---
name: "Stephen Downing"
canonical: "https://film.one/person/stephen-downing"
roles: ["Writer"]
born: "28 October 1938"
died: "20 November 2025"
reviewed_on_fi1m: 1
updated: "2026-09-16T16:49:45.002202+00:00"
licence: "© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL."
---

# Stephen Downing

Writer. Born 28 October 1938 in Hanford, California, USA. Died 20 November 2025.

## Details

- **Work:** Writer
- **Born:** 28 October 1938, Hanford, California, USA
- **Died:** 20 November 2025
- **Also known as:** Adrian Leeds

## Biography

Stephen Downing (1938–2025) was an American screenwriter and television producer. While serving as an officer with the Los Angeles Police Department, he wrote scripts under pseudonyms including Sean Baine and Adrian Leeds.

His television writing credits include episodes of *Kojak* (1973), *CHiPs* (1977) and *T. J. Hooker* (1982). After retiring from the LAPD in 1980, he worked as a producer and showrunner on series including *MacGyver* (1985). He studied creative writing at California State University, Los Angeles.

*Sources: en.wikipedia.org, nytimes.com.*

## On Fi1m (1)

- *Kojak* (1973), Fi1m 80, Writer — [page](https://film.one/tv/kojak.md)

## Also known for

- *MacGyver* (1985), Writer
- *CHiPs* (1977), Writer
- *T. J. Hooker* (1982), Story, Writer

---
© Fi1m Ltd. Written by AI under a human editor; checked against sources before publication. Quote with attribution and a link to the canonical URL. Canonical: https://film.one/person/stephen-downing