Michael Begler is an American television writer, producer and screenwriter. He is best known for co-creating Cinemax's period medical drama The Knick, and for writing the films Raising Helen (2004), The Shaggy Dog (2006) and Big Miracle (2012), all with writing partner Jack Amiel.
Early life Begler was born and raised in Long Island, New York. He attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he majored in English.
He met his future writing partner Jack Amiel while they were in college together and both entered the university's musical-comedy contest, Humorology.
Career After college, Begler moved to New York and worked as a PA on The Cosby Show. He and Amiel, who was working as a PA in Los Angeles, decided to write together shortly after, and Begler soon joined Amiel in Los Angeles. Their first writing job was on Fox's Herman's Head.
Begler worked consistently from that point onwards, writing - with Amiel - on a number of sitcoms, including Empty Nest, Minor Adjustments, The Jeff Foxworthy Show, The Tony Danza Show and Malcolm in the Middle.
In the mid-2000s, Begler transitioned into writing feature films, penning the scripts for the romantic comedies The Prince and Me and Garry Marshall's Raising Helen, both released in 2004. In 2006, Begler wrote Disney's The Shaggy Dog, starring Tim Allen and Robert Downey Jr.
Begler wrote 2012's Ken Kwapis-directed Big Miracle starring Drew Barrymore. Cinemax picked up Begler and Amiel's The Knick to series, after they wrote the pilot script on spec. Steven Soderbergh came on board the series as director and executive producer. Begler and Amiel served as co-showrunners and executive producers, and wrote the majority of the series' episodes. The series premiered on August 8, 2014. It was renewed for a second season of 10 episodes, airing October 2015. In April 2021, it was announced that Bagler and Amiel will serve as an executive producers and showrunners for second season of Perry Mason. Around the same time, he signed an overall deal with HBO.
Filmography Films +YearTitleRoleNotes2004The Prince and MeScreenplay byRaising HelenScreenplay by2006The Shaggy DogScreenplay by2007Hell on EarthWritten byTV movie; also Executive Producer2012Big MiracleScreenplay by Production staff +YearShowRoleNotes1996The Jeff Foxworthy ShowCo-producer1997The Tony Danza ShowProducer1998 2014The KnickExecutive Producer, Co-creator2015 2020Perry MasonExecutive Producer, Co-Showrunner (Season 2) Writer +YearShowSeasonEpisode titleEpisodeNotes1994Herman's Head3"The Herm from Ipanema"171995Empty Nest7"The Ex-Files"191996Minor Adjustments1"Ask Dr. Ron"9"Baba-Doo-Wang"14The Jeff Foxworthy Show2"The Poor Sportsmen of the Apocalypse"31997"Feud for Thought"11"Can't Teach an Old Dog New Tricks"121998The Wonderful World of Disney1"Disneys Animal Kingdom: The First Adventure"27The Tony Danza Show1"C'gar Face"6"Vision Quest"142000Malcolm in the Middle1"Lois vs. Evil"92002Greetings from Tucson1"My Two Padres"22003"Ball and Chain"102014The Knick1"Method and Madness1"Mr. Paris Shoes"2"The Busy Flea"3"Where's the Dignity"4"Start Calling Me Dad"6"Get the Rope"7"Working Late a Lot"8"Crutchfield"1020152"Ten Knots"1"You're No Rose"2"The Best with the Best to Get the Best"3"Wonderful Surprises"4"Williams and Walker"7"Do You Remember Moon Flower?"9"This Is All We Are"102023Perry Mason21
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