Marc "Babaloo"Mandel (born October 13, 1949) is an American writer and producer. He first wrote episodic television comedy, then transitioned to writing feature films and theatre. He and long-time writing partnerLowell Ganz wrote numerous high-profile films includingSplash (1984),Parenthood (1989),City Slickers (1991), andA League of Their Own (1992).^[1]

Mandel was born in New York City. His father was a taxi driver.^[1] He attendedQueens College, City University of New York, before leaving for Hollywood in 1972.

At Queens College, Mandel met Ganz, who nicknamed him "Babaloo", after the character Ba-ba-lu Mandel inPhilip Roth's novelPortnoy's Complaint.^[1] In 2006, Mandel and Ganz were featured inThe Dialogue interview series.^{[citation needed]} In the 90-minute interview with producerMichael De Luca, they discussed their 40-year partnership as it evolved from television to feature films.

Both men worked on the television seriesHappy Days, Mandel as a creative consultant, Ganz as supervising producer.^[1] As a result of that connection, they were offered their first big break, the movieNight Shift, by series starRon Howard and his friend, producerBrian Grazer.^[1] Howard directedNight Shift, and it was Grazer's first feature film as producer.^[2] The writing duo later teamed up again with Howard onSplash, for which Mandel, Ganz, andBruce Jay Friedman won theNational Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay. Mandel, Ganz, Friedman, and Grazer were also nominated for theAcademy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

The pair also wrote for the television seriesLaverne & Shirley. They were the screenwriters for the 1992 sports movieA League of Their Own, directed byPenny Marshall.

He married Denise Madelyn Horn in 1974.^[1] They have six children, including a set of triplets.^[3]

TheOnline Archive of California houses the Lowell Ganz & Babaloo Mandel Collection of material related to their writing careers.^[2]

• Busting Loose (1977)
• Laverne & Shirley (1977–78)
• Happy Days (1981)

• Babaloo Mandel atIMDb

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