Since the 1970s, Donald Bellisario has contributed to some relatively high profile television series, and what makes him a true TV visionary is that he’s contributed as a writer, producer, director and an actor. Before he entered the entertainment industry, he served in the U.S. Marine Corps, and then went on to receive his bachelor’s degree in journalism from Penn State University.

In 1977, he wrote an episode of popular series Kojak, but it was his opportunity to work under Glen A. Larson on Battlestar Galactica in 1978 that really set his career in motion. In 1980 he created Magnum P.I., starring Tom Selleck as a private investigator living in Hawaii, with Larson. The show was highly rated during the first five years of its eight year run.

Quantum Leap is probably one of Bellisario’s most notable productions in my book.

In 1989, Quantum Leap kicked off, starring Scott Bakula and Dean Stockwell. Bakula played the role of Sam Beckett, a scientist trapped in time after a physics experiment gone wrong.

Following the success of Quantum Leap was the hit legal/military drama, JAG. JAG originally aired on NBC, but after only one season, the network canceled and it was picked up by CBS for nine more seasons.

More recently, Bellisario has been dazzling audiences weekly with NCIS and NCIS: Los Angeles. Spun off of JAG, NCIS followed the military legal theme established in its parent series, an obvious tribute to Bellisario’s own time in the military.

Currently there are rumors that he is working on a Magnum P.I. reboot, which should be interesting since the times and crimes have changed so much since the 1980s.

As a creator and contributor to some of the most notable television series of the last three decades, Donald Bellasario is what great TV is all about.