Kevin Bleyer, Emmy-Winning ‘Daily Show’ Writer, Dies at 54 in Car Crash

Crash in Pennsylvania

Bleyer was driving on a rural road in Millrift, Pennsylvania, where he had a home, when he was killed. His publicist told The Hollywood Reporter that no one else was injured.

Years on The Daily Show

Bleyer joined Jon Stewart’s The Daily Show on Comedy Central in 2005, after writing for Bill Maher’s Politically Incorrect and Dennis Miller’s CNBC program. He remained a staff writer on the show through 2013.

He also contributed to the 2006 and 2008 Academy Awards ceremonies hosted by Stewart. Bleyer and his colleagues won writing Emmys in 2006, 2009, 2011 and 2012, and received four additional nominations.

Writing across television

His television work included NBC’s Today and MSNBC’s Ronan Farrow Daily, where he was a supervising producer. He also wrote a weekly column for The Daily Beast. For scripted television, Bleyer wrote for The Right Stuff, Sleepy Hollow and Significant Others. He created and executive produced pilots for Disney Television Animation, Comedy Central, Nickelodeon and Showtime.

Family and remembrance

Bleyer was born in Bethesda, Maryland, grew up in Seattle and attended Stanford University. He had called New York City home for 20 years. Actor and screenwriter Danny Strong called Bleyer “a writer’s writer” and said his talent was matched by his kindness. Strong said he was shocked by Bleyer’s death and already missed him.