Mark Goffman is an American television writer and producer. He currently serves as an executive producer for the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

series ''The Umbrella Academy''. Prior to that, Goffman worked as the

showrunner A showrunner is the top-level executive producer of a television series. The position outranks other creative and management personnel, including episode directors, in contrast to feature films, in which the director has creative control over th ...

and an executive producer for CBS's ''Bull''.

Early life

Goffman began writing professionally in Brussels, for the magazine ''Commerce in Belgium''. He went on to

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Founded in 1636 and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher lear ...

’s Kennedy School of Government to receive a masters in public policy. He has written speeches for state and federally elected officials and has consulted to the

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy of the United State ...

and the White House. Goffman has a B.A. in Economics and Philosophy from

Emory University Emory University is a private university, private research university in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. It was founded in 1836 as Emory College by the Methodist Episcopal Church and named in honor of Methodist bishop John Emory. Its main campu ...

and served as a Masters Thesis Advisor, Fiction Writing Program, at

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

Career

Goffman began his TV writing career in 2002 as a staff writer on ''

The West Wing ''The West Wing'' is an American political drama television series created by Aaron Sorkin that was originally broadcast on NBC from September 22, 1999, to May 14, 2006. The series is set primarily in the West Wing of the White House, where t ...

'', where he wrote for several seasons. In 2006, he joined

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

’s ''

Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip ''Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip'' is an American comedy-drama television series created for NBC and primarily written by Aaron Sorkin. The series was about the production of a live comedy series similar to ''Saturday Night Live''. Produced by ...

'', where he was a producer and ran the writers' room. Goffman has worked on more than 200 hours of scripted television, been nominated for two

Writers Guild of America Awards The Writers Guild of America Awards is an award for film, television, and radio writing including both fiction and non-fiction categories given by the Writers Guild of America, East and Writers Guild of America West since 1949. Eligibility The ...

, and won the Entertainment Industries Council SET Award.

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Cinema of the United States, Hollywood film industry, film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade pap ...

has listed Goffman as one of the 50 most influential writers in television. One of his episodes of Law and Order: SVU garnered

Golden Globe The Golden Globe Awards are awards presented for excellence in both international film and television. It is an annual award ceremony held since 1944 to honor artists and professionals and their work. The ceremony is normally held every Januar ...

and

Emmy 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 catego ...

nominations for

Mariska Hargitay Mariska Magdolna Hargitay Mariska says her own first name and the name of her father; the interviewer, James Lipton, also says her full name near the start of the show. (; born January 23, 1964) is an American actress, producer, and philanthrop ...

in 2009. He has also served as the showrunner for seasons 1 and 2 on Fox's '' Sleepy Hollow'', as well as an executive producer for CBS's '' Limitless'' and

USA Network USA Network (or simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Media Group division of Comcast's NBCUniversal. It was launched in 1977 as Madison Square Garden Sports Network, one of the first national sports ...

's '' White Collar''. His pilot ''I Am Victor'', starring John Stamos, was produced for

. Goffman also wrote and directed the critically acclaimed feature documentary, '' Dumbstruck'', a film about

ventriloquists Ventriloquism or ventriloquy is an act of stagecraft in which a person (a ventriloquist) speaks in such a way that it seems like their voice is coming from a different location, usually through a puppet known as a "dummy". The act of ventrilo ...

, which was released in Spring 2011 by Magnolia Pictures. Goffman's play, ''Me Too'', produced by David O. Sacks, premiered at the Stella Adler Theater 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 ...

. In 2020, Goffman appeared as a guest on the ''

'' marathon fundraiser episode of ''

The George Lucas Talk Show ''The George Lucas Talk Show'' is an improvised talk show in New York City hosted by comedian Connor Ratliff, who appears as George Lucas, the creator of ''Star Wars'', and he interviews real guests as themselves in a panel format. He is jo ...

.''

References

External links

* * * *
''Dumbstruck'' website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Goffman, Mark American male television writers American television writers Harvard Kennedy School alumni Living people American male screenwriters Emory University alumni Year of birth missing (living people)