MONTECITO, Calif. — When he had his first important business meeting, Gary David Goldberg arrived with a fertile mind and a seasoned thumb.
Without any television writing credits, he hitchhiked from San Diego to Los Angeles to meet an agent and talk TV after a college professor said he had talent.
Although it took him 13 years to get his bachelor’s degree, Goldberg rapidly shot to success in TV, producing the hit sitcom “Family Ties” and other shows colored with his warm brand of New York humor.
Goldberg, who also wrote and directed several films, died Saturday at his home, family members said. He was 68 and had brain cancer.
“Family Ties” revolved around the comically strained relationship between an ex-hippie couple and their children, especially their proudly conservative son, played by Michael J. Fox. It was loosely autobiographical, Goldberg said in his 2008 memoir.
“We find our best story ideas come from our own lives or lives of friends,” he wrote.
His family members “are slowly catching on to the idea that anything they do, can and will be used against them on network television.”
Fox, who would shoot to national prominence during the show’s run from 1982 to 1989, called Goldberg was “my mentor, benefactor, partner, second father and beloved friend.”
Goldberg won writing acclaim for “M*A*S*H,” “The Bob Newhart Show” and “Lou Grant.” He also produced the nostalgic TV series “Brooklyn Bridge” and wrote and directed the 1989 film “Dad” with Jack Lemmon and the 2005 romantic comedy “Must Love Dogs.”
