Deadline reports that Mike Milligan, a writer and producer for series such as Maude, All in the Family, and the Jeffersons, has died at 77. Milligan passed on Friday, Dec. 20 in his West Hills, California home due to acute respiratory failure.
According to Deadline, Bernard Michael Milligan was born on Jan. 28 in Los Angeles. A graduate of Loyola Marymount University, he later joined the Air Force in Massachusetts. In addition to his television work, he was passionate about the effects of homelessness. He led workshops to combat these ills and ensure the unhoused received adequate care.
A member of the Writers Guild of America for nearly 100 years, Milligan was part of the team behind some of Norman Lear’s (All in the Family, One Day at a Time) groundbreaking sitcoms that critiqued issues of society such as race, gender, class, women’s rights, and other topical issues. According to Deadline, Milligan and his writing partner of 18 years, Jay Moriarty (Dear Johnk Checking In), received praise and an NAACP Image award for their work on The Jeffersons, which starred Sherman Hemsley (Amen, Sister, Sister) and Isabel Sanford (Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, Original Gangstas). The All in the Family spinoff was one of TV’s first to discuss issues such as suicide and white supremacy, earning the series two Emmys.
Later in his career, Milligan would write, executive produce, and create series. According to Deadline, he and Moriarty were behind the short-lived Here and Now which starred The Cosby Show alum Malcolm Jamal-Warner. In 1999, he created Telemundo’s Los Beltrán, a series co-created with Carlos Bermudez that mirrored All in the Family. The show was the first-ever Spanish language series to feature gay characters and won several awards including the Alma and Imagen Foundation Awards for Best Comedy Series, and a Golden Eagle Award for Outstanding Comedy Series. GLADD would nominate it for its trailblazing gay representation at the time. The series aired until 2001.
According to Deadline, Milligan’s All in the Family episode “The Draft Dodger” was featured in ABC’s 2019 Live in Front of a Studio Audience. Lear and TV personality and host Jimmy Kimmel (The Man’s Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live!) spearheaded the special featuring Woody Harrelson (Cheers, Natural Born Killers) as Archie Bunker and Marisa Tomei (My Cousin Vinny, Spider-Man: No Way Home) as Edith. The live reenactment would covet an Emmy for Outstanding Variety Special.
Deadline reports Milligan is survived by his wife, Jill, and son John Milligan; stepdaughters Mischon Beneda and Dionn Avant; a sister, Jeri Gesto; five granddaughters, and an assortment of nieces, nephews, and cousins.
