Mark Zaslove
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Mark Zaslove (born June 7, 1959) is an American television and film writer, director and producer and novelist, in live-action and animation. He has won two Emmy Awards and the Humanitas Prize. He has created a wide range of content from the children's show "The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh" to his action thriller novel “Death and Taxes.”


Early life and education

Zaslove is the son of the late animator
Alan Zaslove Alan Louis Zaslove (December 9, 1927 – October 2, 2019) was an American animator, producer and director of animated series. He started in 1943 as an "office boy" for Leon Schlesinger Productions and went on to work for United Productions of Ame ...
. Born in Los Angeles, California, he was the third-youngest member of the Magic Castle in 1976-77, as part of Dick and Diana Zimmerman's Junior Magicians Group. He attended U.C. Berkeley to study astrophysics but left the program after two years, staying in the Bay Area for two more years while writing his first (unpublished) novel, “Travail.”


Career biography

Returning to Santa Monica in 1981, Zaslove worked as a trainer at a fitness center while trying his hand at short fiction and screenplays. He joined LFP, Inc. in 1983, writing short fiction, and became Senior Editor on several of their magazines. The job lasted seven months, until he began animation screenwriting in the mid 1980s with ''
Challenge of the GoBots ''Challenge of the GoBots'' (or ''GoBots'' for short) is an American animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera, based on the GoBots toyline released from Tonka. The show was first broadcast in syndication on September 8, 1984, then the show join ...
'' and script assignments for Marvel Studios and Hanna Barbara. By the late 1980s, Zaslove was a staff writer for
Walt Disney Television Animation Disney Television Animation (DTVA), formerly known as Walt Disney Pictures Television Animation Group and Walt Disney Television Animation, is the television animation production arm of Disney Branded Television, a sub-division of the Disney Ge ...
, working on Disney cartoons from that era. He was chosen to develop, story edit, and co-produce ''
The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ''The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh'' is an American animated television series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation. Based on the ''Winnie-the-Pooh'' books by authors A. A. Milne and E. H. Shepard, ''The New Adventures'' was the fi ...
''. In 1987 Zaslove was a writer on the mini-series kickoff to the "DuckTales" series, ''Treasure of the Golden Suns''. In 1990 he co-created, co-produced, and story edited ''
TaleSpin ''TaleSpin'' is an American animated television series first aired in 1990 as a preview on Disney Channel and later that year as part of '' The Disney Afternoon''. It features characters adapted from Disney's 1967 animated feature ''The Jungle Bo ...
'', which became the first new series created for
Disney Afternoon The Disney Afternoon (later known internally as the Disney-Kellogg Alliance when unbranded), sometimes abbreviated as TDA, was a created-for-syndication two-hour programming block of animated television series. It was produced by Walt Disney Tel ...
. Zaslove left Disney around 1993 to start his own company, Palisades Films. In 1993 he showran the series “Cro” and developed a cartoon series for
Film Roman Film Roman, LLC is an American independent animation studio currently based in Woodland Hills, California and formerly in Burbank. It was previously owned by Starz Inc., which is now a division of Lionsgate, and later by Waterman Entertainment, ...
based on the Mighty Max line of toys, named '' Mighty Max''. He reunited with Jymn Magon in 1994 for ''
Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad ''Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad'' (or, in short, ''SSSS'') is an American television series. It was produced by Tsuburaya Productions, Ultracom Inc. and DIC Productions, L.P., with distribution by All American Television, and ran for a duratio ...
''. Other notable series co-developed by Zaslove include '' Bump in the Night'' which he story edited and co-produced, and ''
The Legend of Calamity Jane ''The Legend of Calamity Jane'' is a 1997–1998 animated television series. The series followed the adventures of Calamity Jane in Deadwood, South Dakota. The episode "I'd Rather Be in Philadelphia" takes place during the opening of the Centenni ...
'' (1997) as well as “Howdy Gaudi” (2002) and Xiaolin Chronicles (2013). Zaslove served as a story consultant and show writer for the children's series '' LazyTown'', produced in
Iceland Iceland ( is, Ísland; ) is a Nordic island country in the North Atlantic Ocean and in the Arctic Ocean. Iceland is the most sparsely populated country in Europe. Iceland's capital and largest city is Reykjavík, which (along with its s ...
in the 2000s. He worked on the full-length feature realization of the Newberry Award-winning “Maniac Magee” (2003), action thrillers “Madrassa Song” (2013) and “Six Dead Dogs” (2016), as well as features for various Hyderabad studios: “5 ½ Hours to Dawn” (2001), “Little John” (2002); “Son of Alladin” (2003), “Eshan” (2006), “Lost Voyage of Sinbad” (2007), and “The Dictator of the Darkness” (2011). He is a two-time
Emmy award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...
winner and a recipient of the Humanitas Prize. In 2018, Aperient Press published the first thriller in his new “Tales of a Badass IRS Agent” series: “Death and Taxes.”


Screenwriting credits


Television

* series head writer denoted in bold *''
Challenge of the GoBots ''Challenge of the GoBots'' (or ''GoBots'' for short) is an American animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera, based on the GoBots toyline released from Tonka. The show was first broadcast in syndication on September 8, 1984, then the show join ...
'' (1985) *''
Defenders of the Earth ''Defenders of the Earth'' is an American animated television series produced in 1986, featuring characters from three comic strips distributed by King Features Syndicate—Flash Gordon, The Phantom, Mandrake the Magician, and Mandrake's assista ...
'' (1986) *''
The New Adventures of Jonny Quest ''The New Adventures of Jonny Quest'' is an American animated series produced by Hanna-Barbera Productions, and a continuation of the 1964–65 television series ''Jonny Quest''. Debuting in 1986 as part of ''The Funtastic World of Hanna-Barbera'' ...
'' (1986) *''
Adventures of the Gummi Bears ''Adventures of the Gummi Bears'' is an American animated television series, created by Disney CEO Michael Eisner, produced by Walt Disney Television Animation, and distributed by Buena Vista Television. The series, loosely inspired by the gummy ...
'' (1987) *''
DuckTales ''DuckTales'' is an American animated television series produced by Disney Television Animation. The original cartoon series premiered on syndication and on Disney Channel on September 18, 1987 and ran for a total of 100 episodes over four seas ...
'' (1987) *''
The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh ''The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh'' is an American animated television series produced by Walt Disney Television Animation. Based on the ''Winnie-the-Pooh'' books by authors A. A. Milne and E. H. Shepard, ''The New Adventures'' was the fi ...
'' (1988-1989) *''
TaleSpin ''TaleSpin'' is an American animated television series first aired in 1990 as a preview on Disney Channel and later that year as part of '' The Disney Afternoon''. It features characters adapted from Disney's 1967 animated feature ''The Jungle Bo ...
'' (1990-1991) *''
Bobby’s World ''Bobby's World'' (originally known as ''The World According to Bobby'') is an American animated comedy children's television series, which ran from September 8, 1990, to February 23, 1998, on the Fox Kids network. The show was created by Canad ...
'' (1992) *''
Taz-Mania ''Taz-Mania'' is an American animated sitcom produced by Warner Bros. Animation from 1991 to 1995, broadcast in the United States on Fox Kids. The show follows the adventures of the ''Looney Tunes'' character Taz ( the Tasmanian Devil) in the f ...
'' (1992-1994) *'' Bonkers'' (1993) *'' Cro'' (1993-1994) *'' Mighty Max'' (1993-1994): season 1 head writer *'' Bump in the Night'' (1994-1995) *'' Superhuman Samurai Syber Squad'' (1994-1995) *''
The Legend of Calamity Jane ''The Legend of Calamity Jane'' is a 1997–1998 animated television series. The series followed the adventures of Calamity Jane in Deadwood, South Dakota. The episode "I'd Rather Be in Philadelphia" takes place during the opening of the Centenni ...
'' (1997) *'' All Dogs Go to Heaven: The Series'' (1997) *''
The Wacky World of Tex Avery ''The Wacky World of Tex Avery'' ( French: ''Le Monde Fou de Tex Avery'') is a short-lived animated television series created by Robby London and co-produced by DIC Productions, L.P., Les Studios Tex SARL, Milimetros, M6 and Telcima. Both the ...
'' (1997) *''
The Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald ''The Wacky Adventures of Ronald McDonald'' is an American animated miniseries A miniseries or mini-series is a television series that tells a story in a predetermined, limited number of episodes. "Limited series" is another more recent US t ...
'' (1999) *''
The Book of Pooh ''The Book of Pooh'' is an American children's television series that aired on the Playhouse Disney block on Disney Channel. It is the third television series to feature the characters from the Disney franchise based on A. A. Milne's works; th ...
'' (2001) *''
Jeopardy! ''Jeopardy!'' is an American game show created by Merv Griffin. The show is a quiz competition that reverses the traditional question-and-answer format of many quiz shows. Rather than being given questions, contestants are instead given genera ...
'' (2001) *''
Xiaolin Showdown ''Xiaolin Showdown'' is an American animated television series that aired on Kids' WB and was created by Christy Hui. Set in a world where martial arts battles and Eastern magic are commonplace, the series follows Omi, Raimundo, Kimiko, and Clay, ...
'' (2004-2005) *''
Loonatics Unleashed ''Loonatics Unleashed'' is an American Superhero fiction, superhero animated television series produced by Warner Bros. Animation that ran on Kids' WB for two seasons from 2005 to 2007 in the United States. The series was based/inspired on the ' ...
'' (2006) *''
The Secret Show ''The Secret Show'' is a British animated television series produced by Collingwood O'Hare and commissioned by BBC Worldwide in partnership with BBC Children's. The series premiered on 16 September 2006 during TMi on BBC Two. The series pre ...
'' (2006-2007) *''
World of Quest ''World of Quest'' is a sci-fi comedy animated television series based on the graphic novel series of the same name by Jason T. Kruse. The series was produced by Cookie Jar Entertainment, in association with Teletoon and Kids' WB!. It appears to ...
'' (2008) *''
Pink Panther and Pals ''Pink Panther and Pals'' is an American animated television series and a modern adaptation of the classic DePatie-Freleng Pink Panther shorts from the 1960s. The program was produced for Boomerang by Desert Panther Production and Rubicon Stud ...
'' (2010) *'' Maryoku Yummy'' (2010) *''
Secret Millionaires Club ''Secret Millionaires Club'' is an American educational animated series that aired on The Hub / Hub Network from October 23, 2011 to January 11, 2017 (Qubo telecast only). The series features famed investor Warren Buffett as a secret mentor to ...
'' (2012-2013) *''
Clay Kids ''Clay Kids'' is a British Spanish American stop motion animated TV series for children created by Javier Tostado. The series narrates the adventures of seven misfit kids. Season 1 and 2 each contain 26 episodes, making a total of 52 episodes. It ...
'' (2015) *''
Molly of Denali ''Molly of Denali'' (stylized as ''MOLLY of DENALI'') is an animated children's television series produced by Atomic Cartoons in association with WGBH Kids, created by Dorothea Gillim and Kathy Waugh for PBS Kids and CBC Kids.
'' (2019-2020)


Film

*''
Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too ''Winnie the Pooh and Christmas Too'' is a 1991 Christmas television special based on the Disney television series ''The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh'', originally broadcast on December 14, 1991, on ABC and produced by Walt Disney Animation ...
'' (1991) *''
Seasons of Giving ''Seasons of Giving'' (also known as ''Winnie the Pooh: Seasons of Giving'') is a 1999 American direct-to-video animated musical film which included ''A Winnie the Pooh Thanksgiving'', and two episodes from ''The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh' ...
'' (1999) *''
Little John Little John is a companion of Robin Hood who serves as his chief lieutenant and second-in-command of the Merry Men. He is one of only a handful of consistently named characters who relate to Robin Hood and one of the two oldest Merry Men, alo ...
'' (2001) *'' The Book of Pooh: Stories from the Heart'' (2001) *''
A Very Merry Pooh Year ''A Very Merry Pooh Year'' (also known as ''Winnie the Pooh: A Very Merry Pooh Year'') is a 2002 American direct-to-video Christmas animated musical film produced by Walt Disney Animation (France), S.A and the series finale of ''The New Adventures ...
'' (2002) *''
Maniac Magee ''Maniac Magee'' is a novel written by American author Jerry Spinelli and published in 1990. Exploring themes of racism and inequality, it follows the story of an orphan boy looking for a home in the fictional town of Two Mills. Two Mills is ha ...
'' (2003) *''
Son of Aladdin ''Son of Aladdin'' is a 2003 Indian animated film based on the life of the Aladdin written and directed by Singeetam Srinivasa Rao. Produced by Pentamedia Graphics, the film had 1100 shots and 125 characters. The film won ''Special Mention in the ...
'' (2003)


References


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zaslove, Mark Daytime Emmy Award winners Living people American male writers American voice directors 1959 births