 Michael " Mike " Scully ( born October 2 , 1956 ) is an American television writer and producer . He is known for his work as executive producer and showrunner of the animated sitcom The Simpsons from 1997 to 2001 . Scully grew up in West Springfield , Massachusetts and long had an interest in writing . He was an underachiever at school and dropped out of college , going on to work in a series of jobs . Eventually , in 1986 , he moved to Los Angeles where he worked as a stand @-@ up comic and wrote for Yakov Smirnoff . 
