William Link, of the Emmy-winning Cheltenham High writing pair that created the timeless hits Columbo and Murder She Wrote, died on December 27 at 87, write Associated Press and The Philadelphia Inquirer.

Link met his writing partner, Richard Levinson, in Elkins Park Junior High.

The two hit it off, forming a writing partnership that blossomed especially during their years at Cheltenham High School.

The duo continued to write as a team for decades to come. They won awards and acclaim for both the popular TV shows and movies they made in the 1970s and 1980s about social issues.

These were at the time mostly shunned by television, as they featured interracial marriage and homosexuality.

The partnership ended in 1987 when Levinson died of a heart attack.

After a year-long pause in writing, Link got back to work with Boys, a black comedy about a 20-year writing partnership and friendship.

“I wrote the whole script in eight days,” said Link at the time. “I felt like Dick was still in the room with me.”

He continued to write for years, including for Alfred Hitchcock’s Mystery Magazine.

Read more about William Link at The Philadelphia Inquirer by clicking here.