Stephen J. Cannell, the prolific TV writer/producer turned successful mystery novelist, died last week at age 69 from complications of melanoma. (Read the New York Times obituary here.)

By all accounts, he was a happy man both personally and professionally — the fruits of a life well lived.

He married his high school sweetheart — who survives him, along with three of their four children (a fourth died in a tragic accident as a teenager).

On the professional side, he overcame dyslexia to become one of the most successful and influential writers of one-hour dramas in TV history.

He was probably also one of the main reasons I grew up to love the form so much. I admired (still do) his ability create characters that had an edge without being “edgy.” There was a kindness that ran through his shows that the medium could use more of today.   

His early credits included scripts for such iconic crime dramas as Adam-12, Ironside and the classic Columbo but it was when he truly took the creative reins as a producer of the shows he worked on (eventually forming his own company) that his talent for creating truly human heroes in the context of mystery/adventure series really shined.

My personal favorites include The Rockford Files (1974-1980), The Greatest American Hero (1981-1983), Hardcastle and McCormick (1983-1986)  The A-Team (1983-1986) and The Commish (1991-1096). The links to clips from those shows provide a testament to his great ability to create truly entertaining shows featuring likable characters with heart.

Great memories. Thanks, Stephen.