Sam Laybourne

Television writer and producer Sam Laybourne was a second-generation small-screen vet, born to TV producer Kit Laybourne and Geraldine Laybourne, who went on to found the Oxygen network. After graduating from Wesleyan and receiving a masters from Columbia University, Laybourne initially pursued a career in teaching before he decided to follow his parents into the television industry. Laybourne earned his first credits by writing for "Scouts Safari" (Kids Discovery 2002-04) before moving on to the cult favorite sitcom "Arrested Development" (Fox 2003-06). After that series' cancellation, Laybourne wrote for another series that couldn't translate positive critical response into ratings, the outcast-teen sitcom "Aliens in America" (CW 2007-08). Laybourne then joined the writing staff of Bill Lawrence's "Cougar Town" (ABC/TBS 2009-15), an ensemble comedy about middle-aged friendship starring Courteney Cox. Laybourne rose to executive story editor and co-producer before leaving the show in 2012 as it jumped from ABC to TBS. Laybourne's next gig came as a writer and executive producer on "The Michael J. Fox Show" (NBC 2013-14).