Terry Turner
About
Biography
Filmography
Family & Companions
Biography
Screenwriter, producer and TV series creator Terry Turner has been joined at the creative hip to his wife Bonnie Turner since the mid-1970s, and the two have worked extensively in film and television. Starting out as comedy writers with revue credits in Atlanta, Georgia, Turner switched to news, writing and producing with his wife for Turner Broadcasting. From there former colleague and "Saturday Night Live" player Jan Hooks introduced the Turners to Lorne Michaels, and they landed writing jobs on the popular NBC sketch comedy series. As "SNL" writers from 1986-1992, the Turners wrote memorable skits for Dana Carvey's wacky "Church Lady" and Mike Myers' medieval "Lothar of the Hill People" as well as cable access favorite sons Wayne and Garth of "Wayne's World" that returned the faltering series to the realm of pop culture cool.
While "Funland," their 1987 entry into film proved forgettable, TV success would pave the way for the Turners' next project. "Wayne's World" (1992), the feature adaptation of the popular sketch co-written by Turner, his wife Bonnie, and star Mike Myers was a hit, winning over moviegoers and video buyers with humor that was fresh, but true to the beloved "SNL" characters. Less successful was the subsequent "Saturday Night Live"-based offering "Coneheads" (1993), co-written and co-produced by the married couple, though that same year's sequel "Wayne's World 2" (which they also co-wrote) won audiences over. Continuing to bring television characters to film, the Turners co-wrote the screenplay for 1995's "The Brady Bunch Movie," and worked with "SNL" cast if not characters as writers of the Chris Farley/David Spade buddy comedy "Tommy Boy" (also 1995).
After their departure from "Saturday Night Live," the Turners created their own sketch comedy show, the short-lived but widely praised ABC offering "SHE TV" (1994). Having milked the displaced misfit theme to good effect in films the pair took it to television, creating, producing and writing episodes of "3rd Rock From the Sun" (1996-2001), an NBC sitcom that put four aliens in human bodies and left them to figure out the workings of Earth on their own. Bolstered by performances from cast members John Lithgow, Jane Curtin, Kristen Johnston and French Stewart that ranged from inspired to ridiculously buffoonish, the series was rarely short on laughs, and captured an audience that made it one of the network's more dependable shows. The Turners followed up this success with "That '70s Show" (1998-2006), an acclaimed Fox comedy set in the titular decade that affectionately poked fun at the past while showcasing a talented cast of relative unknowns. Remarkable for its fleshed out adult as well as teen characters, "That '70s Show" became a breakout hit for the network, big with critics as well as audiences. Following up this success Turner and his wife co-created, executive produced and wrote the sitcom "Normal, Ohio" (2000), a series about a blue collar divorced dad (John Goodman) who returns to his small town home, ending a four-year jaunt in California that followed his coming out to friends and family. Though the series' original concept and colorful supporting cast would add to the show's appeal, numerous re-writes and major changes plagued the production.
Filmography
Cast (Feature Film)
Writer (Feature Film)
Writer (Special)
Special Thanks (Special)
Life Events
1975
With wife Bonnie Turner, worked in Atlanta, Georgia as a comedy writer for revue shows
1986
With Bonnie Turner, was writer on "Saturday Night Live" (NBC), writing such recurring sketches as "Church Lady" and "Wayne's World"
1987
Co-wrote the screenplay for the amusement park-set comedy "Funland"
1992
Had screenwriting credit (along with Bonnie Turner and Mike Myers) for "Wayne's World", a successful big screen adaptation of the popular "SNL" skit
1993
Was co-screenwriter and co-producer of "Coneheads", another feature based on "Saturday Night Live" characters
1993
Co-wrote the screenplay for the sequel "Wayne's World 2"
1994
With Bonnie Turner, developed and executive produced "SHE TV", a short-lived sketch comedy series on ABC
1995
Co-wrote the comedy feature "The Brady Bunch Movie"
1995
Had screenwriting credit (along with Bonnie Turner and Fred Wolf) on the David Spade/Chris Farley buddy comedy "Tommy Boy"
1998
With Bonnie Turner, created and executive produced the Fox sitcom "That '70s Show"
2000
Was co-creator, executive producer and writer of "Normal, Ohio" (Fox), a sitcom starring John Goodman as a small town gay dad
Companions
