Steven E. Levitan (born April 6, 1962) is an American television producer, director, and screenwriter. He has created such television series as ''

Just Shoot Me! ''Just Shoot Me!'' is an American sitcom television series that aired on NBC from March 4, 1997, to November 26, 2003, with a total of 145 half-hour episodes spanning seven seasons. The show was created by Steven Levitan, the show's executive ...

'', '' Stark Raving Mad'', '' Stacked'', '' Back to You'', ''

Modern Family ''Modern Family'' is an American family sitcom television series created by Christopher Lloyd and Steven Levitan for the American Broadcasting Company. It ran for 11 seasons, from September 23, 2009, to April 8, 2020. It follows the lives of th ...

'', and ''

Reboot In computing, rebooting is the process by which a running computer system is restarted, either intentionally or unintentionally. Reboots can be either a cold reboot (alternatively known as a hard reboot) in which the power to the system is physi ...

''.

Early life and education

Levitan was raised

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

. He attended

Glenbrook South High School Glenbrook South High School, or GBS, is a public four-year high school located in Glenview, Illinois, a north suburb of Chicago, in the United States. It is part of Northfield Township High School District, which also includes Glenbrook North Hig ...

and

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United Stat ...

from 1980 to 1984, graduating with a bachelor's degree 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. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (pro ...

. He is a member of

Sigma Alpha Epsilon Sigma Alpha Epsilon (), commonly known as SAE, is a North American Greek-letter social college fraternity. It was founded at the University of Alabama on March 9, 1856. Of all existing national social fraternities today, Sigma Alpha Epsilon is t ...

fraternity.

Career

Levitan worked as a

WKOW-TV WKOW (channel 27) is a television station in Madison, Wisconsin, United States, affiliated with ABC and owned by Allen Media Broadcasting. The station's studios are located on Tokay Boulevard on Madison's west side, and its transmitter is located ...

on-air news reporter and morning anchorman in

Madison, Wisconsin Madison is the county seat of Dane County and the capital city of the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census the population was 269,840, making it the second-largest city in Wisconsin by population, after Milwaukee, and the 80th-lar ...

, and as a copywriter at Leo Burnett Advertising in Chicago. He moved to Hollywood in 1989. As executive producer, Levitan won an Emmy Award in 1996 for ''

Frasier ''Frasier'' () is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on NBC for 11 seasons. It premiered on September 16, 1993, and ended on May 13, 2004. The program was created and produced by David Angell, Peter Casey, and David Lee (as Grub ...

'' in the Outstanding Comedy Series category. He was also nominated in that same year for Outstanding Writing in Comedy Series category for ''

The Larry Sanders Show ''The Larry Sanders Show'' is an American television sitcom set in the office and studio of a fictional late-night talk show. The series was created by Garry Shandling and Dennis Klein and aired from August 15, 1992, to May 31, 1998, on the HBO ...

''. He was nominated for an Emmy in the Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series category for ''

'' and two more as executive producer. Levitan won the

Humanitas Prize The Humanitas Prize is an award for film and television writing, and is given to writers whose work explores the human condition in a nuanced and meaningful way. It began in 1974 with Father Ellwood "Bud" Kieser—also the founder of Paulist P ...

(for writers whose work best communicates and encourages human values) in 1996 for the ''

'' episode titled "Breaking the Ice". Levitan has also won a

CableACE Award The CableACE Award (earlier known as the ACE Awards; ACE was an acronym for "Award for Cable Excellence") is a defunct award that was given by what was then the National Cable Television Association from 1978 to 1997 to honor excellence in Am ...

and a Writers Guild nomination for ''

''. He also garnered a Producers Guild Award and a Television Critics Association Award for ''

'', a People’s Choice Award for '' Stark Raving Mad'' and a Golden Globe nomination for ''

'' His company, Steven Levitan Productions, has produced the series ''

'', '' Stark Raving Mad'', ''

Greg the Bunny ''Greg the Bunny'' is an American television sitcom that originally aired on Fox in 2002. It starred Seth Green and a hand puppet named Greg the Bunny, originally invented by the team of Sean S. Baker, Spencer Chinoy and Dan Milano. Milano and ...

'', '' Oliver Beene'' and '' Stacked''. Levitan and television writer/producer

Christopher Lloyd Christopher Allen Lloyd (born October 22, 1938) is an American actor. He has appeared in many theater productions, films, and on television since the 1960s. He is known for portraying Dr. Emmett "Doc" Brown in the ''Back to the Future'' tril ...

joined as partners in 2006 and together created a production company named "Picture Day". It is under this company that they produced their co-creations '' Back to You'' and ''

''. In 2010, ''Modern Family'' won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Comedy Series, as well as two other Emmy Awards: Outstanding Supporting Actor in Comedy Series for

Eric Stonestreet Eric Allen Stonestreet (born September 9, 1971) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for portraying Cameron Tucker in the ABC mockumentary sitcom ''Modern Family'', for which he received two Emmy Awards for Outstanding Supporti ...

, and Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series for Steven Levitan and

. He has also earned

Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series The Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Directing for a Comedy Series is presented to the best directing of a television comedy series. Winners and nominations 1950s 1960s 1970s 1980s 1990s 2000s 2010s 2020s Total awards by netw ...

nominations for ''Modern Family'' episodes " See You Next Fall" (2011) and "Baby on Board" (2012), winning the latter. On June 19, 2018, Levitan, along with Seth MacFarlane and

Judd Apatow Judd Apatow (; born December 6, 1967) is an American comedian, director, producer, and screenwriter, best known for his work in comedy and drama films. He is the founder of Apatow Productions, through which he produced and directed the films ' ...

, announced he was considering leaving

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

as protest of

Fox News The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is owne ...

's reporting of Donald Trump's family separation policy which is at odds with ''Modern Family''s programming.

Personal life

Levitan was married to his wife Krista from 1992 to 2018. They have three children, two daughters Hannah and Allie, and a son, Griffin. In July 2021, Levitan became engaged to Kristina Maria McElligott. They married on September 17, 2022. The wedding was a reunion for many members of the ''Modern Family'' cast.

Filmography

''Modern Family''-related credits

Writer

Director

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Levitan, Steven 1962 births Living people American television directors American television producers American television writers American male screenwriters Jewish American screenwriters Primetime Emmy Award winners University of Wisconsin–Madison School of Journalism & Mass Communication alumni Showrunners Writers Guild of America Award winners American male television writers 21st-century American Jews