Michael Loceff (born 1952) was a writer and producer on 24's first seven seasons. He is the cousin of 24 co-creator Joel Surnow, with whom he wrote all but two of his credited episodes. Trained as a mathematician and computer scientist, Loceff first started writing on La Femme Nikita, created by Surnow and Robert Cochran, primarily consulting on technical questions before becoming a writer and producer. After joining 24 as a writer and co-producer for its first season, he divided his time between his Seattle residence and Los Angeles, where he kept an apartment near the set. In addition to writing four to six episodes a season, Loceff polished scenes in other episodes with a focus on the relationships between characters at CTU, claiming that Chloe O'Brian was his favorite character to writ