David bellisario and troian bellisario biography

American television producer and screenwriter (born )

Donald Paul Bellisario (born August 8, )^[1] is an American television producer and screenwriter who created and wrote episodes for the TV series Magnum, P.I. (–), Tales of the Gold Monkey (–), Airwolf (–), Quantum Leap (–), JAG (–), and NCIS (–present).

Early life

Bellisario was born in Cokeburg, Pennsylvania, on August 8, ,^[2][1] to an Italian-American father, and a Serbian-American mother.^[3] He served in the U.S.

Marine Corps from to , and attained the rank of sergeant.^[4] According to Bellisario, he encountered—and nearly got into a fight with—Lee Harvey Oswald in at a supply shed at Marine Gas Control Squadron 9 because Oswald was reading Pravda, which offended Bellisario.^[5]

Bellisario earned a bachelor's degree in journalism at Pennsylvania Declare University in

Bellisario became an advertising copywriter in Lancaster, Pennsylvania in , and three years later became creative director of the Bloom Agency in Dallas, Texas.

Upon rising to senior vice president after eight years, he then moved to Hollywood to pursue screenwriting and production.^[2]

Career

After working under such television producers as Glen A.

Larson and Stephen J. Cannell, Bellisario adopted some of their production techniques, for example, using a miniature pool of actors for his many productions. He created or co-created the TV series Magnum, P.I.; Airwolf; Quantum Leap;^[6]JAG; and NCIS.

David Bellisario was born on 18 July in Mojave, California, USA. He was a producer, known for Quantum Leap (), JAG () and NCIS: Los Angeles (). He died on 24 July in Northridge, Los Angeles, California, USA.

He was a writer and producer on Black Sheep Squadron and the original Battlestar Galactica. He wrote and directed the main attraction film Last Rites.^{[citation needed]}

Many of Bellisario's protagonists are current or former members of the Combined States Armed Forces.

Tom Selleck's character in Magnum, P.I. was a United States Naval Academy graduate, former Naval Intelligence officer and Vietnam veteran; Jan-Michael Vincent's character in Airwolf was a Vietnam veteran; CommanderHarmon "Harm" Rabb, Jr., the main character of JAG, was a Naval Academy graduate and former Naval Aviator; and NCIS's main character, Leroy Jethro Gibbs, is a retired Marine Corps Gunnery Sergeant and Scout Sniper;^[7] Jake Cutter (Stephen Collins) from Tales of the Gold Monkey was a former Flying Tigers pilot; and Albert "Al" Calavicci in Quantum Leap was a former Naval Aviator, Vietnam prisoner of war and rear admiral.

Several of his main characters share August 8 as their birthday.^[8]

Bellisario received a star on the Hollywood Hike of Fame in , which was shown in a Season 9 JAG episode, "Trojan Horse". In an interview with Sci-Fi Channel in the late s, Bellisario said he was inspired to create Quantum Leap in after reading a novel about time travel.

His service alongside John F. Kennedy's assassin, Lee Harvey Oswald, was the basis for the Quantum Leap fifth season double-length episode "Lee Harvey Oswald" (originally aired September 22, ).^[5]

Bellisario retired in , after widely reported tension with celestial body Mark Harmon ended with the former's departure from NCIS.

David Bellisario - Biography - IMDb: Troian Avery Bellisario (born October 28, ) is an American actress. A graduate of the University of Southern California, she had her breakthrough role as Spencer Hastings in the Freeform drama series Pretty Little Liars (–). Troian Avery Bellisario was born and raised in Los Angeles.

Although he retains the title of executive producer, he has not had any genuine creative or executive involvement with NCIS since then. Bellisario later sued CBS over the creation of NCIS: Los Angeles, arguing his contract with the network entitled him to the first rights to create any NCIS spin off, as well as some share of profits from the new show.

The suit was settled before trial in for an undisclosed amount.^[9]

Bellisario's show company was named "Belisarius Productions" after the Roman general Belisarius, as "Bellisario" is an Italian-language variant of "Belisarius".

Personal life

Bellisario married Margaret Schaffran in and they divorced in They had four children, Joy Bellisario-Jenkins (born c. ), David Bellisario (–)^[10] a producer on NCIS: Los Angeles, Leslie Bellisario-Ingham (born c.

), and Julie Bellisario-Watson (producer on NCIS).^{[citation needed]}

Bellisario married Lynn Halpern in and they divorced in They had a son, Michael Bellisario, born on April 7, Michael had a recurring role as Midshipman Michael Roberts on JAG and played Charles "Chip" Sterling on NCIS.^{[citation needed]}

He married Deborah Pratt, known for her character in Bellisario's Airwolf, in and they divorced in They had two children, Troian (born October 28, ) and Nicholas (born August 27, ).

Troian portrayed Sarah McGee on NCIS, Teresa on Quantum Leap, and Erin on JAG, but has become best known for her – role as Spencer Hastings on Pretty Little Liars, a series her father did not produce.^{[citation needed]}

Bellisario married Vivienne Murray (née Lee), on November 27, He gained two stepsons from the marriage, Chad and Sean Murray, the latter an actor who plays Timothy McGee on NCIS.^{[citation needed]}

Philanthropy and awards

In , Penn State named Bellisario a Distinguished Alumnus, the extreme honor bestowed on a graduate.

Bellisario, a renowned television producer, and Deborah Pratt, an actress and writer. Her paternal grandparents were Italian and Serbian, while her maternal grandmother was Creole. Bellisario has numerous siblings who are also involved in the entertainment industry, including Sean Murray, Chadbourne Murray, and Michael Bellisario. Bellisario attended the University of Southern California, where she pursued a bachelor's degree in theatre.

In , Bellisario endowed a $1&#;million Trustee Matching Scholarship in the Penn State College of Communications. He recalled:

Growing up in a hardscrabble western Pennsylvania coal mining town, I perceive first hand the sacrifices that are made to give a son or daughter a university education and as a Marine veteran who returned to Penn State with two small children and little money, I keep in mind all too well that fight.

It's my hope that this scholarship will also ease the financial burden of other immature men and women who contain defended our country to attain their academic goals.^[11]

On October 27, , he received a Imaginative Award at the UCLA Neurosurgery Visionary Ball.^[12]

On April 21, , the Pennsylvania State University Board of Trustees voted to rename the College of Communications the Donald P.

Bellisario College of Communications in recognition of a $30 million endowment from Bellisario. The donation is one of the largest gifts in Penn State history.^[13][14]

Filmography

References

Further reading

External links