Nahnatchka Khan

Nahnatchka Khan was an American television writer and producer who was best known for creating such popular shows as "Don't Trust the B--- in Apartment 23" (ABC, 2012-13) and "Fresh Off the Boat" (ABC, 2015-). Born in Las Vegas and raised in Hawaii, Khan always knew she wanted to write for television. However, growing up as an American child with Iranian heritage, she felt frustrated by the lack of Middle-Eastern characters represented on television. So, when she decided to pursue television writing in earnest by enrolling in the School of Cinematic Arts at USC, Khan's long-term goal was to write stories for TV that included diverse characters and cultures. During college Khan was able to see how the sausage was made firsthand by interning for National Lampoon magazine and Fox. Then, after graduation, she got her first big writing break by writing for the animated series "Pepper Ann" (ABC/UPN/Disney Channel, 1997-2000). Khan wrote a number of episodes for the series before moving on to the writing staff of "Malcolm in the Middle" (Fox, 2000-06). Khan wrote four episodes of the series, which starred a pre-"Breaking Bad" Bryan Cranston. After "Malcolm in the Middle," Kahn returned to animated television as a writer for Seth MacFarlane's "American Dad" (Fox, 2005-). Khan wrote for the series from 2005-2011. In 2012 Khan created the series "Don't Trust the B--- in Apartment 23." The comedy series, which starred Kristen Ritter, ran for two seasons on ABC, but despite a ravenous fanbase, was cancelled by the network in 2013 due to low ratings. Khan's next television creation was the sitcom "Fresh off the Boat." Adapted from the Eddie Huang memoir of the same name, the series followed a Taiwanese-American family living in Florida in the 1990s. In addition to allowing Khan to fulfill her initial goal of showcasing diversity on network television, "Fresh off the Boat" was a smash hit for ABC. The series consistently drew big audiences and in May of 2019 was renewed for a sixth season. 2019 was also the year that Khan made her feature film directorial debut with "Always Be My Maybe." The film, which starred Ali Wong and Randall Park, premiered on Netflix in May of 2019.