John Hill was an American screenwriter and television producer. He was originally from Prairie Village, Kansas.
He got his start in Hollywood when he penned the 1976 TV movie Griffin and Phoenix, starring Peter Falk and Jill Clayburgh. The original title was The fading away of Griffin and Phoenix. ABC thought that too morbid, so he had to change it. In 1980 his film Heartbeeps was released, starring Andy Kaufman and Bernadette Peters. He was also commissioned to novelize both scripts (the first appearing under the TV movie's original title, Griffin Loves Phoenix), exercising his contractual first-refusal right to do the prose adaptations himself; and years later, in personal conversation with a colleague who knew of the books, Hill confessed that he loved working on them because "they taught me how to be a novelist." They remain, however, his only published fiction. In 2007, Griffin and Phoenix would be remade as a feature film, screenplay also by Hill, starring Dermot Mulroney and Amanda Peet.
In 1988, he co-wrote Little Nikita, starring Sidney Poitier and River Phoenix.
He wrote the movie Quigley Down Under in 1975. It was slated to be filmed in 1980, but was postponed when star Steve McQueen became too ill with cancer. Clint Eastwood was approached next, but he turned it down. It was finally filmed and released in 1990, starring Tom Selleck (who had wanted to make the film for several years), Laura San Giacomo and Alan Rickman.Persico Newhouse, Joyce J. – "'Perfect Hero' Selleck Takes Aim at Action". – Times Union. – October 18, 1990.
He attained success as a writer for TV's Quantum Leap, and writer/producer of L.A. Law, for which he won an Emmy.
Later in life, Hill taught in the Educational Outreach division of the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV) in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Personal life Hill was married twice; his first marriage lasted from 1976 until it ended in divorce in 1991. His two children resulted from this union. He married Nancy Gross in 1995. They were still married at the time of his death.
Filmography Film Year Title Credited as NotesDirectorProducer Writer1977Close Encounters of the Third KindAdditional writing (uncredited)1981Heartbeeps1988Little Nikita1990Quigley Down Under2006Griffin & Phoenix2015The Blood Kill Moment
Acting roles Year Title Role 2015 The Blood Kill Moment Stonehenge
Television Year Title Credited as NotesDirectorProducer Writer1976Griffin and PhoenixTelevision film1989Quantum LeapWrote episodes "The Right Hand of God - October 24, 1974" and "A Portrait for Troian - February 7, 1971"Also supervising producer1990–1991L.A. LawWrote episodes "Armand's Hammer", "New Kidney on the Block" and "Splatoon"1992Steel JusticeTelevision film1994Diagnosis MurderWrote episode "The Restless Remains"1994Thunder in Paradise
References