Shonda Rhimes

Shonda is an award-winning writer, director, and producer who created the hit ABC series Grey's Anatomy and Scandal. Shonda also created the Grey's Anatomy spinoff series, Private Practice, which ran on ABC for six seasons. Now in its eleventh season, Grey's Anatomy continues to be hailed by audiences and critics. For her work on the series, Shonda received the 2007 Television Producer of the Year award from the Producers Guild of America, the 2007 Golden Globe for Outstanding Television Drama, the 2007 Lucy Award for Excellence in Television from Women in Film, consecutive wins from 2007-2011 for the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Writing in a Dramatic Series as well as five wins for Outstanding Drama Series, the 2006 Writers Guild Award for Best New Series, in addition to Emmy nominations for Outstanding Drama Series and Writing for a Drama Series. For Scandal, Shonda was the 2013 winner of the NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Drama Series as well as nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Drama Series. Shonda was the recipient of the 2012 GLAAD Golden Gate Award, 2010 RAINN Hope Award and a 2009 GLSEN Respect Awards Honoree. Shonda has twice been included in TIME Magazine's 100 list of the most influential people. Shonda holds a B.A. from Dartmouth College in English Literature with Creative Writing and an M.F.A. from the USC School of Cinema-Television, where she was awarded the prestigious Gary Rosenberg Writing Fellowship. The child of educators, Rhimes blames her parents for her rampant addiction to books.