Aaron Sorkin

Despite initially aspiring to be an actor, Sorkin found his niche as a writer/producer. After penning a number of off-Broadway plays, he finally made it to the Great White Way with the 1989 legal military drama A Few Good Men, selling the film rights before the show even premiered. Three years later the play was turned into an Oscar-nominated film, thus launching Sorkin's Hollywood career. Although he wrote a few more movies, the small screen turned out to be his medium, as Sorkin and his frequent collaborator, director/producer Thomas Schlamme, created a succession of witty, poignant, critically acclaimed series set behind the scenes at: a sports show (the beloved but short-lived Sports Night), the White House (West Wing) and a late-night sketch comedy show (Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip). Each were characteristically filled with crackling dialogue and fascinating characters, and Sorkin wrote almost all the scripts single-handedly. Even a high-profile 2001 drug bust and his 2003 dispute with NBC, which led to his leaving The West Wing, couldn't derail his career.