Biography
Michael McGreevey launched his professional career at age seven, debuting in The Girl Most Likely (1957) alongside Jane Powell, marking the start of his involvement in 18 films over two decades. As a successful child actor, he appeared in more than 100 television shows, including regular roles on Riverboat (1959), Burt Reynolds' first series, and guest spots on acclaimed programs like Naked City (1958), Route 66 (1960), and three two-part specials for The Magical World of Disney (1954). At 18, he enrolled at UCLA while continuing to act, starring opposite Kirk Douglas, Robert Mitchum, and Sally Field in The Way West (1967), Field's debut film; with David Niven in The Impossible Years (1968); and alongside Richard Widmark and Lena Horne in Death of a Gunfighter (1969). He also guest-starred in numerous TV shows such as The Mod Squad (1968), Love, American Style (1969), and appeared in made-for-TV movies including If Tomorrow Comes (1971) with Patty Duke.
After graduating with honors from UCLA Film School, McGreevey persisted in acting but aspired to work behind the camera as a writer, director, and producer. While co-starring with Kurt Russell in a series of successful Disney films—The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969), Now You See Him, Now You Don't (1972), Snowball Express (1972), and The Strongest Man in the World (1975)—and guest-starring on acclaimed shows like The Waltons (1972), he began writing. His first professional writing project was a collaboration with his father, John McGreevey (Emmy Award; WGA Laurel Award), developing the three-hour TV movie Ruby and Oswald (1978), a major television event about the Kennedy assassination that achieved both critical acclaim and high ratings. Michael expanded his writing career into series television with credits on The Waltons alongside creator Earl Hamner Jr., Palmerstown, U.S.A. (1980) with Alex Haley and Norman Lear, Quincy, M.E. (1976), among others. He earned an Emmy nomination for his teleplay The Celebrity and the Arcade Kid (1983), part of the ABC Afterschool Special series.
Starting as a freelance writer for one episode of Fame (1982), NBC's series based on the popular film, McGreevey became a key contributor over three seasons, writing 72 episodes, serving as story editor, and eventually producer. Having penned more episodes than anyone else, he was chosen to write the series finale, effectively concluding the award-winning show. After Fame, he took a break from series television, focusing on long-form projects, including developing movies and miniseries for various networks. Notably, he worked on NBC’s highest-rated movie of the 1994 season, Bonanza: The Return (1993). Returning to series television, he served as Supervising Producer for High Tide (1994) during the 1995-96 season, then held the same role on the syndicated Tarzan: The Epic Adventures (1996), completing 22 episodes in the 1996-97 season. He fulfilled a lifelong ambition by directing an episode of Tarzan and went on to direct three episodes of Fox’s Mowgli: The New Adventures of the Jungle Book (1998). Impressed by his work on this action/adventure series, producers Alliance and Kushner-Locke invited him to direct an independent feature based on Kipling’s stories, The Jungle Book: Search for the Lost Treasure (1998), starring Gary Collins and Michael Beck.
Immediately after completing the film, McGreevey returned to television as executive producer, writer, and director of 26 one-hour episodes of the syndicated series Born Free (1998), a continuation of the beloved film inspired by Joy Adamson’s remarkable work with the lioness Elsa in Africa. Following this series, he co-wrote an action/thriller TV movie and series pilot titled Endangered and co-authored the script for a major adaptation of L. Frank Baum’s classic, The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus. Currently, he is developing an original screenplay, 13 Weeks, a romantic comedy set in the world of series television, and is producing three documentaries: Aging Without Symptoms, Welcome to Eden, and The Face of America.
