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Eric Overmyer, a seasoned TV writer-producer and playwright known for his activity connected Homicide: Life On nan Street, Law & Order, The Wire, Treme, Bosch and Bosch: Legacy, died March 16 aft an illness. He was 74.
A theatre major, Overmyer began his profession arsenic a writer on St. Elsewhere. After a drawstring of short-term gigs connected various TV series, he joined Homicide: Life On nan Street successful 1996 for NBC crime drama’s 4th season.
Overmyer spent 4 years connected nan series, done its seventh and last season, and besides co-wrote and executive produced nan followup Homicide: The Movie. During his clip connected nan show, Overmyer sewage to activity with Homicide writer-producer David Simon, connected whose book nan bid was based.
The 2 became friends, and Simon subsequently brought Overmyer successful arsenic a writer connected Season 4 of his acclaimed HBO drama The Wire.
Simon and Overmyer went connected to co-create and executive nutrient nan post-Katrina HBO play Treme, based successful portion connected Overmyer’s acquisition surviving successful New Orleans.
Overmyer astir precocious created for tv Bosch, an adjustment of nan novels by Michael Connelly. (He is credited arsenic developer of nan bid since it is based connected an existing IP.) Overmyer served arsenic executive shaper and showrunner connected nan constabulary play starring Titus Welliver, which became Prime Video’s longest-running series, spanning 7 seasons.
He besides co-created and executive produced spinoff series Bosch: Legacy, headlined by Welliver reprising his role, which ran for 3 seasons.
Overmyer’s further bid credits see a four-season tally connected NBC’s Law & Order, including arsenic an executive producer, and stints on Law & Order: SVU, Law & Order: Criminal Intent and HBO’s Boardwalk Empire. He besides co-wrote nan 1998 ABC movie Rear Window starring Christopher Reeve and nan 2016 Nat Geo mini-series Saints & Strangers.
His activity earned him 4 Emmy nominations, 5 WGA Award nominations, including a 2016 triumph for Saints & Strangers, and a Humanitas Prize.
In summation to his TV career, Overmyer was a prolific Off Broadway and location theatre playwright. His shape credits see specified well-received Off Broadway productions arsenic On nan Verge; or, The Geography of Yearning (1985), In a Pig’s Valise (Second Stage Theater, 1989), Mi Vida Loca (City Center Stage II, 1990), The Heliotrope Bouquet by Scott Joplin and Louis Chauvin (Playwrights Horizons, 1993) and Dark Rapture (Second Stage Theatre, 1996). In 2000, he contributed further matter for nan Broadway accumulation of nan philharmonic The Green Bird.
