Michael Alden Norell (October 4, 1937 – May 12, 2023) was an American screenwriter, actor, and executive producer who starred as Captain Henry "Hank" Stanley on the television series ''

Emergency! ''Emergency!'' is an American Action fiction, action-adventure medical drama television series jointly produced by Mark VII Limited and Universal Television. Debuting on NBC as a midseason replacement on January 15, 1972, replacing two situatio ...

'', produced by

Jack Webb John Randolph Webb (April 2, 1920 – December 23, 1982) was an American actor, television producer, Television director, director, and screenwriter, most famous for his role as Joe Friday in the Dragnet (franchise), ''Dragnet'' franchise ...

from 1972 to 1978.

Life and career

Norell was born in Wallace, Idaho on October 4, 1937, to mother Wilma Helen Snook (1905–2001) and father James Alden Norell (1908–1989). His family, including brother James, moved to follow his father who was in the Army, and who ultimately retired with the rank of Brigadier General. His father was sent to

Korea Korea is a peninsular region in East Asia consisting of the Korean Peninsula, Jeju Island, and smaller islands. Since the end of World War II in 1945, it has been politically Division of Korea, divided at or near the 38th parallel north, 3 ...

during the war. The family lived in

Tokyo, Japan Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

. Norell returned to the States after the war and attended Falls Church High School in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

where he acted in several school plays. He attended college at

Washington and Lee University Washington and Lee University (Washington and Lee or W&L) is a Private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Lexington, Virginia, United States. Established in 1749 as Augusta Academy, it is among ...

where he majored in

journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the "news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree of accuracy. The word, a noun, applies to the journ ...

. After graduating college Norell entered the Army where he spent the next five years, leaving with the rank of captain. After his stint in the Army he went to work for the ''

Richmond Times-Dispatch The ''Richmond Times-Dispatch'' (''RTD'' or ''TD'' for short) is the primary daily newspaper in Richmond, Virginia, and the primary newspaper of record for the state of Virginia. Circulation The ''Times-Dispatch'' has the second-highest circul ...

''. He went to

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

not too long after returning to civilian life and worked at acting full-time. Six months later he arrived in

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

where he won the role of Captain Henry "Hank" Stanley for the show ''

''. In addition to acting in the show, Norell also wrote four episodes of ''Emergency!'' which began his career as a screenwriter. Norell commented on the show's writing process, "I would be invited by xecutive producer Bob Cinader to pitch ideas. You'd spend an hour or two throwing out ideas for rescues and hospital stories and firehouse stories and eventually there were enough that he liked and he'd tell you to go to work. A couple of weeks later, you'd turn in a first draft." All rewrites were handled by other writers. After ''Emergency!'' ended, Norell turned to screenwriting. He wrote for shows such as ''

The Love Boat ''The Love Boat'' is an American romantic comedy-drama television series created by Wilford Lloyd Baumes that originally aired on ABC from September 24, 1977, to May 24, 1986. In addition, three TV movies aired before the regular series pre ...

'', '' Love Boat: The Next Wave'', '' Nash Bridges'', and ''

The Magnificent Seven ''The Magnificent Seven'' is a 1960 American Western film directed by John Sturges. The screenplay, credited to William Roberts, is a remake – in an Old West-style – of Akira Kurosawa's 1954 Japanese film '' Seven Samurai'' (itself init ...

'', among others. His screenwriting credits also include several made-for-TV movies such as '' Doomsday Rock'', ''Three on a Date'', ''The Covergirl and the Cop'', ''Pals'', ''Barnum'', '' Christmas Comes to Willow Creek'', and '' The Incident'' for which he was nominated for an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the year, each with their own set of rules and award categor ...

. Other films include '' The Diamond Fleece'', '' Long Gone'', and '' Against Her Will: An Incident in Baltimore''. Norell created and was executive producer for the short-lived ''Love Boat'' clone '' Aloha Paradise''. Norell died in

Huntingdon, Pennsylvania Huntingdon is a borough in and county seat of Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania, in the Middle Atlantic states region of the Northeastern United States. It lies along the Juniata River about east of larger Altoona and west of the state capita ...

, on May 12, 2023, at the age of 85.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Norell, Michael 1937 births 2023 deaths American male screenwriters American male television actors People from Wallace, Idaho Screenwriters from Idaho