to CBS to create and co-produce with
Tim Reid
Timothy Lee Reid (born December 19, 1944) is an American actor, comedian and film director best known for his roles in prime time American television programs, such as Venus Flytrap on ''WKRP in Cincinnati'' (1978–82), Marcel "Downtown" Brown ...
the highly regarded but short-lived (22 episodes) ''
Frank's Place
''Frank's Place'' is an American comedy-drama series that aired on CBS for 22 episodes during the 1987-1988 television season. The series was created by Hugh Wilson and executive produced by Wilson and series star and fellow ''WKRP in Cincinna ...
''. Along with ''
The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd
''The Days and Nights of Molly Dodd'' is an American comedy-drama television series that aired on NBC from May 21, 1987 to June 29, 1988 and on Lifetime from April 17, 1989 to April 13, 1991. It was created by Jay Tarses and stars Blair Brown in ...
'' (created by Jay Tarses) the two shows were the first to be done in the style that has come to be known as "dramedy." Wilson received three Emmy nominations for ''Frank's Place'' and won the Emmy for Best Writing. Wilson also created the CBS show ''
The Famous Teddy Z
''The Famous Teddy Z'' is an American sitcom that was broadcast on CBS during the fall of 1989. The series was created by Hugh Wilson and inspired by the true story of Jay Kantor, who was a mailroom clerk at MCA and later became Marlon Brando's ...
'' (1989) and directed the movies ''
Guarding Tess
''Guarding Tess'' is a 1994 American comedy-drama film starring Shirley MacLaine and Nicolas Cage, directed by Hugh Wilson. MacLaine plays a fictional former First Lady protected by an entourage of Secret Service agents led by one she continua ...
'' (1994) and ''
Blast from the Past'' (1999).
His biggest film hit after ''Police Academy'' came in 1996 with ''
The First Wives Club
''The First Wives Club'' is a 1996 American comedy film directed by Hugh Wilson, based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Olivia Goldsmith. The film stars Bette Midler, Goldie Hawn, and Diane Keaton as three divorcées who seek retribution ...
''. The film became a surprise box-office success following its North American release, eventually grossing $181,490,000 worldwide, mostly from its domestic run, despite receiving mixed reviews, and developed a cult following particularly among middle-aged women. For its stars, including
Bette Midler
Bette Midler (;''Inside the Actors Studio'', 2004 born December 1, 1945) is an American singer, actress, comedian and author. Throughout her career, which spans over five decades, Midler has received List of awards and nominations received by Be ...
,
Goldie Hawn
Goldie Jeanne Hawn (born November 21, 1945) is an American actress, dancer, producer, and singer. She rose to fame on the NBC sketch comedy program ''Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In'' (1968–1970), before going on to receive the Academy Award and Go ...
and
Diane Keaton
Diane Keaton ('' née'' Hall, born January 5, 1946) is an American actress and director. She has received various accolades throughout her career spanning over six decades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, two Golden Gl ...
, the actresses' highest-grossing project of the decade helped revitalize their careers in film and television.
In 2001, Wilson and John Grisham teamed up to make ''
Mickey
Mickey is a given name and nickname, almost always masculine and often a short form (hypocorism) of Michael (given name), Michael, and occasionally a surname. Notable people and characters with the name include:
People Given name or nickname Men ...
'', an independent movie about little league baseball.
Personal life
Wilson married Charters Smith in 1979, with whom he had five children. Daughter Caroline Charters Wilson is an actress and singer. Wilson moved to Virginia in 1992 and sometimes taught screenwriting at the University of Virginia. He was a
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
.
Wilson died on January 14, 2018, in
Charlottesville, Virginia
Charlottesville, colloquially known as C'ville, is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. It is the county seat of Albemarle County, which surrounds the city, though the two are separate legal entities. It is named after Queen Ch ...
, at the age of 74 of lung cancer and emphysema.
Filmography
Films
Television
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Hugh
1943 births
2018 deaths
20th-century American male actors
20th-century American male writers
20th-century American screenwriters
21st-century American male actors
American male screenwriters
American television directors
American television producers
American male television writers
American television writers
Comedy film directors
Deaths from emphysema
Deaths from lung cancer in Virginia
Film directors from Florida
Male actors from Miami
Primetime Emmy Award winners
Screenwriters from Florida
University of Florida alumni
University of Virginia faculty
Writers from Miami