Q: Has the writers’ strike made a big difference in LMNO’s production schedule?
-we’ve done this for a long time and we’re very fortunate that the phone rings whether there’s a strike or not. When there is a strike, we do get more calls from networks and cable companies asking what else we might have and quickly. During the first strike in 1988, “Reality TV” was a blip on the radar screen.  Today, it is a mainstay of network and cable TV, no longer an anomaly. We had 17 shows on the air before the strike began.  We work in network, cable and syndication, so just because the network calls doesn’t mean we stop doing everything else. We do get more calls but we’re no more accelerated in our production schedule since we were already slammed… in a good way. Also, we’re constantly pitching. We’re not waiting for them to call us. With reality companies, probably about 80% of us have the same ideas so the real difference is in the execution of that concept. The format business, which largely drove the reality business, is pretty picked over with formats being gobbled up by not only production companies but from the networks directly. I feel the strike might create opportunities for more original ideas and stories.

Q: In terms of Nielsens, what has been your biggest show ever and what made it a hit?
-our biggest series was “Kids Say the Darndest Things” and our biggest single episode was the “Guinness Book of World Records” premiere featuring the infamous 300lb tumor.  The reason “Kids” was successful was simply because boatloads of people watched it. Having Bill Cosby was having the right star at the right time on the right show. Family viewing meant that families were watching at the same time but in three different rooms.  Whereas shows like “Kids” and “America’s Funniest Home Videos” brought the entire family to watch together. “Kids” was not a children’s show.  It appealed to all ages.

Q: LMNO has been doing reality TV for the better part of 20 years, how has it changed?
-it’s changed in that reality has become more accepted as a genre. We’re still the bastard children of the TV business but sometimes we can come in through the front door. It’s now an acceptable genre like sitcoms or anything else. Shows like “American Idol” and “Dancing with the Stars” are reality shows but ‘reality’ is the catchphrase for any kind of show that people can’t explain. We do documentaries; game shows, talk shows and all of them are called ‘reality’. Within this genre there’s a lot of nuance, it doesn’t always get recognized but there are differences. Back in 1988 the writers’ strike lead to an explosion of reality TV as a new genre. With the current writers’ strike and the Internet and Broadband really opening up, you’ll see that explosion again although broadcast networks do still reach huge amounts of people.

Q: What are you doing in the online and mobile spaces?
-what we’re doing is that our company is in this really cool process of reinventing ourselves at this time. My children will all text me before they call me, so how do we adapt to that? We’re years behind Europe and Japan and we have to figure out how to take our content and monetize it. Everyone says we should be in it but show me how I get one dollar out of it. What do we invest in? How do we invest in it? I don’t think people are going to watch the Super Bowl on their phones.  They’ll watch the highlights of it but not the whole show.  I’ll go to my friend’s house and watch it on the big screen and have a beer or three. At some point, your TV, computer and phone will all become part of one system and your mobile phone will become this amazing remote control that downloads and shows you what is available. The generation coming up has “Google” as part of their vocabulary and vernacular so how do we meet their needs? We are focusing on understanding the new technology but staying on the software side – meaning the software of content – so no matter where you get it, it’s about the content that you want to watch and that’s where we’re going.

Q: What kinds of shows do you have in development?
-we have dozens of projects at the network level – where we’ve really been focusing lately.  We have hundreds of ideas for character-driven cable projects and syndication properties.  We have a scripted show that’s kind of a hybrid between reality and scripted. We develop based on what’s not on television right now and our goal is to be fearless in our development. The concept of putting ballroom dancing on the air may not be fresh and exciting but when you break all the rules sometimes you get something great. The greatness is in taking the chance, taking the shot. The great thing about television is that we get paid to be children. We get paid to go out and play. On the other hand, the biggest problem we have in the reality business is that one bad reality show can hurt the genre.  It can hurt it forever.  Yet in sitcoms, they can do 5000 sitcoms about a family in a living room and one bad one isn’t going to hurt the genre.

Q: Any thoughts on the HRTS during its 60th Anniversary year?
-what’s kind of cool about the HRTS is that I look at it in terms of being an organization that caters to everyone in our business. I’ve never looked at it as being old, not that 60 is old.  It just doesn’t feel like it’s an aged organization.  It’s moved along, grown up and has become part of our culture. I like the luncheons and the Networks Presidents is always my favorite. There are certain events that you measure time by and the Network Presidents’ session is one of those.  It’s always entertaining and one of the ones I look forward to.  Happy Anniversary HRTS!