Dick Wolf
Richard Anthony Wolf (born December 20, 1946[2]) is an American film and television producer, best known for his Law & Order franchise. Since 1990, the franchise has included six police/courtroom dramas and four international spinoffs. He is also creator and executive producer of the Chicago franchise, which since 2012, has included four Chicago-based dramas, and the creator and executive producer of the FBI franchise, which since 2018, has also become a franchise after spinning off two additional series.
For the American football player, see Dick Wolf (American football).
Dick Wolf
Richard D. Wolf
Television writer, director, executive producer, creator
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Susan Scranton(m. 1970; div. 1983)
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Christine Marburg(m. 1983; div. 2005)
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[1]Noelle Lippman(m. 2006; div. 2019)
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Wolf has also written four books. The first, the non-fiction volume Law & Order: Crime Scenes, is a companion to the Law & Order television series.[3] The Intercept, The Execution, and The Ultimatum are works of fiction in a thriller series featuring an NYPD detective named Jeremy Fisk.[4]
Wolf has won numerous awards, including an Emmy Award, being inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame, and receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Early life and education[edit]
Wolf was raised in Manhattan to a Jewish father and a Catholic mother of Irish descent.[5][6][7][8] He was an altar server.[9]
Wolf attended Saint David's School, The Gunnery,[10][11] and Phillips Academy.[6] He subsequently attended the University of Pennsylvania (class of 1969), where he was a member of the Zeta Psi fraternity.[5]
Career[edit]
Advertising[edit]
Wolf worked as an advertising copywriter at Benton & Bowles creating commercials for Crest toothpaste, including the slogan "You can't beat Crest for fighting cavities." He is also credited with the campaign "I'm Cheryl, fly me" for National Airlines. Yet despite his success in copywriting, all the while he was writing screenplays in the hopes of a film career. It was at this time that he briefly collaborated on a screenplay with Oliver Stone, who was a struggling screenwriter at the time.
Initial screenwriting success[edit]
He moved to Los Angeles after a few years and had three screenplays produced; one of these films, Masquerade (1988), featuring Rob Lowe and Meg Tilly, gained notable acclaim.[12] He started his television career as a staff writer on Hill Street Blues and was nominated for his first Emmy Award for the episode "What Are Friends For?", on which he was the only writer. While working on Hill Street Blues, Wolf became close friends with Tom Fontana, then writing for the series St. Elsewhere, produced in the same building, at the same time.[13] Wolf moved from Hill Street Blues to Miami Vice, where he was a writer and co-producer for the third and fourth seasons.[14]
Honors[edit]
Wolf's personal honors include the Award of Excellence from the Banff Television Festival, the 2002 Creative Achievement Award from NATPE; the Anti-Defamation League's Distinguished Entertainment Industry Award, the Leadership and Inspiration Award from the Entertainment Industries Council, the Governor's Award by the New York Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, the 1997 achievement award from the Caucus for Producers, Writers, and Directors, the 1998 Television Showman of the Year Award from the Publicists Guild of America, the 2002 Tribute from the Museum of Television and Radio, and a 2003 Special Edgar Award from the Mystery Writers of America. On March 29, 2007, Wolf received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 7040 Hollywood Boulevard.[41] In 2013, Wolf was inducted into the Television Academy Hall of Fame. Wolf is also an Honorary Consul general of Monaco[42] and is actively involved in the principality's prestigious annual Television Festival.
Political involvement[edit]
It was reported that Wolf contributed to Fred Thompson's campaign for the Republican nomination for president in 2008. The two had worked together since 2002, when Thompson joined the cast of Law & Order playing a district attorney.[43]
In popular culture[edit]
Community, a sitcom on NBC from 2009 to 2014 had an episode which parodied Dick Wolf's Law & Order, with the title "Basic Lupine Urology" being a play on his name. Wolf is given a special thanks credit at the end of the episode.[44][45]