Robert Colesberry, 57; TV Producer Helped Create ‘The Wire’

Robert F. Colesberry Jr., a New York-based film and television producer and co-creator of the current HBO urban drama “The Wire,” has died. He was 57.

Colesberry died Monday in a New York City hospital of complications from heart surgery.

Among Colesberry’s credits as a producer are Alan Parker’s “Mississippi Burning” (1988), Martin Scorsese’s “After Hours” (1985) and Billy Crystal’s HBO drama “61*” (2001).

As an executive producer of HBO’s 2000 miniseries “The Corner,” a true-life depiction of urban drug addiction, Colesberry received a Peabody Award and an Emmy for best miniseries.

He also received Oscar and Golden Globe nominations for his work on “Mississippi Burning” and Emmy nominations for “61*” and the 1985 TV-movie version of Arthur Miller’s “Death of a Salesman.”

Born in Philadelphia, Colesberry served as a lieutenant in the Army in the mid-1960s. After his discharge, he attended Southern Connecticut State College, where he developed an interest in acting. He transferred to the Tisch School for the Arts at New York University, where he made student films and earned a bachelor’s degree in 1973.

He began his career in films as an assistant director on “Andy Warhol’s Bad” in 1976. While serving as the first assistant director on Alan Parker’s 1980 movie “Fame,” Colesberry co-wrote “Hot Lunch,” the flip side to the hit title song.

Colesberry, who often appeared in cameos in his films, played a recurring role as the hapless Baltimore detective Ray Cole on “The Wire,” which debuted in 2001.

He also made his directorial debut on “The Wire,” directing the last episode of the second season. He was scheduled to direct the opening episode of the coming season.

He is survived by his wife of 12 years, Karen L. Thorson; and two sisters, Jean Brown and Christine Strittmatter.

A memorial service is being planned.

A scholarship fund for young filmmakers has been established in the name of Robert F. Colesberry at the Tisch School for the Arts at New York University, 721 Broadway, 12th floor, New York, NY 10003.