Barry O'Brien (born 1957) is an American television writer and producer best known as the co-creator of Disney Channel Original Series Hannah Montana. His credits include Happy Days, Perfect Strangers, Hangin' with Mr. Cooper, Judging Amy, and CSI: Miami.

Life

Barry O’Brien was born in San Francisco, California, to a large Irish Catholic family. He attended Terra Linda High School, before joining Santa Clara University on a football scholarship, studying business and finance.^[1]

O’Brien’s biggest hit is Disney’s Hannah Montana, a concept he successfully pitched based on the premise of an incredibly famous teenager-with-a-double-life, an idea conceived during a tenure on Nickelodeon’s television series All That, where the (then) teenage American pop singer Britney Spears featured as a guest.^[2]

Aside from writing for television, O’Brien co-wrote Jerry Bruckheimer’s Kangaroo Jack,^[3] and two junior novels. He currently resides in Los Angeles, with his wife and two children.

Filmography

• Happy Days (1981-1982) (writer)
• Laverne & Shirley (1982) (writer)
• Joanie Loves Chachi (1982) (writer)
• The New Odd Couple (1983) (writer)
• Silver Spoons (1984) (writer)
• Muppet Babies (1985) (writer)
• MoonDreamers (1986) (writer)
• The Love Boat (1984-1986) (writer)
• Ghostbusters (1986) (writer)
• Blondie & Dagwood (1987) (writer)
• Pinocchio and the Emperor of the Night (1987) (writer)
• Beverly Hills Teens (1987) (writer, developer)
• The Jetsons (1987) (writer)
• Fraggle Rock (1987) (writer)
• BraveStarr (1987) (writer)
• Alvin and the Chipmunks (1988) (writer)
• She's the Sheriff (1987-1989) (writer)
• Blondie & Dagwood: Second Wedding Workout (1989) (writer)
• Perfect Strangers (1987-1993) (supervising producer, writer)
• All-New Dennis the Menace (1993) (writer)
• Getting By (1993-1994) (writer, co-executive producer)
• Taz-Mania (1995) (writer)
• Hangin' with Mr. Cooper (1995-1996) (co-executive producer, writer)
• Guys Like Us (1998) (executive producer, writer)
• Between Brothers (1997-1999) (writer, executive producer, creator)
• Titans (2000-2001) (co-producer, writer)
• Gary & Mike (2001) (writer)
• Judging Amy (2002-2005) (writer, supervising producer)
• Kangaroo Jack (2003) (writer)
• Drake & Josh (2004) (writer: story) (one episode; "Football")
• CSI: Miami (2005-2012) (writer, executive producer)
• Hannah Montana (2006-2011) (writer, creator)
• The Einstein Factor (2007-2008) (supervising producer, writer, original concept)
• Touch (2013) (co-executive producer, writer)
• King & Maxwell (2013) (co-executive producer, writer)
• Intelligence (2014) (producer, writer)
• Dig (2015) (producer, writer)
• The Following (2015) (producer, writer)
• Castle (2015–16) (producer, writer)
• Gone (2017–18) (producer, writer)
• Lincoln Rhyme: Hunt for the Bone Collector (2020) (writer)
• Corn & Peg (2020) (writer)
• Law & Order: Organized Crime (2022-) (head writer)

Selected works

• Hannah Montana Bind Up #2 (Super Sneak/ Truth or Dare), with Laurie McElroy (Disney Press, 2009) (ISBN 978-1423121473)
• Ace London, with John Worsley, Kaj Melendez, and Mirza Javed (Fleetway Publications, 1962; Cuahtemoc Publishing Ltd, 2011) (ISBN 978-0957032101)

Awards and nominations

Nominated for an Edgar Award for (the) Best Television Episode Teleplay of 2008. (CSI: Miami, You May Now Kill the Bride)^[4]

See also

• Hannah Montana (Lawsuits)

References

Sources

• Barry O'Brien at IMDb