John Masius wrote “St. Other Places” and won two Emmys, creating the series “Touched by an Angel” and “Hawthorne,” and passed away in Los Angeles on September 13th. He was 75 years old.
His family confirmed that Masius had passed away from ALS.
Born in Manhattan, Masius grew up in Scarsdale, New York, graduated from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania, and soon moved to Los Angeles, where he studied at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management. After working as a waiter in Venice Beach, Masius met producer Bruce Paltrow. Bruce Paltrow helped start his career as a production assistant for Paltrow’s show The White Shadow.
Masius was promoted to writer and coordinating producer, and soon began writing and producing episodes for the medical drama “St. Other Places.”
Masius’s research in “St. Other Places” wrote two Primetime Emmy Awards in 1984 and 1986.
He went on to create “Touching an Angel.” However, he left when the show was handed over to executive producer Martha Williamson as the network found Masius’ material “too dark.” The CBS series ran for nine seasons from 1994, starring Rome Downey as an angel who brought a message to those in need of mentoring in life.
He created the NBC medical drama “Providence,” which ran from 1999 to 2002, and another medical show “Hawthorne,” which lasted three seasons on TNT.
His other works included “Ferris Bueller,” “Dolphin Cove,” “The Single Guy,” and “Tattinger’s.” Masius also produced 2001’s “Chestnut Hill,” a film made for television.
Later in his career, Masius returned to the afterlife theme with Showtime’s “Dead Like Me,” taking over as the showrunner of creator Brian Fuller. The series ran two seasons, starring Ellen Moose and Mandy Patinkin as Seattle’s Grimm Reapers.
Masius has won multiple Writer Guild Awards, Humanus Awards, People’s Choice Awards and Peabody Awards. During his career, he was nominated for multiple Primetime Emmy Awards for his work as a producer and writer.
He was survived by three children, Hannah, Max, Sam, and his ex-wife, actress Ellen Bree.
