KEVIN REILLY RE-UPS AS PRESIDENT, NBC ENTERTAINMENT
BURBANK, Calif. � March 1, 2007 � Kevin Reilly has signed a new, multi-year deal to continue as President of NBC Entertainment. With the agreement, Reilly will continue in the position he's held for nearly three years, developing some of television's most acclaimed programs, including "Heroes," "The Office," "Deal or No Deal" and "My Name Is Earl." The announcement was made by Marc Graboff, President, NBC Universal Television, West Coast, to whom Reilly reports.
"We're thrilled to sign Kevin to a new contract and we're looking forward to building on the outstanding progress he's made to date, particularly launching the #1 new scripted series during each of the past two seasons," said Graboff. "We're bringing in new viewers and especially younger viewers with this season's buzzed-about, critically acclaimed lineup and Kevin's superb creative instincts and development skills have played a vital role in that progress."
Commented Reilly, "Leading NBC Entertainment through our current rebuilding period has been one of the most rewarding and invigorating experiences of my career. I'm confident we've got the top-notch team in place to take us the rest of the way. The progress we've made this season in re-establishing the NBC brand and generating so much buzz with our quality shows is the best indicator that our strategy is working and the network is truly back on track."
Reilly was named President, NBC Entertainment, in May 2004. Reilly's multiple entertainment responsibilities include primetime � including alternative, specials and long-form programs � late-night and daytime programming, and development, as well as scheduling and strategic planning for the NBC network.
Reilly, who first began his career at NBC Entertainment almost 19 years ago, returned to NBC in the Fall 2003 as President, Primetime Development.
Throughout his career, Reilly has distinguished himself as a legitimate hit-maker, having developed some of television's most heralded quality programming, most recently including NBC's "Heroes," this season's top-rated freshman drama both in total viewers and in the coveted adult 18-49 demographic.
NBC is up 6 percent this season versus last in regular-program averages among adults 18-49 and is the only major network showing a year-to-year gain by this measure.
NBC's regular lineup has also gotten significantly younger this season versus last, with a median age for its audience that's 1.3 years younger than one year ago. NBC is the only major network to deliver a younger median age this season versus last with its regular-program lineup.
"My Name Is Earl," the Emmy Award-winning "The Office" and "Deal or No Deal" are also among Reilly's recent series hits at NBC. During Reilly's varied tenures at NBC, FX and Brillstein-Grey Entertainment, he successfully supervised such critical and commercial watershed hits as HBO's "The Sopranos," FX's "The Shield" and "Nip/Tuck" and NBC's "ER."
During Reilly's tenure as President, NBC Entertainment programming has garnered numerous award nominations and wins. The extensive list includes both an Emmy win as Outstanding Comedy Series and a SAG Award win for "The Office," a People's Choice Award win for "Heroes," Emmy wins for "My Name Is Earl" in the Directing and Writing categories, and a Golden Globe win for "30 Rock" for Best Performance by an Actor in a Television Series - Musical or Comedy -- all in 2006. In 2005, both "The Office" and "Medium" were recognized with an Emmy win for Patricia Arquette and a Golden Globe win for Steve Carell.
Prior to returning to NBC, Reilly served as President of Entertainment for FX, where he helped put the network on the map with an ambitious lineup of distinctive original series and movies. Under his leadership, FX launched "The Shield," its first original drama series, which received a Golden Globe Award for Best Drama Series, the first basic cable series to do so, and another for star Michael Chiklis, who also won an Emmy Award.
Reilly and FX staged the network's most aggressive programming rollout ever when it added the hit drama "Nip/Tuck," starring Julian McMahon and Dylan Walsh, and expanded the roster of original movies. Reilly was also responsible for the critically acclaimed original series "Lucky," starring John Corbett.
Prior to joining FX, Reilly was President of Brad Grey Television, the television production arm of Brillstein-Grey entertainment. He joined Brillstein-Grey in 1994 and helped build the television studio into one of the most successful independent suppliers of television programming. He was responsible for shepherding some of television's top shows, such as the pilot for HBO's "The Sopranos," the NBC comedies "Just Shoot Me" and "NewsRadio," and the WB comedy "The Steve Harvey Show."
Previously, Reilly held a variety of positions over a six-year period at NBC Entertainment and had a hand in the development of some of the network's most distinctive hits. As Vice President of Drama Development (1992-94), he was responsible for supervising the development of the pilots of "ER" and "Homicide: Life on the Street." In prior years, he worked on the first season of "Law & Order" and the pilot and first season of "Saved by the Bell." His other positions at NBC included Director of Drama Development/Director of Current Drama at NBC Entertainment (1989-92) and Manager of Creative Affairs for NBC Productions (1988).
Reilly, whom "TV Week" named this year as one of "Twelve to Watch" in the entertainment industry, also served as President of the Hollywood Radio and Television Society. A graduate of Cornell University, Reilly is married, has three sons, and resides in Pacific Palisades, California.
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