Steve Pepoon, ‘The Wild Thornberrys’ Co-Creator, Passes Away, Aged 68

An Emmy winner and the pride of Paola, Kansas, he also worked on ALF, The Simpsons, It’s Garry Shandling’s Show, Roseanne and two series starring Tom Arnold.

Steve Pepoon created the hit animated series 'The Wild Thornberrys' and wrote for many beloved live-action and toon TV comedies, including 'The Simpsons,' 'The PJs' and 'ALF'.

Steve Pepoon, who co-created The Wild Thornberrys, received an Emmy for writing an episode of The Simpsons as a freelancer, and worked on other TV comedies like It’s Garry Shandling’s Show, ALF and Roseanne, has sadly died. He was 68.

Pepoon has been in treatment for a heart condition called cardiac amyloidosis for the past two years and died unexpectedly May 3 outside his home in Paola, Kansas, his wife, Mary Stephenson, told The Hollywood Reporter.

After moving from his native Kansas to Los Angeles, Pepoon in late 1985 finally sold his first script, which became an episode of Silver Spoons that aired in January 1986. Fifteen months later, he was hired as a staff writer on ALF, another NBC comedy, and wrote for its final three seasons through 1990.

He kept writing on spec, and one script he did for Fox’s The Simpsons, “Homer vs. Lisa and the 8th Commandment” (1991) was later submitted for and won the Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Animated Program, which he shares with 13 others.

“For whatever reason, they chose my episode [for Emmy consideration],” he said in a 2016 interview.

For Tom Arnold and Roseanne Barr, Pepoon served as the head writer on ABC’s The Jackie Thomas Show in 1992-93 and wrote for ABC’s Roseanne and for CBS’ Tom — as that short-lived show’s creator, head writer and showrunner — in 1994.

Pepoon created Nickelodeon’s The Wild Thornberrys with Arlene Klasky and Gábor Csupó, of famed animation studio Klasky-Csupó, as well as collaborators from previous writers’ rooms, David Silverman and Stephen Sustarsic, about a wildlife documentarian couple and their daughters - one of which has the ability to talk to animals - who travel the world encountering incredible animals and getting into wild mishaps. The show was originally pitched as an adult-targeted toon for Fox, but was retooled for family audiences and premiered on Nickelodeon.

The Wild Thornberrys, led by Tim Curry’s Sir Nigel Archibald Thornberry, ran for five seasons, from 1998-2004, earning a Daytime Emmy nomination for children’s animation and multiple Genesis and Environmental Media Awards. The show spawned the theatrical feature The Wild Thornberrys Movie (2002) as well as a big-screen crossover, Rugrats Go Wild (2003). Pepoon also created the TV movie The Wild Thornberrys: The Origin of Donnie, focusing on the family’s adopted raised-by-orangutans son (voiced by Red Hot Chili Peppers bassist Flea), named after Pepoon’s own nephew.

One of three boys, Stephen Robert Pepoon was born on May 19, 1956, in Kansas City, Missouri. He and his family moved when he was 2 to Paola, Kansas, where his father, Donald, would own a construction company. His mother, Marianne, was a longtime volunteer at the library.

At Paola High, Pepoon wrote for the school newspaper and became a fan of The Dick Van Dyke Show, which revolved around a TV comedy writer. “This planted the seed of Steve’s career dream to become a screenwriter,” his family noted.

After graduating from Kansas State University in 1978, Pepoon worked at a shoe store in a shopping center to save enough money to move to Los Angeles in 1979. And while writing 35 scripts on spec, he lived in Bellflower and worked as a bank teller, flipped hamburgers and managed a drive-in theater and a video arcade to make ends meet.

He finally got some job security with ALF.

Pepoon also wrote for Showtime’s It’s Garry Shandling’s Show in 1990; for the 1990-91 NBC spinoff Ferris Bueller, starring Charlie Schlatter and Jennifer Aniston; for Fox’s Get a Life, starring Chris Elliott, in 1991-92; and for ABC’s Dinosaurs, created by Jim Henson, in 1992.

His résumé included writing/producing work on Cleghorne!, You Wish, Teen Angel, and acclaimed primetime stop-motion animated series The PJs, and an acting credit in Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult (1994) — just because he owned a tux, which got him into the scene as an audience member in the film’s Oscar melee.

He was a member of the Academy of Magical Arts and the Magic Castle in Los Angeles, and he bought a DeLorean after seeing the one in Back to the Future.

In 2009, Pepoon returned to Paola for his 35^th high school reunion, where he reconnected with Mary Stephenson — whom he had first met in kindergarten. After a whirlwind courtship, the pair married in Paola the same year, and Pepoon never returned to Hollywood. Steve and Mary shared a joyful marriage full of travel, and were known about the small Kansan city for their fantastic home holiday decorations. They also remained close with their Paola High School Class of ’74, and Pepoon was honored with the Paola Alumni Festival Lifetime Achievement Award in 2024.

A celebration of life is set for Saturday, May 17 at the Paola Community Center. His family is collecting memorial contributions to set up a scholarship fund for Paola High students seeking a career in writing, theater or film.

Steve Pepoon | Courtesy of Mary Stephenson

R.I.P. Stephen Robert Pepoon, May 19, 1956 - May 3, 2025

Sources: Animation Magazine, @KeydalisColo2, @nickSpongebobp1.