disbook5 black legacy

Black legacy Celebrating 45 YEARS OF AFRICAN AMERICANS on TELEVISION

The Progress & Possibilities

By Shirley Neal In 1969 my parents bought me a Julia doll—the first celebrity Barbie doll fashioned after an African American woman in a non-stereotypical role on TV. Watching Diahann Carroll portray a black nurse raising her young son was so exciting. I had to have that doll!

Before Julia, there were so few positive images of African Americans on U.S. television. Her very presence literally changed the color of TV forever.

Of course, Carroll wasn’t the first black talent to appear on the small screen. Ethel Waters came on the scene in 1939. And in 1951, Amos & Andy made the transition from radio to TV. The show was popular but offensive to most blacks and many race conscious whites.

Soon to follow were anthologies and shows like The Nurses (1962-1965), East Side/West Side (1963-1964), and The Defenders (1961-1965), which offered recurring roles for blacks. I loved watching re-runs of these classics!

But it wasn’t until 1971, when Lionel Jefferson (Michael Evans), the young African American next-door neighbor in All in The Family, became a semi-regular on the show, that I was endeared to creator, Norman Lear and his brilliant stream of socially relevant sitcoms that followed.

It was Louis Gossett, Jr.’s Emmy-Award-winning performance in Roots (1977), a story that had never been told on TV, that caught the attention

of 130 million people, and made me want to learn more about my African lineage and eventually visit the continent, not once but nearly fifty times in just five years.

By the eighties, a slew of programs and personalities appeared. From Cosby and Oprah through to the Tyler Perry era. We were everywhere!

Today, a copious number of U.S. TV series, characters, and plot lines are African American influenced. The interest and exposure of these personalities, shows, and characters has grown exponentially and spread internationally. Many of the classics are repeated in multiple languages. And with reality TV comes an unexpected boom. There’s no question that African American content is a moneymaker!

This special section of DISBOOK shines a spotlight on African American TV content by highlighting programming with predominantly African American casts, and paying homage to the pioneers, superstars, creators, and the next generation of power players blazing new trails.

With Africa’s insatiable appetite for African American content, and African American’s growing interest in co-producing and distributing programming in Africa, this section offers a timely bridge of the two mutually beneficial interests. And on what better occasion, as DISCOP Africa 2014 celebrates South Africa’s 20th year of democracy and 45 years of African Americans in Television.

Shirley Neal, Guest Editor, African Americans on television, is a TV producer and specialist on the history of African American television – snealonline@gmail.com

DISBOOK #5 | 2014 — Black Legacy

Coming of Age seventies RS P IO N E E

The Beginnings of Real “Color TV” in the U.S.

1968 - 1971 Julia The first weekly series to depict an African American

Creator/Host (The Flip Wilson Show , 1970-1974), Flip Wilson.

Growing up, Wilson once said he had been “so poor even the poor looked down on me.” At it’s peak , his show drew forty million peop le weekly and became the number one variety show on air.

Credit: NBC/Photofest. ©NBC

woman in a nonstereotypical role

1970 - 1974 The Flip Wilson Show The first successful variety series with an AfricanAmerican star

1971 Soul Train The longest running first-run nationally syndicated program in American history

1972 - 1986 THE NORMAN LEAR ERA: BLACK SITCOMS Sanford and Son Good Times

Diahann Carroll as Julia Baker in Julia (1968-1971) often remarked that she was troubled by the criticism the show received, “especially the accusations that the series failed to offer a proper role model to black children.” Credit: NBC/Photofest. ©NBC

The Jeffersons Diff’rent Strokes

s highly successful and often, Sitcom Pioneer, Norman Lear. Lear’ ge television history. By 1975, chan to d helpe ms, sitco ial controvers hed programs, two of which watc most ten the gst four ranked amon African American casts. had Son) and (The Jeffersons, and Sanford Credit: Photofest

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For many African Americans, the purchase of their first TV set placed them smack in the middle of the civil rights struggle. By 1968, most images in the news media featured blacks in lunch counter protests, store boycotts, and marching for civil rights. Following the assassinations of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and President Kennedy, racial turmoil was at its peak.

Amidst the struggle, Nichelle Nichols, a black actress portraying Uhura on the TV series Star Trek (1966-1969), along with white actor, William Shatner as Capt. Kirk, delivered TV’s first interracial kiss.

As the country continued to change, so did the acceptance of African Americans in positive roles on TV.

By the 1970s networks were looking to broadcast programming that would attract racially diverse audiences. Along came Julia (1968-1972), the first scripted show to star an African American since Amos & Andy (1951-53) and Beulah (1950-53). Creator, Hal Kanter’s pilot script for Julia was inspired by a speech given by NAACP (National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) Director Roy Wilkins. It wasn’t until page twelve of the script that it was revealed that Julia Baker was black. It occurred during a phone interview between Julia and her soon to be employer. The dialogue was as follows: Julia: I’m colored. I’m a Negro.

Doctor: Have you always been a Negro, or are you just trying to be fashionable?

In the non-scripted realm, variety shows like The Flip Wilson Show (1970-74) introduced aspects of black and urban culture to mainstream TV and proved to be more successful than Nat King Cole and Sammy Davis, Jr. who’d attempted to do the same at an earlier, less accepting time.

Soon after, producer/writer, Norman Lear, gambled that society would be ready to accept his interracially mixed situation comedies that dealt with issues that were previously taboo for TV audiences.

Black Legacy — DISBOOK #5 | 2014

The African American Family On U.s. T v Movin’ On Up! From the Projects to the Penthouse

While the Evans’ family on the sitcom Good Times (1974-1979), could never seem to make their way out of the tough Housing Projects in Chicago another Norman Lear creation The Jeffersons (1975-1985), moved on up from Harlem, then Queens, to Manhattan, into a “Dee-luxe” apartment in the sky!” Both series were produced during the “black is beautiful” era in America, when African American viewers were starved for images of black families who were hard-working, loving, caring, and raising their children in two-parent homes.

The Jeffersons became one of the longest running sitcoms in the history of American television, just as The Cosby Show (1984-1992) became one

of the most successful. The original concept had Bill Cosby working as a chauffeur. But his wife, Camille, nixed the idea, wanting to defy pre-conceived notions about the African American family. The networks listened. Cosby became Dr. Heathcliff Huxtable. A hit was born!

With the success of The Cosby Show, NBC hoped to cash in on the hip-hop craze blowing up the U.S. radio airwaves. They took a leap of faith casting young rap star Will Smith in the title role of, The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air (1990-1996.) After a rocky start, the show became a major crossover hit attracting the coveted young demographic.

sley, el Sanford, Sherman Hem Shown from left to right: Isab lly racia first ’s The Jeffersons (1974-1985). ision telev U.S. g s broke new ground featurin and Mike Evans. The serie s. Credit: CBS Photofest acters in a primetime serie char lar regu as le coup d mixe

Development of family sitcoms with predominantly African American casts experienced a decline in the 90s, but are making a comeback today, with series like The Soul Man (2012-), Family Time (2012-), Mann & Wife (2014-), and the muchhyped, Black-ish (2014-), about an affluent African American man, living in a mostly-white neighborhood, who desperately tries to keep his wife and four kids rooted in his idea of black culture.

Good Times (1974-1979).

Shown clockwise, from left: Ralph Carter, Jimmie Walker, Bernadette Sta nis, John Amos, Esther Rolle. According to demands by series star, Esther Rolle, Good Times was to portray a “complete black family,” before she would com mit to the project. Cre dit: CBS Photofest

The Cosby Show (1984-1992). In developing The Cosby Show, Bill Cosby (third from the left) insisted, “No one was a minstrel. No one was a buffoon.

The humor won’t be slick one-liners everyone’s used to.” Credit: NBC Photofest

EP IS OD ES M OS T # IL Y FO R FA M W IT H SI TC OM S IN AN TL Y PR ED OM AF RI CA N CA ST S AM ER IC AN

1978 - 1986 254 episodes HOUSE OF PAYNE

1975 - 1985 253 episodes THE JEFFERSONS

1989 – 1998 215 episodes FAMILY MATTERS

1984 – 1992 202 episodes THE COSBY SHOW

1978 - 1986 190 episodes DIFF’RENT STROKES

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DISBOOK #5 | 2014 — Black Legacy TV PI ON EE RI NG AF RI CA N FIL MS FO R TA LE NT AM ER IC AN

1970 MY SWEET CHARLIE Starring Al Freeman,

Made-ForTv Movies

Jr., and Patty Duke

1971 BRIAN’S SONG Starring Billy Dee Williams, and James Caan

1974

From Blaxploitation to a new film sub-genre, African Americans attract mainstream audiences

THE AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF MISS JANE PITTMAN Starring Cicely Tyson

In the 70’s, just as the black exploitation films, Shaft (1971), Superfly (1972), Three the Hard Way (1974), Foxy Brown (1974), Hammer (1972), Cleopatra Jones (1973), and the leader of the pack, Sweet Sweetback’s Baadass Song (1971), were attracting urban audiences and generating impressive box office ticket sales, along came “Made-for-TVMovies” on network television. They exposed black actors in serious roles, not just to black audiences, but also the mainstream.

First up, came My Sweet Charlie (1970), set at a time when Civil Rights wounds were still raw. It told the story of a militant black fugitive accused of murder, and a white pregnant girl, running away from their respective

dtree (as John Shaft).

Shown on poster: Richard Roun n theatrical releases like itatio explo black of ss succe The st of African American intere the ned spaw Shaft (1971), in Made-for-TV Movies. as well as mainstream audiences,

(1971). African American ms, James Caan in Brian’s Song Shown from left: Billy Dee Willia onship with white teammate relati his t a small mention abou Hall of famer, Gayle Sayers wrote wood’s that excerpt that attracted Holly was It .

Third Am I phy, iogra Brian Piccolo, in his autob the time. Credit: ABC/Photofest at rated st highe the of one attention, making the TV movie

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Shown from left: Patty Duke, Al Freeman Jr. in My sweet Charlie (1970). According to the film’s director, Lamont Johnson, “The network was nervous about the film because we said the word, “Nigger” several times and it was not approved in those days, even though, we got all kinds of awards.” Credit: Photofest

situations, and ending up at the same coastal beach house in Texas.

Although the film received heavy acclaim, the most successful of the Made-for-TV movies, in terms of ratings, were based on true stories rather than fiction. Brian’s Song (1971) led the pack. At the time, it was the fourth most-watched film ever on television, and made instant stars of its two leads, Billy Dee Williams and James Caan. The film received eleven Emmy nominations, and in an unlikely move, earned a run in the theatres after it was broadcast on network TV. The ratings success of Brian’s Song dimmed four years later, next to The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman (1974), hailed by film critic, Pauline Kael, as “quite possibly the finest movie ever made for American Television.”

By the end of the decade, films like I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings(1979) and King (1978) emerged but never quite drew the attention of mainstream audiences. The genre died a slow death, until resurrected in the late 90’s on pay-cable TV, with films like Introducing Dorothy Dandridge (1999), and The Josephine Baker Story (1991), earning major Hollywood accolades.

Park Hill Entertainment has provided content for U.S. and international television networks for more than 20 years

Let us partner with you

Shirley Neal, President & Executive Producer

Visit us at Discop Africa 2014 (MT 25) Park Hill Entertainment Los Angeles 1 818 846 4582 | www.parkhillonline.com

DISBOOK #5 | 2014 — Black Legacy ROOTS STATS

BUDGETS › $7 Million USD

Roots

for “Roots” › $16.6 Million USD for “Roots: The Next Generations”

The Saga of an American Family A Surprise Success! commercially be accepted. Network Chief, Fred Silverman recalled, “I was concerned about the first episode with the slave ship. And there were brutal parts of that show. And I figured we might be better off to play it in one burst – one week – in late January.”

Instead of it being the ratings disaster the network feared, the premiere episode of the mini-series earned an unprecedented 49 Rating. At At the end of the eight-day run, an estimated 140 million viewers saw all or part of the mini-series.

Producer, David Wolper posited, “Roots was a Left to right, Louis Gossett, Jr. as Fiddler, LeVar Burton as Kunte in Roots (1977). LeVar Burton was a student at The University of Southern success because it was California, who had no previous experience in front of the camera when he won the role of Kunta Kinte. Credit: ABC/Photofest. ©ABC a family story that caught people’s imagination.” The Beginning January 23, 1977, a diverse series brought African American history RATINGS Premiere: worldwide audience united for twelve to life for the first time on television, › 49 Rating hours, over eight days, to watch TV and inspired a whole movement of (measured by programming on an epic scale – Roots. genealogical research among African number of TV homes in the The mini-series, based on the bestAmericans as they sought to find out country) › 57 Share (% of selling novel by Alex Haley, traced the about their personal pasts. sets in use on a struggles of the author’s family from its given night) life in Africa to its enslavement and One of the few mini-series to rival ultimate freedom in America. the success of Roots was its sequel, accolades Earned an Roots: The Next Generations (1979). unprecedented The mini-series aired at a volatile time The mini-series picked up where its › 37 Emmy in the country’s history, as race predecessor left off, with Haley’s slave nominations › 9 Emmy Awards relations were just starting to improve. ancestors winning their freedom In fact it almost didn’t air. Network in the aftermath of the Civil War. executives and advertisers did not The success of both mini-series had 1 expect that a show with black heroes lasting impact on the television and white villains would be industry.

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Black Legacy — DISBOOK #5 | 2014

What He’s Doing Now

Roots Star, Louis Gossett, Jr.

Has a role in two new CBS-TV series, Extant, and Madam Secretary, as well as the upcoming CBC/BET miniseries, The Book of Negroes

His Life with Emmy and Oscar

The mini-series Roots attracted a virtual who’s who of African American dramatic talent, but it was Louis Gossett, Jr., as Fiddler, who won the Emmy Award for his performance.

As historian Donald Bogle describes, “He deserved it! Fiddler plays his fiddle, and he grins and smiles for his white masters. But then when he’s with the young Kunta Kinte alone, he removes the mask, and he gives him lessons on survival.”

For Gossett, “What was important to me about the Fiddler character is that he taught Kunta Kinte how to survive, so that there would be a continuing of his people and peace of mind, even in times of crisis, such as slavery.”

First Gig Age 17, cast in Broadway production of Take A Giant Step

Why He’s a Legend First African American male to win a Supporting Actor Academy Award; 2 Emmys; 1 Golden Globe; featured in over 362 titles including

Lou Gossett, Jr. holding Emmy Award (1977). “Receiving an Academy Award for An Officer and a Gentleman (1982) has been a career highlight, but to be chosen to get the Emmy for my performance in Roots was the most meaningful, and so significant, because Roots made a statement that stopped the world.” Credit: AP Photo

Skin Game, Travels with My Aunt, The Laughing Policeman, The Deep, Jaws 3-D, Enemy Mine, the Iron Eagle series, and Toy Soldiers.

His Passion He is primarily dedicating the last quadrant of his life to an all-out conscious offensive against racism, violence, ignorance and social apathy, through his Eracism Foundation

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DISBOOK #5 | 2014 — Black Legacy

The 80’s The decade of BET and Oprah Shown: Oprah Winfrey. “I knew what a miraculous opportun ity I had been given, but I cert ainly couldn’t have imagined the yellow brick road of blessing s.”

1980, with the launch of a new cable network – BET (Black Entertainment Television). Founder, Robert Johnson explains, “I was a lobbyist with the cable industry at that time, and I felt that there was a need for a programming service that appealed to African Americans on a consistent basis.”

Stars from BET’s Being Mary Jane (2014-). The series that premiered first on rival cable network, The CW in 2006, before moving to BET in 2010, is the network’s first foray into one-hour scripted drama. Credit: Quantrell D. Colbert

l, ) Left to right, Coby Bel Game (2013). (seated Norwood.

Stars from BET’s The ndy Bra n, inso Rob nding) Wendy Raquel Hosea Chanchez. (sta March 2014 Season 7 viewers tuning in for the With nearly 7 million ranks as #1 in over all ly ent sist con es the seri premiere of The Game, ll D. Colbert ntre Qua dit: en 18-49. Cre cable networks for wom

African Americans were heavily involved in politics in the 1980s.

Civil Rights activist, Reverend Jesse Jackson, even made a run for the Presidency. AIDS was the new medical fear; waterbeds, shoulder pads and the Rubik’s Cube were trending; and on television, we saw more African Americans in regular roles on dramatic series like Miami Vice (1984-1989), Dynasty (19811989), Hill Street Blues (19811987), and The A-Team (19831987), than in any previous decade.

Popular African American-themed sitcoms like, 227 (1985-1990), A Different World (1987-1993), Family Matters (1989-1998) and of course, The Cosby Show (1984-1992), also premiered with impressive ratings. But the really big news came on January 25,

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In it’s nascent years, the cable network ran mostly music videos and only broadcast for two hours per week. The network now reaches over 90 million households and boasts of some of the highest rated programming on TV with series like Being Mary Jane (2014- ), The Game (2006), and Real Husbands of Hollywood (2013-). After selling his stake in 2000 to Viacom for $3 billion, Johnson shared his greatest disappointment. “In the early days of BET, I was on an airplane and reading an article about this young woman who was sort of beginning to shake up the world of talk shows out of Baltimore. It was Oprah Winfrey. And I remember putting a call in to a Chicago station she was on – WBBM. By that time they had locked her up in a contract and we couldn’t get near her. That was the one show and one talent that would’ve been the “good get!”

Oprah Winfrey hit the national airwaves in 1986. The syndicated talk show aired nationally for 25 seasons. Produced and hosted by Winfrey, it remains the highest-rated talk show in American television history. Today her Oprah Winfrey Cable Network (OWN) is a direct competitor of BET.

Black Legacy — DISBOOK #5 | 2014

The 90’s duced Coles. Created and pro Latifah, Kim Fields, Kim fessional Erika Alexander, Queen : pro left ng, you from le, wn sing r Sho fou 3-1998): sed on the lives of Living Single Cast (199 turned actress, Bowser, the show focu es), a hip hop pioneer, w-runner, Yvette Lee Latifah (Khadijah Jam en

by African American sho Que .

York New n, en living in Brookly yright Fox African American wom dit: FOX/Photofest. Cop dicated talk show. Cre now hosts her own syn

Living Single in Living Color By the 1990’s, with President Bill Clinton appointing more African Americans in his cabinet than any other president before him, the question of race started to fade. By executive order he established a “One America in the 21st Century” initiative that encouraged the country to embrace diversity.

Network television did its part.

Throughout the decade, more African Americans were being featured in starring roles on mainstream shows like, I’ll Fly Away (1991-1993), Equal Justice (1990-1991), and ER (1994 -2009); plus, on a growing number of ethnically themed shows like Martin (1992-1997), Moesha (1996-2001) and Roc (1991-1994), where they could express their cultural identities, openly and creatively. Two standout series launched the careers of two ensemble players who went on to receive Academy Award nods.

In 2005, Jamie Foxx became the first African American actor to receive two acting nominations in the same year, and won a Best Actor Oscar for his role in Ray (2004) about musician Ray Charles. National audiences first came

to appreciate his talents in the sketch comedy series, In Living Color (1990-1994).

The program also made stars out of actors, Jim Carrey, Damon Wayans, David Alan Grier, and a young “Fly Girl” dancer named Jennifer Lopez (J-Lo).

Before receiving her Academy Award nomination for Best Actress in 2003 for her role in Chicago, Queen Latifah was an ensemble actress in the BFF (best friends for life) series, Living Single (1993-1998) – said to be the Sex in the City of its time.

Throughout the era, networks were also embracing African In Living Color Cast:(Left to right) : (top row) Marc Wilmore, Jim Carre American talent behind the y, AnneMarie Johnson, Jay Leggett (midd le row) T’Keyah “Crystal” Keym.h, Jamie Foxx, Carol Rosenthal (bottom row) scenes, as producers (Tim Tommy Davidson, Alexandra Went worth, David Alan Grier.

Reid), directors (Thomas Carter), and show runners (Yvette Lee Bowser), often through their own production companies – this, in an effort to produce more programming that reflected black life. And with African Americans spending more time watching television, “Black” was not 1 only beautiful – but also fashionable and profitable.

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DISBOOK #5 | 2014 — Black Legacy

The New Millennium Princess Banton HOW SHE DID IT African American Women calling the shots and running the shows

a medical drama, City of Angels (2000) with a predominantly black cast was televised.

It wasn’t long until Shonda Rhimes came on the scene and developed Grey’s Anatomy (2005-), and characters like the real Olivia Pope in her TV drama Scandal (2012-), along with Private Practice (2007-2013), and later, How to Get Away with Murder (2014) - making her the most successful African American woman show runner in primetime TV history.

Princess Banton: creator of the “Real Housewives of Atlanta” series.

The new millennium for African Americans in film and television brought new hope for the future. Denzel Washington, Halle Berry, Forest Whitaker, and Jennifer Hudson were winning and being nominated for Academy Awards. The Beulah’s, Huggy Bears, and Dyno-mites of the 60s, 70s, and 80s, were replaced on TV shows where black characters were upwardly mobile professionals. For the first time,

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There were other black female visionaries in the new millennium making their marks as creators and showrunners like Mara Brock Akil (The Game, Girlfriends), Felicia Henderson, (Soul Food), Yvette Lee Bowser (Half & Half, Living Single, The Soul Man) - the list goes on. They all had impressive college degrees from Stanford, UCLA, Northwestern, USC; a passion for television; and celebrity mentors who helped them along the way.

All but one - Princess Banton.

She never went to college.

She never went to film school.

She knew nothing about producing for TV when she pitched her first show idea that ultimately became The Real Housewives of Atlanta - the most successful U.S. TV reality series with a predominantly African American cast.

“

I was an underwriter for an insurance company in Toronto before moving to Atlanta with my orthodontist husband and quickly became a part of a black socialite circle.

I thought a show about these fun, fabulous, opinionated women would be interesting.

I called it, “Ladies of the A.” Fast forward three weeks: I met NeNe Leakes. She was only my second interview.

I literally walked in her house with my $100 cameraman who was also my editor, assistant, and PA, and started interviewing her.

She was great and agreed to introduce me to some of her friends. We shot a presentation tape. I took it to True Entertainment, who then took it to Bravo (cable network). They wanted to re-brand it as part of their “Real Housewives” franchise, and the rest is history.

”

Black Legacy — DISBOOK #5 | 2014

The Reality Of Reality TV African Americans making their mark in “Pain for Profit” TV

One proven reality of “Reality TV”? The genre is one of the most successful in the U.S. today. As one TV critic theorized, a reality show is a success when, “It allows ordinary people to become so important that millions will want to watch them.” But with success can come controversy, namely criticism over stereotyping, mudslinging, and authenticity, that plagues many reality shows today, particularly those with predominantly or exclusively African American casts.

Bad press aside, the “pain for profits” formula on shows like Love & Hip Hop (2011-), Braxton Family Values (2011), Basketball Wives (2010-), and the Queen of them all, The Real Housewives of Atlanta (2008-) draw big audiences, 85% of whom are African American. The Real Housewives of Atlanta series alone pulled in more than 4.5 million viewers in February 2014. This is good news for advertisers who aggressively cater to this niche demographic with a buying power in the neighborhood of $1.2 trillion USD. Proven moneymakers for the networks who carry them, reality series are also cash cows for many of the relatively unknown African American stars who’ve gained instant fame as a result of “acting out” on them. Leading the pack, NeNe Leakes (The Real Housewives of Atlanta), reportedly pulled in $1 million USD, plus bonuses for just one season. Omarosa, a second generation Nigerian, who U.S.

The cast of Basketball Wives (2010-). Even tho ugh the title clearly stat a group of women who es Basketball “Wives have all been someho ,” the series is about w romantically linked or not. Credit: VH1 ©20 to professional basketb 14 Viacom Media Net all players – married works

viewers met on the first season of Donald Trump’s The Apprentice, embraced fame over financial gain, and now labels herself solely as a “Reality TV personality,” ahead of her more respected ministerial title she received when formally ordained in 2012.

And while the format has created stars out of unknowns, it has brought shame to some, and made big talents even more bankable, as with the BET cable series, The Real Husbands of Hollywood (2013-), a parody of the “Real Housewives” franchise successfully airing on the U.S.-based Bravo cable network. The brainchild of actor/ comedian, Kevin Hart, “Real Husbands” was born out of a sketch Hart created for the 2011 BET Awards. Today, it’s the network’s number-one reality series among adults 18-to-49, and has brought together an impressive “rotating” ensemble cast that has included R&B favorites, Bobby Brown, Nelly, Robin Thicke, actor, Boris Kodjoe, Nick Cannon, and J.B. Smoove. The most obvious reality about the role of African Americans in “Reality TV?” Expect to see even more.

From left to right, Kevin Hart , Boris Kodjoe, Nelly, in Real Husbands of Hollywo od. According to creator, Kevin Hart, “We have a scrip t - an outline, but we mostly improv. We fake the drama.” Credit: BET/ Viacom Media Networks

1

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DISBOOK #5 | 2014 — Black Legacy

The New Normal t of his film (left) on the se ts Cicely Tyson ec dir otofest. © Lions ht) Ph (rig te/ ns Ga Tyler Perry 06). Credit: Lio (20 ion un Re ly Madea’s Fami

The “Tyler-Perry Effect” and other new business models inspired by African American creative entrepreneurs

Gate Films

RE PO RT CA RD

Launch of African American Majority-Owned Networks

From as far back as the late 1950s, in order to license an off-network series for syndication, one had to produce 85-100 episodes. But without the episodes in the can, they couldn’t strike a syndication deal with a broadcaster.

That was the model.

1980 BET (Owned first

by Robert Johnson, who sold to Viacom in 2001)

2004 TV One (Owned

by Cathy Hughes’ Radio One, and Comcast)

2005 The Africa Channel (Independently Owned)

2011 OWN (Owned

by Oprah Winfrey’s Harpo Productions, and Discovery Communications)

2011 Soul of the South (Independently Owned)

2011 Bounce TV (Broadcast network co-founded by Ambassador Andrew Young, and Martin Luther King, III)

2012 Aspire (Owned

by Magic Johnson and Comcast)

2013 REVOLT (Owned by Sean Combs and

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Comcast)

In 2006, film director Tyler Perry broke the mold. In a historic move -- with only ten episodes completed of his family comedy, House of Payne (2006 – 2012) -- Perry entered into a $200 million deal to produce a total of 100 episodes of the series. And so, began the “Tyler Perry-effect” in television.

Since then, Perry has produced and licensed five additional series to TBS and OWN (The Oprah Winfrey Network), mostly situation comedies, and soaps including Meet the Browns (2009-2011), The Haves and Have Not’s (2013-), Love Thy Neighbor (2013-), For Better or Worse (2011; 2013-), and his latest If Loving You is Wrong (2014-).

efficient production budgets, but has made him a millionaire several times over.

In 2011 after merging with NBC Universal, cable conglomerate Comcast, entered into an agreement with the FCC (Federal Communications Commission) to launch ten “minorityowned” cable networks over the course of eight years. Two African American entrepreneurs immediately stepped up to take advantage of the opportunity: Basketball legend, Magic Johnson’s faith and family-based, Aspire network premiered in 2012. In 2013, music icon, Sean “Diddy” Combs’ Revolt network, launched with a focus on musicoriented programming. Both networks primarily target African American audiences.

New ideas, new distribution models, and new ownership paradigms make distribution a thriving business for creative African American entrepreneurs and visionaries.

Another African American creative entrepreneur shaking up the tried and true television distribution landscape is standup comic, turned media mogul, Byron Allen.

The self-proclaimed, “Walmart of TV,” through his Entertainment Studios, licenses programs to local broadcasters on a nonexclusive basis, and at no cost, but holds back a portion of the commercial inventory to sell himself. His successful business model not only covers his cost-

s Hattie; : Patrice Lovely as Mis Neighbor (2013- ) L-R as Will. las oug A scene from Love Thy ai D da and Th ndra C. Johnson as Lin Tony Grant as Philip; Ke frey Network Credit: OWN: Oprah Win

Black Legacy — DISBOOK #5 | 2014

What Travels Best?

Insights on what African broadcasters seek from African American Producers and Vice Versa In the past ten years the African Renaissance has taken off. Audiences in Africa want to see more content with an African flavor. Likewise, broadcasters in the U.S. have an appetite for more content coming out of Africa as a means of differentiation, and in hopes of identifying the next “big hit.”

To better understand the needs and demands of selling to Africa or the U.S. – ask a programmer! Ida McNair, Head of International TV Programme Sales for SABC – the public broadcaster in South Africa, had this advice for African American Producers interested in selling to African programmers: Of course, all good stories have a universal dimension, which is why we can relate to storylines from other countries, but we can relate much more to films that wrestle with our own idiosyncrasies. Although African American programs have in general good production values and are sought after by some African broadcasters, the trend for content that relates more directly to our local audiences can’t be underestimated. In general the African Renaissance content that reflects the culture and storylines that we as Africans can relate to, has a high appeal to our audiences.

In the past African American content has been popular in South Africa and not just with speakers of a variety of African languages, but also the general public. This has opened great

Bob Reid (left) makes a point about a shot Delmwa Desi to Discovery Kura, while sh +234 Director ooting the se George Kura ries pilot for and Producer Discovery Le arning Allianc e.

opportunities for business relations between American production houses and their counterpart in South Africa for joint business ventures. It could be great to combine the local African flavor, good production values and ultimately high budgets.

In zeroing in on specific TV genres that work well in Africa, McNair cited African American sitcoms in general, and singled out two in particular: My Wife and Kids (2001-2005), starring comedian Damon Wayans as the loving husband and modern-day patriarch who rules his household with a unique and distinct parenting style; and Everybody Hates Chris (2005-2009), inspired by the teenage experiences of comedian, Chris Rock, while growing up in the BedfordStuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York in the early-mid 1980s.

On the other side of the coin, Bob Reid, a former U.S. cable television executive now developing, producing and selling content through his BTR Media Works, Inc., had this to offer African producers interested in producing for the U.S. market: The key is to develop content with the target market in mind. Not the entire U.S. market of some 500 plus channels, but specific networks, or groups of networks that feature the kind of programming you have a good track record producing.

Also, play to your strengths.

A network Head of Programming or Production is much more likely to take a chance with a new producer seeking to replicate a formula that producer has done successfully in their home country, than they are to hire someone to produce a series totally outside their demonstrated area of expertise.

Lastly, in the U.S. market, it’s easier to sell by showing, rather than telling.

Have a short, well-produced video featuring key elements of the story or idea. If you’re new to the network, the video you present will speak volumes about your ability as a producer.

Even if the networks hate your idea, if your presentation video is well done, you’ll make a favorable impression that will leave the door open for you to present new ideas in the future.

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