Kevin Patrick Curran (February 27, 1957 – October 25, 2016) was an American television comedy writer. He wrote for ''

Late Night with David Letterman ''Late Night with David Letterman'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show is the first installment of the '' Late Night''. Hosted by David Letterman, it aired from February1, 1982 to June 25, 1993, and was replaced by ...

'', '' Married... with Children'', and ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening and developed by Groening, James L. Brooks and Sam Simon for the Fox Broadcasting Company. It is a Satire (film and television), satirical depiction of American life ...

''. He was also the voice of Buck the Dog on ''Married... with Children'' (except for several episodes in which Buck was voiced by

Cheech Marin Richard Anthony "Cheech" Marin (born July 13, 1946) is an American comedian and actor. He gained recognition as part of the comedy act Cheech & Chong during the 1970s and early 1980s with Tommy Chong, and as Don Johnson's partner, Insp. Joe Dom ...

). In the sixth-season episode "Psychic Avengers", Curran appeared briefly onscreen during the end sequence where, thanks to Madam Inga's curse, the Bundy family is turned into chimpanzees and Buck is turned into a human, in which Curran is credited as "Buck the Man" above the usual final credited character of "Buck the Dog". In addition to writing episodes and voicing Buck, Curran served as a

story editor Story editor is a job title in motion picture and television production, also sometimes called supervising producer. The responsibilities of the story editor vary depending on the production; this article describes the duties the role most commo ...

and supervising producer on ''Married... with Children''.

Biography

Curran attended

Harvard College Harvard College is the undergraduate education, undergraduate college of Harvard University, a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Part of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Scienc ...

, where he was an editor of the ''

Harvard Lampoon ''The Harvard Lampoon'' is an undergraduate humor publication founded in 1876 by seven undergraduates at Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Overview The ''Harvard Lampoon'' publication was founded in 1876 by seven undergraduate ...

''. He subsequently wrote for the '' National Lampoon'' and was the editor of the letters and cartoon sections. He also wrote for ''

'' for which he won three Emmys. He wrote Letterman's first "Top Ten List": "The Top 10 Things That Almost Rhyme With Peas". In 1989, he joined '' Married... with Children'', and, in 2000, he joined ''

'' where he was a co-executive producer. At ''The Simpsons'', Curran won three additional Emmys and was nominated in 2010 for a

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

for his episode "

The Greatest Story Ever D'ohed "The Greatest Story Ever D'ohed" is the sixteenth episode of the twenty-first season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'', and the 457th episode overall. It originally aired on the Fox network in the United States on Marc ...

". Curran was co-creator and executive producer of the shows '' The Good Life'' and '' Hardball''. He was an executive producer on the series ''

Unhappily Ever After ''Unhappily Ever After'' is an American television sitcom that aired for 100 episodes on The WB from January 11, 1995, to May 23, 1999, for a total of five seasons. The series was produced by Touchstone Television. Synopsis The series follows ...

'' with Ron Leavitt from 1997 to 1999. He won a WGA Award for ''The Earth Day Special''. Curran was in a relationship with the author

Helen Fielding Helen Fielding (born 19 February 1958) is a British journalist, novelist and screenwriter, best known as the creator of the fictional character Bridget Jones. Fielding’s first novel was set in a refugee camp in East Africa and she started wr ...

from 1999 to 2006; the couple had two children. Curran died of complications from

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

on October 25, 2016, aged 59.

''The Simpsons'' episodes

Curran wrote the following episodes of ''The Simpsons'': *" Treehouse of Horror XIII" (the "Island of Dr. Hibbert" segment) *"

I'm Spelling as Fast as I Can "I'm Spelling as Fast as I Can" is the twelfth episode of the The Simpsons season 14, fourteenth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network in the United St ...

" *" My Big Fat Geek Wedding" *" Don't Fear the Roofer" *"

We're on the Road to D'ohwhere "We're on the Road to D'ohwhere" is the eleventh episode of the The Simpsons season 17, seventeenth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It first aired on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network in the United Stat ...

" *" The Wife Aquatic" *" Sex, Pies and Idiot Scrapes" *" Rednecks and Broomsticks" *"

" *" How Munched is That Birdie in the Window?" *"

The Winter of His Content "The Winter of His Content" is the fourteenth episode of the twenty-fifth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons'' and the 544th episode of the series. It first aired on the Fox network in the United States on March 16 ...

" *" Homer Is Where the Art Isn't"

''Married... with Children'' episodes

Curran wrote the following episodes of ''Married... with Children'': *"Who'll Stop the Rain" *"You Gotta Know When to Fold 'Em (part 2)" *"Raingirl" *"Sue Casa, His Casa" *"Do Ya Think I'm Sexy" *"Weenie Tot Lovers & Other Strangers" *"She's Having My Baby (part 2)" *"If Al Had a Hammer" *"The Mystery of Skull Island" *"England Show III: We're Spending as Fast as We Can" *"Tis Time to Smell the Roses"

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Curran, Kevin (writer) 1957 births 2016 deaths American television writers American male television writers The Harvard Lampoon alumni Harvard College alumni Primetime Emmy Award winners Deaths from cancer in California Burials at Hollywood Forever Cemetery