Jason Katims

A writer with a background in New York theater, responsible for the plays "The Man Who Couldn't Dance," "Driving Lessons," "Catch!" and the frequently produced one-act "Who Made Robert De Niro King of America?," Jason Katims brought his talents to television in the mid-1990s after being discovered by producer Edward Zwick. He debuted with a writing credit in an episode of the short-lived 1994 CBS drama "The Road Home" before teaming up with Zwick and Marshall Herskovitz, the pair behind ABC's "thirtysomething" to work on the teen drama "My So-Called Life" (ABC, 1994-95), an uncommonly realistic and finely scripted portrait of a teenage girl's navigating everyday high school existence. A story editor on "My So-Called Life," Katims penned three episodes of the series, the remarkable entries "The Substitute" and "Life of Brian" as well as the holiday-themed "So-Called Angels," featuring his father actor Robert Katims in a guest role. Although it received rave reviews and captured a fiercely loyal following, "My So-Called Life" (aired on Thursdays, up against NBC's unbeatable line-up) only lasted half a season on the network before retiring to cult status and an extended rerun on MTV.