Show Runner: Producing Variety and Talk Shows for Television

Show Runner: Producing Variety and Talk Shows for Television (2004) by long-time producer Steve Clements chronicles his own history in Hollywood and provides a thorough schematic of not only what it takes to be a successful show runner but also elucidates the various roles and responsibilities of the entire production crew that contribute to the final product. It is written for both the lay person and for those who already have some industry knowledge of Hollywood but may want an inside look at day-to-day activities.

This book is an easy and very entertaining read filled with humorous stories and insight spread across the years. Its greatest value derives from Clements’ vast experience as a producer and show runner. He not only breaks down the elusive titles and roles that the moniker “producer” is often attached to, such as executive producer, line producer, segment producer, field producer, associate producer, et al., but brings into focus the interactions between all members of the production team. As well, he takes the reader from initial show concept, pitches (to various different and intertwined industry entities) and pilots, to pre-production, production, and post-production. He includes samples of leave-behinds, budgets, rundowns, daily production schedules and more. What is also important is that Clements also addresses how industry roles and procedures have sometimes changed over the years, especially in light of mergers and conglomeration. Another, fine feature of the book, is that he also takes the time conversationally, to define all of the industry jargon that he uses—lingo that anyone who hopes to be in the business should be able to understand and use in order to hold a competent conversation in regards to any project.

The material covered within the chapters of this book is applicable to many other types of TV programs and even other media. I unhesitatingly recommend Show Runner to anyone with an interest not only in production but also how business in Hollywood actually works. This book is a keeper!

Directing for Television: Conversations with American TV Directors

Directing for Television: Conversations with American TV Directors by Brian Geoffrey Rose was a great book! When searching for information on directors, books, magazines and websites are almost always about film directors. However, television directors are much less famous and in many ways have much harder jobs. TV directors have tremendous challenges of getting hours of programming done every month and keeping things on budget all while being creative and keeping the quality of the show high. Film directors have months to complete a two hour movie, while TV directors may only have a few days to complete one hour of programming. TV directors also have the challenge of putting some shows together live.

This book is a rare source of great information about the hidden craft of directing television. There are many different types of TV directing. Some directors direct shows as if they would a movie, using a single camera at a time perfecting the acting, lighting, and sound of a scene, and then editing it all together at the end. Other directors sit off of the set and in a control room verbally putting a show together as it goes on, coordinating audio and lighting crews, talent, and as many as a dozen cameras all at the same time. Many of these shows are done live. Other directors do some kind of combination, producing a dramatic show with actors and a script, but as if it were being broadcast live to save money and time. This book covered all of these different directing approaches.

The book was structured in an interview format, with the editor asking questions of some of the best directors in the business. Many of these directors helped make television what it is today. These directors all came from different places and they all ended up in a different place in their careers. Not only does this give a great variety in perspectives, but it offers a personal view as well. This book doesn’t read like a textbook, giving one-sided facts about the industry. Rather, it gives practical advice from real people who have had success. It goes into detail about the daily lives of industry professionals and the challenges they face. As someone who wants to be a TV director, this book was a great resource for me!

I recommend this book to anyone who is interested in a career in television, or to someone who is interested in the media business. TV directors are in many ways the backbone of our world of entertainment, but they go very much unrecognized. For as hard as their job is, very few people know about TV directors, and the details about what their jobs entail. Most TV directors live in the shadows of film directors and TV producers. This book offers a hard to find perspective about the true craft of director for television.

Infamous Media Mogul

By Bonnie Smith

           

            In Rupert Murdoch: The Untold Story of the World's Greatest Media Wizard, Neil Chenoweth amasses explains every detail of Murdoch's life, focusing on his early years, his three marriages, and his numerous business transactions. Chenoweth believes that Murdoch is probably the most influential and powerful media figure in the world, and tries to prove this premise throughout the book. 

 

            Rupert Murdoch has built one of the world’s most complex empires with a collection of satellites, newspapers, TV stations, and film studios. In this book Chenoweth explains how Murdoch struggled through debt, and almost losing his company before he became the media mogul he is today.

 

            The book is not an extremely captivating read, but it is interesting. The book talks a lot about different conspiracy theories surrounding Murdoch and his various business transactions. While these conspiracy theories are interesting to read about, some of Chenoweth’s premises and research seem a little over the top. He pretty much describes Murdoch as this horrible, money-hungry villain that screws everyone over for his own gain. One of Chenoweth’s main examples in making Murdoch look villainous is the News Corp.'s super secret News Digital Systems unit, and Michael Clinger’s illegal activities surrounding the issue. Chenoweth just seemed to cut Murdoch down whenever he got the chance.  

The Hollywood Studio Systems: A History

The book that I decided to do for my book review, The Hollywood Studio Systems: A History, was written by Douglas Gomery. This book was a great and informative read! It is the first book to describe and analyse the complete development, classic operation, and reinvention of the global corporate entities which produce/d and distribute/d most of the films we watch. It starts back in 1920 and continues up modern times (Published in 2005).

THe book has 3 parts. Part 1: The rise of the Studio Systems from 1915 - 1930 (which includes the top 5 studio houses, i.e. Paramount, Loews/MGM, Fox, and Warner Bros., as well as RKO and the minor studioes such as Universal, Columbia and United Artists). Each chapter discusses a major studio corporation in detai, from its founder up to the current leader, and uses graphs and statistics (including info printed in Variety and other details) to show what was the mindframe during various time periods.

Part 2 discusses the Classic Studio Era from 1931 through 1951, and Part 3 discusses The Modern Hollywood Studio System, with each chapter discussing each studio. Like I said, the book was very informative, I know tons of information now about how these studios ran and how they are run now, and I feel like I understand the reason why certain moves were made, and the general direction that things are going. I give it a 5! It's a must read!

~Fen~

Coming Attractions?: Hollywood, High Tech, and the Future of Entertainment

This is a book about the history of Hollywood and Silicon Valley's technological relationship over the years. Author Philip Meza’s credentials are mostly in research and consulting. Much of the book talks about strategies for what Hollywood will need to do in order to stay afloat in the world of new media and Meza consults companies on this, so it’s safe to say he has proper credentials for this particular subject.

The book is definitely worth reading for people who are involved or would like to be involved in the media industry as well as people who are just interested in the latest example of the technological innovations from Silicon Valley merging with the money, business, and talent of Hollywood. The history provided gives perspective to the history of Hollywood’s struggle to accept new technologies and what they do to sustain profits. The inside information Meza provides is right from the front line and it will be interesting to see how relevant this information will be in the future.

5 out of 5.

-Ryan Keeshan

TV Creators: Conversations With America’s Top Producers

Not only does this book provide a straightforward & interesting background on the history of television, it exposes the backgrounds of those who have made television happen. From Paul Haggis to Aaron Spelling, conversations about their lives, journeys, and shows are revealed. These Producers that let everything lose through these pages, range from producing shows on ABC, NBC, CBS, the WB and many others.

This book allows the readers, probably future Producers or those interested in entering the industry, the chance to view these praised individuals as regular “human beings”. It gives the reader a sense of familiarity and comfort with the men and women we rarely hear from, but often see their names flash across the screen for a split second at the end of a show. It gives insight and knowledge behind how these great minds think, and I thank James L. Longworth Jr. for presenting this material to the public.

Rating: 4 out of 5

Hollywood; Legend and Reality

Hollywood Book Review
I read Hollywood, Legend and Reality. It was a really good overview of how the town of Hollywood started and grew. This book had well rounded information on Hollywood. It was interesting to see it all through pictures and with people and stories attached. I loved the photos of the old movie posters or magazines that promoted movies. I also loved the aerial photos of a MGM Studio in 1932 and the sets that could be seen. It talked about the production, and screenwriting details of the town and how the first films came to be. This book also talked a lot about directing and had a whole chapter dedicated to the early beginnings. That chapter also went into detail about the roles that support the director. The chapters in production design and costume design had really good examples of old movies and how much it cost and the amount of effort that was put into creating them to be the works of art that they are. The pictures in these two chapters were unique and stunning. This book talked about the unions and how war affected Hollywood. It told of the violence and had pictures associated with picketing at the Warner Bros studio in a prolonged labor dispute of 1945. The last four chapters; cinematography, editing, scoring and special effects were also really good. Giving examples of how the big moviemakers did it in the beginning and toward the late 70’s. It showed pictures from films like Frankenstein and King Kong.
To me this book was really information about the business of movie making but except for the first chapter it was not so much about the town of Hollywood but the movie making business. I did think it did a really good job on touching and informing of all the areas including in film making and using great images that are not often seen. I would recommend this book if you didn’t know very much about the business as a whole or wanted a lot of history or even just to look at the unique pictures. I give it a 5

Nicole Sterley

Guidelines

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