Jeffrey Klarik

Jeffrey Klarik
Alma materCarnegie Mellon University
OccupationsDirector, writer, producer
Known forMad About You
Episodes
SpouseDavid Crane

Jeffrey Klarik is an American television writer and producer. He created the series Half & Half and co-produced the sitcom Mad About You. With his partner David Crane,[1][2][3] Klarik co-created the award-winning comedy Episodes and the ensemble sitcom The Class.[4]

Early life and education

Klarik was raised in Connecticut in a Jewish family of Russian descent. His father was a comedy fan and took him to see performers including Schecky Greene, Jackie Mason and Woody Allen in comedy clubs.[5][6] He graduated from the Carnegie Mellon University College of Fine Arts in 1969.[7]

Career

In the 1990s, Klarik and his partner David Crane both wrote for the HBO series Dream On.[8] Crane went on to serve as the executive producer on Friends,[1] and Klarik has described himself as an "unofficial writer" on that show.[9]

After working on the CBS sitcom Ink,[10] Klarik created the series Half & Half for UPN. Starring Rachel True and Essence Atkins as estranged half-sisters, the show's pilot premiered in 1999, and the series ran from 2002 to 2006.[11] He served as a writer and co-producer on the NBC sitcom Mad About You starring Paul Reiser and Helen Hunt.[5][12][13]

Klarik and Crane co-created The Class, which debuted in 2006.[6] Though it was inspired by the popular series Lost and marketed as "the next Friends," the show was cancelled after just 19 episodes.[14][15] The duo also collaborated on the BBC/Showtime sitcom Episodes, which aired from 2011 to 2017 and featured Friends star Matt LeBlanc as a fictional version of himself working on a series with Stephen Mangan and Tamsin Greig playing the showrunners.[16] The series was nominated 4 times for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series at the Primetime Emmy Awards.[17]

In 2017, Klarik and Crane were recognized for their contributions to television at the Nantucket Film Festival.[18]

Personal life

On New Year's Eve 2016, Klarik and Crane eloped after over 30 years of dating; the couple met through mutual friends. They told The Advocate how their experiences as gay men informed their work in a joint 2017 interview.[9]

Filmography

Year Title Notes
1990-1996 Dream On Writer
1992-1999 Mad About You Writer, co-producer
1995-1998 The Naked Truth Producer, writer
1996-1997 Ink Producer, writer
2001 Carly (pilot) Creator, executive producer
2002 B.S (pilot) Creator, executive producer
2002-2006 Half & Half Creator, consulting producer[19]
2006-2007 The Class Creator, writer, executive producer[20]
2011-2017 Episodes Creator, writer, executive producer[21]

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Nominated work Result Ref
1995 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Comedy Series Mad About You Nominated[a] [12]
2011 Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series Episodes Nominated[b] [17]
2012 Writers Guild of America Awards Television: New Series Nominated[b] [22]
2013 Writers Guild of America Awards Television: Episodic Comedy Nominated[b] [23]
British Academy Television Awards Best Situation Comedy Nominated[c] [24]
Primetime Emmy Awards Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series Nominated[b] [17]
2014 Primetime Emmy Awards Nominated[b] [17]
2015 Primetime Emmy Awards Nominated[b] [17]
2017 Nantucket Film Festival Excellence in Television Writing Episodes / Friends / The Class Won[b] [18]

Notes

  1. ↑ Shared with Bruce Chevillat, Liz Coe, Eileen Conn, Victor Fresco, Andrew Gordon, Billy Grundfest, Danny Jacobson, Craig Knizek, Jeffrey Lane, Paul Reiser, and Marjorie Weitzman.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Shared with David Crane.
  3. ↑ Shared with David Crane and Jimmy Mulville.

References

  1. 1 2 Vaillancourt, Daniel (September 15, 1998). "Behind the Camera – David Crane". The Advocate. pp. 39–40. Retrieved November 13, 2016 – via Google Books. As someone who is gay, I certainly feel[...]
  2. ↑ Littlefield, Warren; Pearson, T.R. (February 12, 2013). "Six of One". Top of the Rock: Inside the Rise and Fall of Must See TV. New York City: Anchor Books. p. 162. ISBN 9780307739766. Retrieved November 13, 2016.
  3. ↑ Taylor, Candace (October 13, 2016). "'Friends' Co-Creator David Crane Lists L.A. Penthouse for $29.9 Million". The Wall Street Journal.(subscription required)
  4. ↑ Werts, Diane (September 18, 2006), "'The Class' gets an A for effort", Newsday, archived from the original on November 26, 2006, retrieved October 18, 2007
  5. 1 2 Schleier, Curt (July 27, 2021). "Writing 'Episodes' Together". The Forward.
  6. 1 2 Roberts, Terri. "Life Lessons". Backstage. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  7. ↑ "CMU Alumni at Emmys". Carnegie Mellon University. Archived from the original on March 30, 2025. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  8. ↑ Carlos, Jordan. "Episode 6: David Crane and Jeffrey Klarik, "Episodes"". Writers Guild of America East. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  9. 1 2 Reynolds, Daniel (August 23, 2017). "Meet the Gay Couple Who Made Your Favorite TV Shows". The Advocate. Archived from the original on February 9, 2026. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  10. ↑ Gerard, Jeremy (October 27, 1996). "Ink". Variety. Archived from the original on October 26, 2021. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  11. ↑ "HALF & HALF: THE BIG PILOT EPISODE {SERIES PREMIERE} (TV)". The Paley Center for Media. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  12. 1 2 "Mad About You". Television Academy. Archived from the original on March 6, 2026. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  13. ↑ Scott, Tony (November 2, 1994). "Mad About You Pandora's Box". Variety. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  14. ↑ Keller, Joel (October 2, 2015). "A Look Back at The Class, the Little-Seen Sitcom That Launched TV's Biggest Careers Anyway". Vanity Fair. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  15. ↑ Burstein, David D. (July 6, 2012). ""Friends", "Episodes" Creators Crane and Klarik on 4 Things You Can't Do on Network TV". Fast Company. Archived from the original on January 27, 2022. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  16. ↑ Pickard, Michael. "BBC, Showtime order more Episodes". c21 Media. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  17. 1 2 3 4 5 "Jeffrey Klarik". Television Academy. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  18. 1 2 "Our Past Honorees". Nantucket Film Festival. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  19. ↑ Gervich, Chad. (2008). Small screen, big picture : a writer's guide to the TV business (First ed.). New York, New York. ISBN 978-0-307-39531-3. OCLC 191090486.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  20. ↑ Critic, Hal Boedeker, Sentinel Television (September 18, 2006). "It's elementary: Comedy goes to head of 'The Class'". OrlandoSentinel.com. Retrieved June 29, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  21. ↑ Turchiano, Danielle (August 18, 2017). "'Episodes' Bosses on Getting the Gang Back Together for the Final Season". Variety. Retrieved June 29, 2020.
  22. ↑ Knox, David. "Writers' Guild of America Awards 2012: nominees". TV Tonight. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  23. ↑ McCarthy, Sean L. "Comedy winners at the 2013 WGA Awards". The Comic's Comic. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  24. ↑ "Television/Situation Comedy". BAFTA. Archived from the original on February 13, 2026. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
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