Who

The creator and executive producer of the NBC cops-and-robbers juggernaut Law & Order, Dick Wolf presides over one of the most successful franchises in TV history.

Backstory

Born in the city (his parents actually met at Rockefeller Center, the home of NBC), Dick Wolf's early career was spent in advertising. As a copywriter at Benton & Bowles, he created the infamously prurient "I'm Cheryl, fly me" ads for National Airlines, as well as the toothpaste tagline "You can't beat Crest for fighting cavities." Wolf later moved to Los Angeles to pursue a screenwriting career, and worked as a writer on a handful of forgettable films in the late '70s and early '80s, before landing a gig writing for Hill Street Blues. A stint as a writer and supervising producer on Miami Vice followed, but Wolf's career really shifted into high gear in 1990 when he sold NBC on the weekly crime drama Law and Order. Eighteen years later, the original series and the spin-offs Special Victims Unit and Criminal Intent are syndication institutions. But not every Wolf show has endured. Two spin-offs, Conviction and Trial by Jury, were canceled during their first seasons. And there are signs that even Law & Order itself may be past its prime. In 2007, the ratings-challenged Criminal Intent was relegated to NBC Universal-owned USA. Perhaps that explains why Wolf has been looking beyond the L&O brand: In 2007, he produced the made-for-HBO movie Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee, which nabbed the Emmy for best made-for-TV movie.

Of note

The L&O franchise is a massive moneymaker in syndication—you'll find the shows on the TV dial in 25 countries around the world—and in the U.S. they air virtually nonstop on TNT and USA. Wolf's ripped-from-the-tabs formula, which relies on recently-reported real life events to inspire plots, has helped the show stay current, as has Wolf's revolving-door approach to casting, which he supposedly conceived after working with the diva-ish Don Johnson on Miami Vice. The dozens of regulars who've cycled in and out of the shows over the years include Mariska Hargitay, Sam Waterston, Dennis Farina, the late Jerry Orbach, Carey Lowell, Chris Noth, Jesse L. Martin, former Senator Fred Thompson, Eric Bogosian, Vincent D'Onofrio, Katherine Urbay, Richard Belzer, and Chris Meloni. But dozens of famous actors—and even plenty of notable names from other walks of life—have made at least brief appearances on the show. Both Mike Bloomberg and Rudy Giuliani have turned up as characters, although it's hardly a surprise that the current and former mayor have been happy to indulge Wolf: the three Law & Orders contribute more than $150 million annually to the New York City's economy.

Keeping score

Wolf made $70 million in 2006, according to Forbes. Most of his massive paycheck comes from his syndication deal with TNT—the cable channel airs three to four hours of Law & Order a day.

Personal

Wolf married his third wife, Noelle Lippman, in June 2006. He has three children, Olivia, Sarina, and Elliot, with second wife Christine Marburg. In addition to an Upper West Side apartment, Wolf has homes in Santa Barbara, Calif., and Northeast Harbor, Maine, where he tools around off the coast in one of his two Hinckley boats, Miss Demeanor and Prime Time II.