Rob Thomas

An enormously gifted writer-producer, Rob Thomas began his career penning young adult novels before landing an impressive gig on "Dawson's Creek" (The WB, 1998-2003). He went on to create the acclaimed "Cupid" (ABC, 1998-99), which proved short-lived but so adored by critics that ABC revived it for one season in 2009 with a different cast and a tweaked concept. After penning the screenplay for the teen hit "Drive Me Crazy" (1999), Thomas created "Veronica Mars" (UPN, 2004-06; The CW, 2006-07), the story of a teen gumshoe (Kristen Bell) out to solve the murder of her best friend (Amanda Seyfried) in the small town of Neptune.

Beloved by critics and its small but passionate audience, the series ended much too soon, freeing Thomas up to help develop the reimaged "90210" (The CW, 2008-2013) and, more importantly, to co-create another acclaimed but little-seen gem, the Hollywood-skewering catering comedy "Party Down" (Starz, 2009-2010), which earned him an AFI Award. As rumors swirled that "Veronica Mars" and "Party Down" might receive feature films, the former possibility happened when Thomas raised $2 million on Kickstarter with the help of fans, ensuring "Veronica" would finally get the big-screen treatment. A sensitive and smart writer, Rob Thomas put so much heart into his greatest creations that they remained vibrant and alive even when no longer on the air.

Born Aug. 15, 1965 in Sunnyside, WA, Rob Thomas moved to Texas when he was 10 years old. Growing up with a love of sports as well as creative pursuits, he attended college on a football scholarship, but found his calling in the arts. After teaching journalism and working for the famed high school news program "Channel One News," Thomas made the leap to professional writer in 1996, when his first young adult novel, Rats Saw God was published and he sold a script to the talk show parody "Space Ghost Coast to Coast" (Cartoon Network, 1994-2001; Adult Swim, 2001-04; Gametap, 2006-08).

Continuing to write young adult novels while also building on his professional small screen momentum, Thomas landed a spot in the writers' room for the era-defining teen fave "Dawson's Creek" (The WB, 1998-2003). Recognized as a rising talent with a smart, quirky touch, Thomas went on to create the acclaimed "Cupid" (ABC, 1998-99), which paired an uptight psychologist (Paula Marshall) with a charismatic patient (Jeremy Piven) who may or may not be the famous titular god of love.

Although critics loved the series, it struggled to find an audience and was canceled after one season. Thomas rebounded by penning the scripts for two romantic comedies, "Fortune Cookie" (1999) and the Melissa Joan Hart/Adrian Grenier charmer "Drive Me Crazy" (1999), which became a fondly remembered touchstone for a certain generation. Thomas gave life to a more enduring cult classic, however, when he created the teen detective series "Veronica Mars" (UPN, 2004-06; The CW, 2006-07). Starring Kristen Bell as the smart, spiky eponymous sleuth, the first season of the series was loosely structured around the murder investigation of Mars's best friend, Lilly Kane (Amanda Seyfried), but the subsequent two seasons incorporated more overarching mysteries.

As much fun as the "whodunit?" aspect of the show was, the real pleasure came from the first-rate cast, writing and production, leading countless critics to name "Veronica Mars" one of the best on the air. Frustratingly for many fans, however, the enormous outpouring of acclaim for the series never quite translated into blockbuster ratings, and despite multiple high-profile attempts by normally influential TV critics to save the show, it was canceled after three seasons.

Nevertheless, "Veronica Mars" and its cast and crew earned universal goodwill for their work, especially Thomas, who also directed a handful of the show's episodes. Disappointed but soldiering on, he went on to write for the series "Big Shots" (ABC, 2007-08) and saw an unexpected revival of "Cupid" (ABC, 2009) with Bobby Cannavale replacing Piven, but it also had its wings quickly clipped. Thomas scored another cult classic and cemented his reputation as one of the industry's golden touches when he, along with John Enbom, Dan Etheridge and Paul Rudd, created the sharp-as-nails "Party Down" (Starz, 2009-2010), the story of a group of Hollywood wannabes and never-weres who eke out a living as caterers.

With an amazing cast that eventually included Adam Scott, Ken Marino, Lizzy Caplan, Jane Lynch and Megan Mullally, the series quickly became a critical darling, winning the AFI Award for TV Program of the Year.

Although "Party Down" followed the trajectory of "Veronica Mars" and succumbed to low ratings despite its glowing reputation as one of the best series on television, Thomas rebounded with a long-running gig on the rebooted "90210" (The CW, 2008-2013), which he helped develop. Although his two biggest series had never attracted large audiences while on the air, their fans remained loyal and their legends grew, so much so that rumors began to swirl about feature film adaptations of both projects. After being told by the studio that a feature film of his most famous creation could only move forward if money were raised, the dream became a reality in March 2013 when Thomas posted a Kickstarter.com page on the Internet to raise the necessary $2 million to fund a "Veronica Mars" movie, a goal he achieved in less than a day, causing fans, cast and crew of the beloved project to rejoice.

Due to the speed with which that much money was raised, the headline-making effort set a precedent, in that unrequited fans who might desire a revisit to their favorite series, could control the destiny of that show and its cast. Thomas' next project was a television adaptation of the blackly humorous comic book "iZombie" (CW 2015- ), starring Rose McIver as a newly-zombified morgue attendant who uncovers the secrets of the dead when eating their brains.

By Jonathan Riggs