Despite television being a very crowded field right now, the police procedural series NCIS
is still going strong in its 18th season — and even today it's one of the most-watched shows
in America.
Loyal viewers have stuck with the series since its premiere in 2003, and in its tenth season,
it even surpassed Sunday Night Football and American Idol to become the highest rated
broadcast on network TV.
Since that time, NCIS has never left the list of top-three most watched shows in the country.
It even inspired two spin-offs of its own — NCIS: New Orleans and NCIS: Los Angeles,
both of which are hugely popular in their own right.
Unsurprisingly for a massively successful show that's been on the air for nearly two
decades, NCIS has also seen its fair share of behind-the-scenes drama.
Perhaps most contentious of all, however, was showrunner and creator Donald Bellisario's
sudden departure from the show in 2007.
After less than five years, why would someone leave such a successful show, and one they
created, too?
Well, let's just say it wasn't exactly by choice.
It's worth knowing a little more about Bellisario's background in television — after all, his
name is practically synonymous with the medium.
His writing career began in 1977, when he earned his first credit for penning an episode
of the Cliff Potts-led series Big Hawaii on NBC.
He continued to bolster his resume throughout the late '70s as a writer and director, contributing
to some of the most well-known TV shows of the decade, including Kojak, Battlestar Galactica,
and Quincy, M.E.
Bellisario's big break arrived in 1980, when he launched his first series, Magnum P.I.,
which became a cultural staple for American TV and established Tom Selleck as a household
name.
The show was an enormous success for CBS and remained on the air for eight seasons.
This was just the beginning of Bellisario's working relationship with the network, however,
which would continue on and off for nearly 40 years.
Despite the runaway success of Magnum, P.I., Bellisario's name wasn't exactly a golden
ticket to success for his TV creations.
Tales of the Golden Monkey, an ABC adventure show attempting to capitalize on the success
of Raiders of the Lost Ark, aired for only one season in 1982-83.
Another one of his works was Tequila and Bonetti, a CBS comedy-drama about an Italian cop and
his talking canine partner.
Amid poor reviews from critics, the network cancelled the show before the last two of
its 12 filmed episodes could air.
Still, after that rough patch he rebounded with more hits, including the cult favorite
science fiction series Quantum Leap, which debuted in 1989.
The show survived for four seasons, with the final episode attracting almost 13 million
viewers.
But his biggest success, even above Magnum P.I., would come in 1995, with the debut of
JAG.
NBC is probably still kicking themselves to this day over that one — only the first
season of JAG aired on their network, and when they opted to drop the show, CBS swooped
in.
What followed was a popular 10 season run.
But more importantly, thanks to a backdoor pilot in season 8, NCIS was born, spinning
off to quickly become the juggernaut franchise it is today.
But Bellisario's time with NCIS came to a dramatic end when, in 2007, the show's star
Mark Harmon forced him out.
According to reports, the two butted heads for months, with Harmon disliking Bellisario's,
quote, "chaotic management style" and the long hours that resulted from it.
The network decided Harmon's star power was more important to the show than Bellisario's
behind-the-scenes work, and the latter was subsequently fired.
However, he retained an executive producer title on the show, which he still holds today.
This wasn't the end of the drama involving Bellisario, though.
The ex-showrunner sued CBS after NCIS: Los Angeles entered into production.
An existing clause in his contract gave him the right to create the show's first spinoff,
but after his forced departure from the show, CBS hired fellow NCIS Executive Producer Shane
Brennan to make it instead.
Needless to say, Bellisario was not okay with this.
"Everything is not okay!"
Bellisario and CBS ultimately settled out of court for an undisclosed amount.
Bellisario is now retired from TV — and although he may no longer be actively involved
with NCIS, fans still have him to thank for creating and producing such a long-running
and beloved series.
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