John Masius, Emmy-Winning ‘St. Elsewhere’ Producer and Creator of ‘Touched by an Angel,’ Dies at 75

The industry vet most recently created the Jada Pinkett Smith medical drama “Hawthorne” at TNT

John Masius with "St. Elsewhere" colleagues at the 1984 Emmys. (Credit: Bob Riha, Jr./Getty Images)
John Masius with "St. Elsewhere" colleagues at the 1984 Emmys. (Credit: Bob Riha, Jr./Getty Images)

John Masius, the creator of “Touched by an Angel” and two-time Emmy-winning writer and producer for “St. Elsewhere,” died on Saturday at the age of 75.

Masius’ ex-wife Ellen Bry confirmed the “Touched by an Angel” creator’s passing, according to media reports. He died after a declining battle with ALS. On top of his work creating the hit CBS series and writing on “St. Elsewhere,” he also created “Hawthorne” and “Providence.”

He started his career as a TV writer in the 1980s working on CBS’ “The White Shadow.” Masius’ two Primetime Emmy Awards for writing on “St. Elsewhere” came in 1984 and 1986. He received 14 total nominations for his work on the series.

Masius created “Touched by an Angel” in 1994. The series ran for nine seasons but the creator eventually stepped away when CBS deemed his storylines “too dark” for the audience. The iconic series starred Roma Downey as a woman who conveyed messages of God to people in need.

Most recently, the industry vet created the Jada Pinkett Smith medical drama “Hawthorne” for TNT. The series ran from 2009-2011.

More to come…

Comments