# Neal Israel

Neal Israel (born July 27, 1945) is an American film and television director, screenwriter, and producer best known for his comedic work in the 1980s for films such as Police Academy, Real Genius, and Bachelor Party. Israel has also directed episodes for several TV shows, including The Fresh Beat Band, Lizzie McGuire, Zeke and Luther, Dog with a Blog, and I Didn't Do It.

## Biography
### Career

Raised in Manhattan in a Jewish family, Israel started his career on the Broadway stage as assistant to legendary director George Abbott. After working at the New Dramatists Guild and the Eugene O'Neill Playwrights Conference, he came to Los Angeles, and was an executive at both ABC and CBS. During this time he wrote and directed the break through indie hit Tunnel Vision, which introduced such future stars as Chevy Chase, John Candy and Al Franken.
On television, he wrote Ringo, a special that starred Ringo Starr and George Harrison. He then wrote with his partner, Pat Proft, the first Police Academy movie, which spawned six sequels. He directed and co-wrote Bachelor Party, which starred Tom Hanks. He followed this with the comedy Moving Violations. Real Genius, another of his scripts, was made into a successful film starring Val Kilmer, and in 1987, he produced the film Three O'Clock High. He also directed Breaking The Rules starring Jason Bateman and the cult classic Surf Ninjas with Rob Schneider and Leslie Nielsen.
Neal continues to work in both film and television as a writer, director, producer, and script doctor. He has directed numerous movies of the week, pilots, and episodes of shows such as The Wonder Years, Nash Bridges, Joan of Arcadia, and Even Stevens. Recent directing credits include Disney's Zeke and Luther and Kickin It. In 2004, he executive-produced the Academy Award-nominated film Finding Neverland, which starred Johnny Depp and Kate Winslet.
In July 2017, Israel said he was working on a comedy with his longterm partner Pat Proft that will feature stars of the predominant comedic films of the '70s and '80s.

### Personal life

His first marriage was to American singer/songwriter Lori Lieberman. They divorced in 1980. After being hired by director Amy Heckerling to work on Johnny Dangerously, the two began a relationship and married in July 1984. The couple divorced in 1990 after making Look Who's Talking Too together. Israel believed their daughter, Mollie, was biologically his until a DNA test showed she was the biological daughter of director Harold Ramis.

## Filmography
### Film

| Year | Title | Director | Writer | Notes |
| 1976 | Tunnel Vision | Yes | Yes | Co-directed with Bradley R. Swirnoff |
| 1977 | Cracking Up | No | Yes | |
| 1979 | Americathon | Yes | Yes | |
| 1984 | Police Academy | No | Yes | |
| 1984 | Bachelor Party | Yes | Yes | |
| 1985 | Moving Violations | Yes | Yes | |
| 1985 | Real Genius | No | Yes | |
| 1990 | Look Who's Talking Too | No | Yes | |
| 1992 | Breaking the Rules | Yes | No | aka Sketches |
| 1993 | Surf Ninjas | Yes | No | |
Producer
* Three O'Clock High (1987)
* The Runner (1999)
Executive producer
* Chocolate for Breakfast (1998)
* Finding Neverland (2004)
* Bachelor Party 2: The Last Temptation (2008)

### Television

Director
* The George Burns Comedy Week (1985)
* The Wonder Years (1991)
* Harts of the West (1994)
* Love Boat: The Next Wave (1999)
* Clueless (1997–1999)
* Shasta McNasty (1999)
* Even Stevens (2000)
* Lizzie McGuire (2001)
* The Mind of the Married Man (2001)
* Family Affair (2002)
* Do Over (2002)
* Phil of the Future (2004)
* Joan of Arcadia (2005)
* Flight 29 Down (2007)
* About a Girl (2007)
* The Fresh Beat Band (2010)
* Zeke and Luther (2011)
* Dog with a Blog (2013)
* I Didn't Do It (2015)
Producer
* Twilight Theater (1982)
* CBS Summer Playhouse (1988)
* Miracles (2003)
Writer
* Yogi's Gang (1973)
* All Commercials... A Steve Martin Special (1980)
TV movies
| Year | Title | Director | Producer | Writer |
| 1986 | Combat Academy | Yes | No | No |
| 1989 | The Cover Girl and the Cop | Yes | No | No |
| 1989 | Dream Date | No | Yes | No |
| 1992 | Bonnie & Clyde: The True Story | No | Yes | No |
| 1993 | Taking the Heat | No | Yes | No |
| 1995 | Family Reunion: A Relative Nightmare | Yes | Yes | Yes |
| 1996 | Kidz in the Wood | No | Yes | Yes |
| 1997 | Dad's Week Off | Yes | No | Yes |
| 1999 | The Patty Duke Show: Still Rockin' in Brooklyn Heights | No | No | Yes |
| 2001 | Hounded | Yes | No | No |
| 2001 | The Poof Point | Yes | No | No |
| 2002 | The Brady Bunch in the White House | Yes | No | No |
| 2003 | National Lampoon's Thanksgiving Family Reunion | Yes | No | No |

## Awards and nominations

| Year | Award | Result | Category | Series |
| 1981 | Writers Guild of America Award | Won | Variety, Musical or Comedy | All Commercials... A Steve Martin Special (Shared with Jeffrey Barron, Earl Brown, Carmen Finestra, Denny Johnston, Sean Kelly, Steve Martin, Pat McCormick, Michael McManus, Pat Proft, and Mason Williams) |
| 2002 | BAFTA Awards | Nominated | Best International | Lizzie McGuire (Shared with Susan Estelle Jansen) |