Pamela Eells

It wasn't until after years in the TV news studio that writer-producer Pamela Eells made the leap to become a creative (and executive) force behind such hit series as "Mad About You" and "Married with Children." Born and raised in San Luis Obispo, California, she attended Wellesley College, followed by graduate work at Boston University before moving to New York City, where she joined the CBS Network News as a page. After working her way up to an assistant director position, she changed tracks, heading to Los Angeles and joining forces with writing-producing partner Sally Lapiduss, first story-editing and then writing for "Family Matters," featuring the notorious child star Urkel. The pair next executive-produced a season of the Paul Reiser/Helen Hunt sitcom, "Mad About You," before moving on to a year of Fran Drescher's "The Nanny," again contributing scripts to both series. After the pair worked together on "Ellen," Eells forged ahead on her own, working on the Joey Lawrence vehicle, "Brotherly Love" and the enormously popular "Married with Children." After taking a break to marry and start a family, she returned to television (with an added name, now credited as Eells O'Connell), targeting younger audiences with such Disney shows as "The Suite