Mel Damski

Melvin "Mel" Damski (born July 21, 1946) is an American film and television director, producer, and former journalist known for his extensive work in episodic television and made-for-TV movies, including directing episodes of acclaimed series such as MASH and serving as executive producer for Psych. Born in New York City and raised in Roslyn, Long Island, to Jewish immigrant parents who fled Nazi persecution in Europe—his father from Lithuania and mother from Poland—he was one of four children. Damski graduated from Colgate University on a football scholarship before earning an MFA from the American Film Institute's Center for Advanced Film Studies in 1972. His early career included stints as a sports reporter for Newsday and other outlets, where he interviewed figures like Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, before transitioning to directing in 1976.

Damski's television directing credits span decades and include landmark shows like Lou Grant (seven episodes, one Emmy-nominated), Picket Fences (as both director and senior producer), Ally McBeal, Charmed, Boston Legal, and Scorpion, amassing hundreds of hours of directed content. He has also helmed over 40 movies, notably the Emmy-nominated pilot for American Dream (1981), the Christopher Award-winning Everybody's Baby: The Rescue of Jessica McClure (1989), and more recently, 11 Hallmark Channel films in the early 2020s. His feature films include the pirate comedy Yellowbeard (1983), featuring an ensemble cast of Graham Chapman, Peter Boyle, Cheech & Chong, Eric Idle, and other Monty Python alumni, the teen comedy Mischief (1985) and the romantic drama Happy Together (1989), while his documentary Still Kicking: The Fabulous Palm Springs Follies (1997) earned an Academy Award nomination.

In addition to his production career, Damski has contributed to education by teaching film and television at institutions including the American Film Institute, USC, NYU's Tisch School, and Cal Poly San Luis Obispo. Later in life, he settled in the Pacific Northwest, where he writes the award-winning column "If I Ran the Zoo" for local publications like the La Conner Weekly News*, reflecting on family history, resilience, and American life.