out a press release describing him as, "an extraordinary storyteller and cherished friend, who inspired all of us who knew him." Tributes to him from several members of the cast and crew of Star Trek, as well as those from The Dead Zone, were published on the official Star Trek website. He has been subsequently credited with giving The Next Generation its "soul" by Star Trek writer Paula Block, while Terry J. Erdmann felt that the complex characters of Deep Space Nine were entirely formed from Piller's imagination. Likewise, TNG cast member Wil Wheaton said that Piller was "more responsible than anyone else for Next Generation transforming itself into the amazing show it became in season four". Eric Stillwell, who worked as Piller's executive assistant on Insurrection and later became Vice President of Operations at Piller Squared, said that Piller's greatest gift was his ability to nurture new writers and help them develop their talent. He felt that this would be Piller's enduring legacy. Notes References Michael Piller - biography at StarTrek.com Spotlight: Michael Piller Gets "Squared" Away - interviewed by Deborah Fisher for StarTrek.com External links Piller2 - website of Michael Piller's production company 1948 births 2005 deaths American male screenwriters American television executives Television producers from New York (state) American television writers Burials at Forest Lawn Memorial Park (Glendale) Deaths from cancer in California Showrunners People from Port Chester, New York University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni American male television writers Jewish American screenwriters Screenwriters from New York (state) 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American screenwriters 20th-century American Jews 21st-century American Jews