Anthony Yerkovich

Although he cut his teeth as a writer on the late '70s action series "Starsky and Hutch" and "240-Robert," Anthony Yerkovich later parlayed his considerable talents in the genre as creator and producer of such landmark '80s crime shows as "Miami Vice" and "Hill Street Blues."

While Yerkovich's gritty, streetwise writing lent a convincing realism to dramas that were at one with the anxieties of the era (drugs, prostitution, gangs), it was the writer's partnership with producer Michael Mann on "Miami Vice" that sparked a bona fide cultural phenomenon in the early '80s; its success shifted Yerkovich's career emphasis from writing to producing.

Despite the show's popularity, Yerkovich handed over the reins to Mann after only six episodes, but not before earning an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Writing on the series' pilot, "Brother's Keeper."

Yerkovich kept a relatively low profile in the '90s, working on made-for-TV films such as "Hollywood Confidential" and eventually reteaming with Michael Mann in 2006 for the 2006 theatrical remake of "Miami Vice" starring Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx.