Mr. Litz, who was born in Cleveland, and educated at Boston University and Harvard, took a job after graduating as a press agent at the New England Repertory Company. He was soon promoted to actor and, as a member of the ensemble, appeared in plays by Moliere, Chekhov and Mamet. He began writing plays in the early 1980s. His first big break came when Great Divide was selected for The National Playwright's Conference at the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center, and was subsequently produced Off-Broadway at New York Theatre Workshop. He arguably had his biggest success with Domino, a political satire set in Central America, which was produced at New York Theater Workshop in 1988, was directed by David Esbjornson and starred Dan Butler. Other works includez One World, Douglas, Mobile Hymn, which won the Dramalogue Award for Best Play, and Cycles, which recently completed a run at the Asylum Theater and Lab.

Mr. Litz branched into film and television work in the mid-80s, co-writing "Rappin'" in 1985. Other titles included "House of Cards" and "Medium Straight." He wrote several television shows for A&E, History and Discovery including the A&E Biography episodes "George Washington," "Benjamin Franklin," "Andrew Jackson" and the Emmy-nominated "John Travolta."

He is survived by his mother and several cousins.