Peter Tolan

A former actor and sketch comedy performer, Peter Tolan went behind the camera in the early 1990s, where he served as producer and writer on some of the most acclaimed and groundbreaking television shows of the decade and beyond, including "Murphy Brown" (CBS, 1988-1998), "The Larry Sanders Show" (HBO, 1992-98) and "Rescue Me" (FX, 2004-11). Tolan's heroes were rule-breakers and free thinkers whose discomfort with the status quo occasionally landed them in hot water or worse, but they remained fascinating to audiences as they attempted to make sense of their lives. His frequently fearless work earned him several Emmy nominations, and led to a modestly successful career in feature films, including "Analyze This" (1999) and "America's Sweethearts" (2001). But it was Tolan's unique television work that remained his most enduring, making him one most daring talents on the small screen.