Brenda Hampton (born August 19, 1951) is an American

television show A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed b ...

creator,

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...

and producer. She created, wrote and produced the television shows '' 7th Heaven'', ''

Fat Actress ''Fat Actress'' is an American comedy television series starring Kirstie Alley. In the United States, it aired on Showtime from March 7 to April 18, 2005. The series was created and written by Alley and Brenda Hampton. Premise Alley gave a gl ...

'', and ''

The Secret Life of the American Teenager ''The Secret Life of the American Teenager'' (often shortened to ''Secret Life'') is an American teen drama television series created by Brenda Hampton. It aired on ABC Family from July 1, 2008 to June 3, 2013. The series received mixed to som ...

''.

Biography

Hampton grew up in

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

. Her father was an electrical engineer for

AT&T AT&T Inc. is an American multinational telecommunications holding company headquartered at Whitacre Tower in Downtown Dallas, Texas. It is the world's largest telecommunications company by revenue and the third largest provider of mobile te ...

and a television repairman. She studied

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. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (pro ...

at the

University of Georgia , mottoeng = "To teach, to serve, and to inquire into the nature of things.""To serve" was later added to the motto without changing the seal; the Latin motto directly translates as "To teach and to inquire into the nature of things." , establ ...

, graduating in 1973. After finishing her university studies, she worked as a

technical writer A technical writer is a professional information communicator whose task is to transfer information between two or more parties, through any medium that best facilitates the transfer and comprehension of the information. Technical writers researc ...

for the

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

, wrote speeches, technical manuals and

corporate A corporation is an organization—usually a group of people or a company—authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law "born out of statute"; a legal person in legal context) and r ...

newsletters. In the 1980s, she moved to

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

and began writing for '' Sister Kate'', an American situation comedy which aired on the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American English-language commercial broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast, its headquarters are l ...

television network in 1989 and lasted one season. After ''Sister Kate'' finished, she worked as a story editor on the

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 ...

television comedy Television comedy is a category of broadcasting that has been present since the early days of entertainment media. While there are several genres of comedy, some of the first ones aired were variety shows. One of the first United States television ...

, ''Baghdad Café'', featuring

Whoopi Goldberg Caryn Elaine Johnson (born November 13, 1955), known professionally as Whoopi Goldberg (), is an American actor, comedian, author, and television personality.Kuchwara, Michael (AP Drama Writer)"Whoopi Goldberg: A One-Woman Character Parade". ' ...

. Hampton has worked on a number of television programs including the CBS sitcom '' Lenny'', the NBC comedy-drama '' Blossom'', and the NBC comedy ''

Mad About You ''Mad About You'' is an American television sitcom starring Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt as a married couple in New York City. It initially aired on NBC from September 23, 1992, to May 24, 1999, winning numerous awards including four Golden Glob ...

''. In 1994 she worked with David Landsberg to develop and executive produce the CBS series '' Daddy's Girls'', featuring

Dudley Moore Dudley Stuart John Moore CBE (19 April 193527 March 2002) was an English actor, comedian, musician and composer. Moore first came to prominence in the UK as a leading figure in the British satire boom of the 1960s. He was one of the four writ ...

and

Keri Russell Keri Lynn Russell (born March 23, 1976) is an American actress. She portrayed the titular character on the drama series '' Felicity'' (1998–2002), which won her a Golden Globe Award, and Elizabeth Jennings on the FX spy thriller series ''The ...

in her first main television role. Hampton has three adopted children. Hampton created, wrote and executive produced the drama series ''7th Heaven'', which lasted 11 seasons and was nominated for and won a range of awards, including, numerous Young Artist, and

Teen Choice Award The Teen Choice Awards is an annual awards show that airs on the Fox television network. The awards honor the year's biggest achievements in music, film, sports, television, fashion, social media, and more, voted by viewers living in the United ...

s and an Emmy nomination. In 2008, Hampton's new television show, ''The Secret Life of the American Teenager'' was released. The show, created, executive produced and written by Hampton, is filmed in Los Angeles by Hampton's production company, Brendavision. It is a youth-oriented drama series, aired on the ABC Family network. When ''The Secret Life of the American Teenager'' premiered, it became ABC Family's most-watched series premiere.

Awards

On February 10, 2010, Hampton accepted the Francis M. Wheat Community Service Award for her work as a child advocate, and for her work on ''The Secret Life of the American Teenager''.

Select television credits

*''

'' *''

'' *'' Safe Harbor'' *'' 7th Heaven'' *''

The John Larroquette Show ''The John Larroquette Show'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on NBC from September 2, 1993, until October 30, 1996. Created by Don Reo, the show was a star vehicle for John Larroquette following his run as Dan Fielding on '' ...

'' *'' Blossom'' *''

References

External links

* *Longworth, James L., Chapter 9, "Brenda Hampton - Friend of the family"
''TV Creators: Conversations With America's Top Producers of Television Drama (The Television Series)''
Syracuse University Press, November, 2000, pp 137–154 {{DEFAULTSORT:Hampton, Brenda 1951 births American television producers American women television producers American television writers Living people Writers from Atlanta American women television writers The Secret Life of the American Teenager Screenwriters from Georgia (U.S. state) 21st-century American women