Barry Kemp (born December 4, 1949 in Hannibal, Missouri) is a television producer, director and writer, and a movie producer. He has written for numerous TV shows, but his two best-known creations are ''

Newhart ''Newhart'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on CBS from October 25, 1982, to May 21, 1990, with a total of 184 half-hour episodes spanning eight seasons. The series stars Bob Newhart and Mary Frann as an author and his wife, ...

'' (he wrote the oft-repeated line: "Hi, I'm Larry. This is my brother Darryl and this is my other brother Darryl"), which lasted for eight seasons on

CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...

(1982–1990) and '' Coach'', which lasted for nine seasons on ABC (1989–1997). He also wrote for ''

Taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choic ...

'' for four seasons and was the creator of ''Fresno'' and ''Delta''. Kemp's movie productions include '' Romy and Michele's High School Reunion'', '' Patch Adams'' and ''

Catch Me If You Can ''Catch Me If You Can'' is a 2002 American Biographical film, biographical crime film, crime Comedy drama, comedy-drama film directed and produced by Steven Spielberg and starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Tom Hanks with Christopher Walken, Martin ...

''. Kemp is a 1971 graduate of the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (UI, U of I, UIowa, or simply Iowa) is a public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized into 12 col ...

Department of Theatre Arts. Before he became a full-time writer, he was an executive with the chamber of commerce in

Phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

. He originally planned to do ''

The Closer ''The Closer'' is an American television police procedural starring Kyra Sedgwick as Brenda Leigh Johnson, a Los Angeles Police Department deputy chief. A CIA-trained interrogator originally from Atlanta, Georgia, Brenda has a reputation as a c ...

'' for CBS at Paramount Television through Bungalow 78 Productions, but eventually moved to

Warner Bros. Television Warner Bros. Television Studios (operating under the name Warner Bros. Television; formerly known as Warner Bros. Television Division) is an American television production and distribution studio of the Warner Bros. Television Group division of ...

with the new showrunners

Ed Decter Edward Ichabod "Ed" Decter (born May 19, 1959) is an American film director, producer and screenwriter. Early life and education Born in West Orange, New Jersey, Decter graduated from Wesleyan University in 1979. Career His credits include, ...

and John J. Strauss.

Recognition

Kemp's productions received three nominations for Emmy Awards: ''Taxi'' for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy Series (1982) and ''Newhart'' for Outstanding Comedy Series (1984 and 1985). In 1999, he received the

Valentine Davies Award The Valentine Davies Award, named after Valentine Davies, is a special award given to a member of the Writers Guild of America, West The Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) is a labor union representing film, television, radio, and new media ...

from the

Writers Guild of America, West The Writers Guild of America West (WGAW) is a labor union representing film, television, radio, and new media writers. It was formed in 1954 from five organizations representing writers, including the Screen Writers Guild. It has around 20,000 m ...

References

External links

* * American film producers American television directors American television producers American television writers American male television writers University of Iowa alumni Living people Place of birth missing (living people) 1949 births {{US-tv-producer-stub