Robert Van Scoyk, 74; Versatile Television Scriptwriter, Producer

Robert E. Van Scoyk, 74, a television writer and producer known for his contributions to the popular CBS mystery series “Murder, She Wrote,” died Monday in Los Angeles of complications from diabetes.

Born in Dayton, Ohio, in 1928, Van Scoyk began his television career as a page at the NBC studios in New York and eventually was promoted to writer.

He moved to Los Angeles in the late 1960s to write for “The Virginian,” an NBC-TV show starring James Drury that was the first 90-minute western series. In 1979-80, he was executive producer for Warner Bros. TV show “Young Maverick,” another western.

A versatile writer, he also produced scripts for musicals and comedies. He was executive producer of the short-lived medical drama “Rafferty,” starring Patrick McGoohan, which was aired in 1977.

Van Scoyk wrote many episodes of “Murder, She Wrote,” the whodunit series starring Angela Lansbury that ended in 1996, and served as executive story editor. He later wrote TV movies based on the show.

Van Scoyk also wrote short stories and won an Edgar Allan Poe Award from Mystery Writers of America in 1979.