William Hasley, a writer who worked on TV series including “The Smurfs” and co-wrote an inspirational book with Caitlyn Jenner, has been identified as the hiker who was found dead on Hollywood’s popular Runyon Canyon trail on Saturday evening. He was 78.
Hasley was previously married to “The Bold and the Beautiful” actress Robin Riker. His death comes just two weeks after a man in his 40s died of cardiac arrest on the same trail.
The Los Angeles Fire Department told the Daily Mail, “LAFD Air Operations lowered rescuers to the patient, and medical treatment was administered.” Officials then pronounced Hasley dead at the scene.
Born in Pittsburgh, Hasley graduated Marshall U., where he played football and ran cross-country, according to his official bio. He started out in animation, writing for Hanna-Barbera and Filmation shows “The Smurfs” and “Fat Albert and the Cosby Kids.”
Always a sports fan, he worked with NBC-TV on the special “Star Salute to the U.S. Olympic Team,” where he met Caitlyn Jenner. Jenner commissioned Halsey to write the motivational book “Finding the Champion Within” for Simon & Schuster. He went on to ghostwrite other motivational books including “Passion, Profit & Power” and “The Slight Edge.” He also wrote “Chasing the Wind, The Autobiography of Steve Fossett,” and was a producer on two TV specials about the mysterious aviator.
He worked on developing the pilot “Borderline Heroes,” which was sold to ABC and wrote the half hour comedy pilot “Steeltown” for Castle Rock Entertainment and developed the pilot “Brooklyn District.”
Hasley went on to work with Oliver Stone and Gerald Green as a writer on “Defiance” and wrote episodes of “The Young Riders” and “Swift Justice.”
He also taught writing at UCLA and participated in numerous charitable events.