Steve Adams (born Steven Saint Lawrence Adams, February 8, 1947) is an American author and

screenwriter A screenplay writer (also called screenwriter, scriptwriter, scribe or scenarist) is a writer who practices the craft of screenwriting, writing screenplays on which mass media, such as films, television programs and video games, are based. ...

who uses the penname Waldo Mellon. He wrote ''

Envy Envy is an emotion which occurs when a person lacks another's quality, skill, achievement, or possession and either desires it or wishes that the other lacked it. Aristotle defined envy as pain at the sight of another's good fortune, stirred b ...

(2004)'', starring

Ben Stiller Benjamin Edward Meara Stiller (born November 30, 1965) is an American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He is the son of the comedians and actors Jerry Stiller and Anne Meara. Stiller was a member of a group of comedic actors colloquially known ...

and

Jack Black Thomas Jacob Black (born August 28, 1969) is an American actor, comedian, and musician. He is known for his acting roles in the films '' High Fidelity'' (2000), '' Shallow Hal'' (2001), '' Orange County'' (2002), '' School of Rock'' (2003), ' ...

. Adams conceived the idea with long-time friend

Larry David Lawrence Gene David (born July 2, 1947) is an American comedian, writer, actor, and television producer. He and Jerry Seinfeld created the television sitcom ''Seinfeld'', on which David was head writer and executive producer for the first sev ...

. They met while both were comedy writers for

Fridays Friday is the day of the week between Thursday and Saturday. In countries that adopt the traditional "Sunday-first" convention, it is the sixth day of the week. In countries adopting the ISO-defined "Monday-first" convention, it is the fifth ...

, a

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (often abbreviated to ''SNL'') is an American late-night live television sketch comedy and variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC and Peacock. Michaels currently serve ...

inspired show in the early 1980s. Adams also wrote '' Waiting for Forever'' (2010) starring Tom Sturridge,

Rachel Bilson Rachel Sarah Bilson (born August 25, 1981) is an American actress. Born to a Californian show-business family, Bilson made her television debut in 2003, and then landed the role of Summer Roberts on the prime-time drama series ''The O.C.'' Bi ...

, and

Blythe Danner Blythe Katherine Danner (born February 3, 1943) is an American actress. Accolades she has received include two Primetime Emmy Awards for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series for her role as Izzy Huffstodt on ''Huff'' (2004–2006), and a ...

as well as '' No Stranger Than Love'' (2015) starring

Alison Brie Alison Brie Schermerhorn (born December 29, 1982) is an American actress. Her breakthrough came with the role of Trudy Campbell in the drama series '' Mad Men'' (2007–2015), which won her a Screen Actors Guild Award. She gained recognition fo ...

and

Colin Hanks Colin Lewes Hanks (born November 24, 1977) is an American actor. He has starred in films including '' Orange County'', ''King Kong'', '' The House Bunny'', '' The Great Buck Howard'', and the '' Jumanji'' film series. His television credits inclu ...

. In 2014, Adams wrote and self-published his first book ''What's What And What To Do About It'' under the pen name Waldo Mellon. The book was published in March 1, 2022 by

Seven Stories Press Seven Stories Press is an independent American publishing company. Based in New York City, the company was founded by Dan Simon in 1995, after establishing Four Walls Eight Windows in 1984 as an imprint at Writers and Readers, and then incorpor ...

Early life and family

Adams's uncle is

Kurt Vonnegut Kurt Vonnegut Jr. (November 11, 1922 – April 11, 2007) was an American writer known for his satirical and darkly humorous novels. In a career spanning over 50 years, he published fourteen novels, three short-story collections, five plays, and ...

(1922-2007), an American novelist known for satirical, science fiction. In 1958, Adams' mother, Alice Vonnegut Adams, died of cancer two days after her husband, James Carmalt Adams, was killed in a train accident. Vonnegut, Alice's brother, adopted Adams and his three brothers and raised them in

Cape Cod Cape Cod is a peninsula extending into the Atlantic Ocean from the southeastern corner of mainland Massachusetts, in the northeastern United States. Its historic, maritime character and ample beaches attract heavy tourism during the summer mon ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

. Adams graduated from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

in 1969 with B.A. in English. He currently lives in

, with his wife of 30 years Jeannie.

References

External links

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What's What and What to Do About It by Waldo Mellon
{{DEFAULTSORT:Adams, Steve Living people American television writers American male television writers American sketch comedians 1947 births American male screenwriters Dartmouth College alumni Television producers from New York City People from Barnstable County, Massachusetts Film producers from Massachusetts