| Brian Levant | |
| Birth Name: | Brian Michael Levant |
| Birth Date: | 6 August 1952 |
| Birth Place: | Highland Park, Illinois, United States |
| Years Active: | 1976–present |
| Spouse: | Alison Logan |
| Children: | 3 |
Brian Michael Levant (born August 6, 1952) is an American filmmaker.[1]
Born in Highland Park, Illinois to a Jewish family, Levant started his career in 1976 as a writer for the TV series Happy Days. He also wrote for, among other TV shows, The Jeffersons, Mork & Mindy and Still the Beaver.
He is best known for directing the films Beethoven,[1] The Flintstones and its 2000 prequel The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas, Jingle All the Way, Snow Dogs and Are We There Yet?.[1]
Though his work is generally disliked by film critics,[2] Levant has responded to the criticism with, "I'm making movies for the audience that I was when I was sitting at home watching Garfield Goose and The Three Stooges on WGN...To read those reviews is an act of self-flagellation, but reviews be damned when you're at Blockbuster, and you're seeing family after family grab one of your movies off the shelf on a Friday night. I can't tell you how many times I've seen that."
Levant is a major collector of 20th century toys and pop culture memorabilia. His collection is displayed in a 2022 book, My Life and Toys.[3]
Director
Writer
| Year | Title | Director | Producer | Writer |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Beethoven's Big Break | |||
| 2012 | A Christmas Story 2 | |||
| 2014 | Sophia Grace & Rosie's Royal Adventure | |||
TV movies
| Year | Title | Director | Producer | Writer | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1995 | |||||
| The Adventures of Captain Zoom in Outer Space | |||||
| 2009 | Scooby-Doo! The Mystery Begins | ||||
| 2010 | Scooby-Doo! Curse of the Lake Monster | ||||
| 2016 | The Game of Love |
TV series
| Year | Title | Director | Producer | Writer | Creator | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976–84 | Happy Days | Writer (14 episodes) / Producer (44 episodes) | ||||
| 1977 | The Jeffersons | Episode: "Jefferson Airplane" | ||||
| 1978 | Please Stand By | 1 episode | ||||
| 1979 | Brothers and Sisters | 2 episodes | ||||
| 1979–80 | The Bad News Bears | Writer (2 episodes) / Producer (12 episodes) | ||||
| 1981–82 | Mork & Mindy | Writer (2 episodes) / Producer (22 episodes) | ||||
| 1983–89 | The New Leave It to Beaver | 102 episodes / Director (21 episodes) / Writer (19 episodes) | ||||
| 1987 | Married... with Children | Episode: "The Poker Game" | ||||
| 1988–89 | Charles in Charge | 2 episodes | ||||
| 1988–91 | My Secret Identity | 72 episodes / Writer (Episode: "Pilot") | ||||
| 1990 | Poochinski | Unsold pilot | ||||
| 1990-91 | Babes | 22 episodes | ||||
| 1997 | Metropolitan Hospital | Unsold pilot | ||||
| 2000 | Father Can't Cope | Unsold pilot | ||||
| 2001 | Grounded for Life | Episode: "Eddie's Dead" | ||||