Mike Scully facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Mike Scully
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Scully in 2011
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Michael C. Scully
October 2, 1956 |
| Occupation | Television writer |
| Years active | 1986–present |
| Spouse(s) | Julie Thacker |
| Children | 5 |
Michael C. Scully (born October 2, 1956) is an American television writer and producer. He is best known for being the main person in charge, called the executive producer and showrunner, for the famous animated show The Simpsons. He worked on the show from 1997 to 2001.
Mike Scully grew up in West Springfield, Massachusetts. He was always interested in writing. He didn't do very well in school and even dropped out of college. He worked many different jobs before moving to Los Angeles in 1986. There, he started as a stand-up comedian and wrote jokes for other comedians.
Before joining The Simpsons in 1993, Scully wrote for several other TV shows. For The Simpsons, he wrote twelve episodes, including "Lisa on Ice" and "Team Homer". He was the showrunner for seasons 9 through 12. Scully won three Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on the show. Many people liked his episodes, but some felt the show's quality changed during his time. Scully still works on The Simpsons and also helped write and produce The Simpsons Movie in 2007.
More recently, Scully helped create other shows like The Pitts, The Boy Who Lost His Schoolbag, and Complete Savages. He also worked on popular shows such as Everybody Loves Raymond and Parks and Recreation. He helped develop the animated TV version of Napoleon Dynamite. He also co-created Duncanville with his wife, Julie Thacker, and comedian Amy Poehler.
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Early Life and Education
Mike Scully was born on October 2, 1956, in Springfield, Massachusetts. He grew up in West Springfield. His father was a salesman, and his mother worked at a medical center. Mike is from an Irish family.
As a child, Mike dreamed of being a musician or a hockey player. At Main Street Elementary School, his teacher encouraged him to write. He became the editor of his school newspaper. He finished West Springfield High School in 1974. His classmates even voted him "Most Likely Not to Live Up to Potential." He went to Holyoke Community College for only one day because he wasn't sure what he wanted to do.
After college, he worked in a clothing store, as a janitor at a hospital, and even as a driving instructor. He realized that having "no marketable job skills" pushed him to keep trying to become a writer. He decided he wanted to work in comedy, even though he wasn't sure he would succeed. In 1982, he moved to Los Angeles, California.
Career Beginnings
In California, Mike Scully worked in a tuxedo store. He also got a job writing jokes for comedian Yakov Smirnoff. He practiced writing jokes by performing at amateur stand-up comedy nights. He bought scripts from TV shows like Taxi to learn how to write them. Many of his early scripts were not accepted.
He then started working on various TV shows. He was part of the writing teams for shows like The Royal Family, Out of This World, and Top of the Heap. He also did audience warm-ups for some shows.
Working on The Simpsons
In 1993, David Mirkin hired Mike Scully to write for The Simpsons. He joined the show during its fifth season as a writer and producer. He wrote episodes like "Lisa's Rival", "Two Dozen and One Greyhounds", and "Lisa on Ice". "Lisa on Ice" was inspired by his love for ice hockey and his own childhood experiences. Another episode, "Marge Be Not Proud", was based on a time he was caught shoplifting when he was 12. He joked that it was great to get paid for remembering tough moments from his life. He also wrote "Team Homer" and "Lisa's Date with Density".
Scully said he wrote many episodes about Lisa because he has five daughters and likes her character a lot. He also liked Homer, saying Homer's character came naturally to him. He enjoyed episodes where Homer and Lisa had conflicts, finding them very human and relatable.
Mike Scully became the showrunner for The Simpsons in 1997, starting with its ninth season. As showrunner and executive producer, his main goal was "not to wreck the show." He led the writing team and managed all parts of the show's creation. During his time, he wrote or co-wrote five episodes, including parts of "Treehouse of Horror VIII" and "Behind the Laughter".
The staff members liked Scully. Many praised his organization and management skills. Writer Tom Martin called him "quite possibly the best boss I've ever worked for." Scully was showrunner until 2001, through season 12. He was the first person to lead the show for more than two seasons. He returned in season 14 to write and produce "How I Spent My Strummer Vacation". He also helped write and produce The Simpsons Movie in 2007.
Some fans of The Simpsons have discussed Scully's time as showrunner. Some felt the show changed during his years, becoming more like a typical cartoon. They sometimes called Homer's character "Jerkass Homer" because he seemed to become more silly and selfish.
However, much of Scully's work also received praise. He won five Primetime Emmy Awards for his work on The Simpsons. Entertainment Weekly even called "How I Spent My Strummer Vacation" one of the show's best episodes. Critics also gave good reviews to episodes like "Behind the Laughter" and "Trilogy of Error". Tom Martin said he doesn't understand the criticism against Scully and that it bothered Scully, but he didn't let it get to him.
Other Projects
After The Simpsons, Scully was a writer and co-executive producer for Everybody Loves Raymond for two seasons. He won an Emmy for this work. Mike Scully and his wife, Julie Thacker, also created two shows: The Pitts for Fox and Complete Savages for ABC. The Pitts was a comedy about a family with bad luck. Julie Thacker said it was made to feel like The Simpsons and was aimed at 12-year-olds and families. However, it was canceled after six episodes. Complete Savages was also canceled due to low ratings.
Scully also worked as a consulting producer on the NBC show Parks and Recreation. He wrote episodes like "Ron and Tammy" in 2009 and "The Possum" in 2010. He even had small acting roles in some episodes.
In 2012, Scully helped produce and write an animated TV version of the movie Napoleon Dynamite. This show was canceled after six episodes. In May 2012, Scully signed a big deal with 20th Century Fox Television to create new projects. He was a co-executive producer on the shows The New Normal (2012–2013) and Dads (2013–2014). In 2018, he signed another deal with 20th Century Fox Television.
Personal Life
Mike Scully is married to writer Julie Thacker. They have five daughters together. His older brother, Brian Scully, is also a comedy writer. His younger brother, Neil, writes about ice hockey. Mike's mother passed away in 1985.
In 2008, Scully received an honorary doctorate degree from Westfield State University. He also participated in the 2007–2008 Writers Guild of America strike, even while on crutches. In 2010, he received a lifetime achievement award from the Writers Guild of America West.
Credits
- Episodes listed are those Scully has been credited as writing or co-writing
- What a Country! (1986–1987) – writer
- Out of This World (1987–1991) – supervising producer, writer
- Grand – writer
- Top of the Heap (1991) – writer
- The Royal Family (1992) – writer
- The Simpsons (1993–2021, 2023) – writer, producer, executive producer, showrunner, consulting producer
- "Lisa's Rival" (1994)
- "Lisa on Ice" (1994)
- "Two Dozen and One Greyhounds" (1995)
- "Marge Be Not Proud" (1995)
- "Team Homer" (1996)
- "Lisa's Date with Density" (1996)
- "Treehouse of Horror VIII" ("The HΩmega Man") (1997)
- "Sunday, Cruddy Sunday" (with Tom Martin, George Meyer and Brian Scully) (1999)
- "Beyond Blunderdome" (1999)
- "Behind the Laughter" (with Tim Long, George Meyer and Matt Selman) (2000)
- "The Parent Rap" (with George Meyer) (2001)
- "How I Spent My Strummer Vacation" (2002)
- "Iron Marge" (2023)
- The Preston Episodes (1995) – writer
- Schimmel (2000) – creator, producer
- The Pitts (2003) – creator, executive producer, writer
- The Boy Who Lost His Schoolbag (2003) - co-creator, writer, executive producer
- Everybody Loves Raymond (2003–2004) – co-executive producer, writer
- Complete Savages (2004–2005) – creator, executive producer, writer
- The Simpsons Movie (2007) – producer and writer
- Parks and Recreation (2009–2012) – consulting producer and writer
- Napoleon Dynamite (2012) – co-developer, producer, writer
- The New Normal (2012–2013) – co-executive producer, writer
- 70th Golden Globe Awards (2013) – special material
- Dads (2013–2014) – co-executive producer
- Weird Loners (2015) – co-executive producer
- The Carmichael Show (2015–2017) – co-executive producer, writer
- Rel (2018–19) – co-executive producer, writer
- Duncanville (2020–2022) – creator, writer
- Shifting Gears (2025) - creator, writer, executive producer
See also
In Spanish: Mike Scully para niños
