D'Elia grew up in Queens, New York City, graduated from Ithaca College, and earned a master's degree in communication arts from William Paterson University in 1972.
Career[]
In the 1980s, D'Elia was a successful director of television commercials. In 1989, he independently produced and directed the film The Feud, based on the 1983 novel by Thomas Berger. The film attracted the attention of Steven Bochco, who hired D'Elia to direct an episode of Doogie Howser, M.D.. D'Elia went on to direct episodes of numerous other television series including Northern Exposure, Glee, Chicago Hope, Ally McBeal, The Practice, Boston Legal, and The West Wing. D'Elia was an executive producer/director of Chicago Hope, Boston Legal, Ally McBeal, Harry's Law, Monday Mornings and "The Crazy Ones", and the co-creator of Judging Amy. He is currently an executive producer and director of How to Get Away with Murder starring Viola Davis.[1]
