Albie Hecht

Last updated
Albie Hecht
Albiehecht.jpg
Hecht in 2023
EducationColumbia University
Occupation(s)Producer, entertainment executive
Known forTelevision industry
Notable work
Television Nickelodeon, Spike TV, HLN
Spouse Susan MacLaury
Children2

Albie Hecht is an American film and television producer and media executive. In 1997, Hecht was the president of film and TV entertainment for Nickelodeon [1] before becoming president of the television channel Spike TV in 2003. [2] In 2005, he founded and was CEO of the digital studio Worldwide Biggies. [3] [4] From 2013 to 2015, he also served as general manager of the TV channel, HLN, [5] and is chief content officer of PocketWatch.

Contents

Early life and career

Albie Hecht graduated from Francis Lewis High School in Queens, New York City [6] where he played varsity basketball and baseball and was President of the Student Organization. [7] He was the only undergraduate ever awarded a Media Studies degree by Columbia University’s Columbia College. [8]

Hecht was Director of Artist Relations at Terry Cashman and Tommy West's [ citation needed ] Lifesong Records in the 1970s, [9] where he oversaw the career of Crack the Sky and then became manager to pop star Dean Friedman.[ citation needed ]

Television

In the mid-1980s, Hecht produced for the advertising agency Fred/Alan Inc with Alan Goodman and Fred Seibert. [10] Together, they established Chauncey Street Productions for their independent television productions. [11]

Through Chauncey Street, Hecht co-created and executive produced Kids Court [ citation needed ] and GUTS for Nickelodeon, [12] the Ace Award winning game show Turn it Up! for MTV and The Talent Pool for Comedy Central, which featured the TV debut of John Leguizamo.[ citation needed ]

At Nickelodeon, Hecht oversaw the development and approval of all the network's films and TV shows from 1997 to 2003, including SpongeBob SquarePants , Dora the Explorer , Blue's Clues , and such live-action shows as All That. [3] [13] He also co-created and executive produced the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards, [14] and built the Nick Digital Studio in New York City and the Nick animation studio in Los Angeles.[ citation needed ] When establishing his independent production company Worldwide Biggies, Hecht developed and executive produced The Naked Brothers Band (2007-09). [15]

When Hecht became the president of the TV channel TNN, he revised the network's title to Spike TV, where his shows included The Joe Schmo Show , MXC [16] and signing the Ultimate Fighting Championship franchise.[ citation needed ]

In 2017, Hecht joined Pocket.watch as chief content officer. Pocket.watch is a studio that creates franchises from the YouTube stars and characters. [17] Hecht is the creator and Executive Producer of Ryan's Mystery Playdate on the Nick Jr. Channel, [18] the number one preschool show on TV which garnered a Daytime Emmy Award Nomination in 2020. [19] [20] He also produced the HobbyKids Adventures, an animated series which streams on the Hobby Kids TV YouTube channel. The show has received over 30 million views of its episodes to date. [21]

As of 2022, Hecht is the chief content officer of pocket.watch that creates content for kids and family YouTube creators, resulting in more than 300 hours of programming produced to date. [22] Currently, Hecht is overseeing the production of a series of 50 animated and live-action series and 5 specials,[ citation needed ] such as Toys and Colors [23] and Dan Rhodes. [24] Additionally, he is directing and producing Ryan's World: the Movie the first feature film for the YouTube star Ryan, set to be released in Fall 2024. [25]

In his role as Creator and Executive Producer at pocket.watch, Hecht created and produced Love, Diana with over 1 billion views[ citation needed ] and Onyx Family Dinner, which was nominated for a MIPCOM CANNES Diversify TV Award for its contributions to representation in Kids Programming. [26]

Movies

In movies, Hecht produced films for Paramount including Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events . The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie , The Rugrats Movie and the Oscar-nominated animated feature Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius . [27] [4] The Rugrats Movie was the first non-Disney animated feature to hit $100 million at the US domestic box office. [28]

Non-profit media

In 2005, Hecht co-founded the nonprofit media company Shine Global with his wife Susan MacLaury, [29] Through Shine, Hecht produced the Oscar winning short documentary Inocente , [30] and the Emmy [31] and  Oscar nominated documentary feature War/Dance . [32]

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References

  1. ↑ Guthrie, Marisa (18 September 2013). "Albie Hecht Named Head of HLN". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  2. ↑ "Albie Hecht Resigns as Spike TV President". TVWeek. 2005-01-30. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  3. 1 2 Molloy, Tim (2013-09-18). "Spike TV Founder Albie Hecht Named Head of HLN". TheWrap. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  4. 1 2 Hayes, Dade (2008-11-26). "Albie Hecht keeps an eye on web". Variety. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  5. ↑ Steinberg, Brian (2015-11-24). "HLN Chief Albie Hecht Exits in Wake of Programming Shift (Exclusive)". Variety. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  6. ↑ Hayes, Dade (Dec 1 2008). "Can TV titan work wonders on Web? Hecht, yeah". Variety (Los Angeles, California). Vol. 413. Iss. 3. p. 26.
  7. ↑ "Francis Lewis High School yearbooks". francislewishighschool.net. Retrieved 2019-09-16.[ failed verification ]
  8. ↑ Seibert, Fred (2023-11-25). "PS Albie". fredseibert.com. Retrieved 2023-11-25.[ self-published source ]
  9. ↑ Alleyne, P. Llanor (2003-05-04). "Kid From Queens Counts on NYC Energy". Broadcasting + Cable. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  10. ↑ Seibert, Fred (2010-09-11). ""The client for pay for it all!"". fredalan.org. Retrieved 2023-11-25.[ self-published source ]
  11. ↑ Seibert, Fred (2010-10-15). "We're going to Bensonhoist!". fredalan.org. Retrieved 2023-11-25.[ self-published source ]
  12. ↑ Hinman, Catherine (29 August 1995). "Nickelodeon's 'Guts' Wins Over the World". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  13. ↑ Karan, Tim (2017-08-01). "Kenan Thompson developing kids' sketch comedy show". Looper.com. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  14. ↑ Owen, Rob (2019-03-20). "Nickelodeon at 40: Breaking Down the Big Hits From 'Dora' to 'SpongeBob'". Variety. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  15. ↑ Haugsted, Linda (27 January 2007). "Cox Backs 'Naked' Band". Multichannel. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  16. ↑ Ball, Ryan (2005-01-31). "Albie Hecht Leaves Spike TV". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  17. ↑ Calvario, Liz (March 22, 2017). "Chris Williams, Albie Hecht & Jon Moonves Announce Pocketwatch, New Media Brand Catered To Kids". Deadline. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  18. ↑ "Nickelodeon Unveils Ryan's Mystery Playdate, Brand-New Preschool Series Starring YouTube Superstar Ryan of Ryan ToysReview". www.businesswire.com. 2019-02-14. Retrieved 2019-09-13.[ self-published source ]
  19. ↑ Farrell, Mike (31 July 2019). "TIS 2019: Bakish Mends Fences With Small Cable". Multichannel. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  20. ↑ Hipes, Patrick (2020-05-21). "Daytime Emmy Nominations: 'General Hospital', 'Sesame Street', 'The View' Top List; CBS, Amazon Prime Lead Networks". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  21. ↑ "HobbyKidsTV". YouTube. Retrieved 2019-09-16.[ non-primary source needed ]
  22. ↑ "Pocket.watch Unveils Largest Content Slate To Date; Underpins Studio's Ability To Meet Growing Demand For Kids Entertainment". PR Newswire. 2021-02-04. Retrieved 2023-11-03.[ non-primary source needed ]
  23. ↑ "Pocket.watch Launches Franchise with Toys & Colors". aNb Media, Inc. 2021-10-08. Retrieved 2023-11-03.[ non-primary source needed ]
  24. ↑ "Pocket.watch Signs Teen Magician Dan Rhodes". www.prnewswire.com. 2022-10-03. Retrieved 2023-11-03.[ non-primary source needed ]
  25. ↑ Milligan, Mercedes (2023-09-22). "Pocket.watch & Sunlight Slate Hybrid 'Ryan's World' Movie for 2024". www.animationmagazine.net. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  26. ↑ Roxborough, Scott (2022-10-19). "MIPCOM: 2022 Diversify TV Award Winners Revealed". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  27. ↑ Feldman, Brian (2016-02-26). "Was 2001 the Most Important Year in Film-Meme History?". NYmag. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  28. ↑ Amidi, Amid (1999-03-24). "The Rugrats Movie has hit $100 million". AWN.com. Retrieved 2023-11-25.
  29. ↑ Dixon, Christopher (2016-05-03). "The Wrong Light: Who Is Mickey?". Montclair Film. Retrieved 2019-09-13.[ failed verification ]
  30. ↑ "MacLaury's Inocente Wins the Academy Award". www.cnjscl.org. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  31. ↑ "Nominations for the 31st Annual News and Documentary Emmy Awards announced by the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, Frederick Wiseman to receive Lifetime Achievement Award". The Emmy Awards - The National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. 2010-07-15. Archived from the original on 2020-09-29. Retrieved 2019-09-13.[ non-primary source needed ]
  32. ↑ Robinson, Anna (2008-09-04). "War Documentaries: Old Oscar Statuette Returned to Army". Alt Film Guide. Retrieved 2019-09-12.[ self-published source ]
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