Lisa Donovan

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Lisa Donovan
Lisa Donovan by Pippa Lamb.jpg
Donovan in 2021
Born (1980-06-11) June 11, 1980 (age 44)
New York City, U.S. [1]
Other namesLisaNova (on YouTube)
Occupation(s)Entrepreneur, actress, YouTuber
Years active2006–present
Known forThe Pattern, Maker Studios
Website thepattern.com

Lisa Donovan (born June 11, 1980) is an American former YouTuber. She is a founder of Zappin Productions, [2] a production company that specialized in viral videos, as well as the founder and CEO of The Pattern, an astrology-based personality app. [1]

Contents

Donovan began her career as one of YouTube's earliest content creators and was subsequently one of the co-founders of Maker Studios, a YouTube video network which was purchased in 2015 by The Walt Disney Company for $675M. [3] The network was absorbed by Disney in 2017 to become Disney Digital Network.

Early life

Donovan grew up in Scarsdale, New York. [4] She was a student at the University of Colorado at Boulder before moving to Los Angeles, California. [5]

Career

YouTube

Donovan made her first YouTube channel in September 2005 [6] and uploaded her first video, "Introducing LisaNova," a reel of facial clips in black-and-white accompanied by the Charles Aznavour song Non, je n'ai rien oublié, to YouTube on June 7, 2006. [7] She has parodied a number of celebrities and public figures; her impersonation of Sarah Palin was praised in Wired as "ruthlessly hilarious", and in 2008 Ralph Nader made a guest appearance in one of the skits. [8] In a Forbes magazine article, YouTube founder Chad Hurley highlighted Donovan's success as an example of the changing paradigm of entertainment. [9] Donovan is also a co-creator of the popular YouTube channel 'The Game Station', which led to her co-founding the YouTube network Maker Studios.

Acting

Donovan was one of the first YouTube content creators to cross over to mainstream Hollywood when she was cast on MADtv in 2006. [10] She debuted in a spoof of The Ellen DeGeneres Show , where she played Salma Hayek, the producer of the ABC comedy Ugly Betty , and Rosie O'Donnell. [11] The episode aired on February 17, 2007. After signing a contract and only appearing in four episodes of MADtv, she left the following season.

In 2015, she played the role of the flight attendant in Jeremy Garelick's The Wedding Ringer . [12]

Maker Studios

Donovan co-founded and served as a board member for Maker Studios, a multi-channel network. Maker Studios was sold to The Walt Disney Company in 2014. [13]

The Pattern

Donovan is the founder and CEO of The Pattern, an astrology-based personality app. [1] In 2021, Donovan announced that The Pattern intends to launch a dating product called Connect. [14]

See also

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "The Pattern, Known for Its "Scarily Accurate" Approach to Astrology, Has Its Sights on Dating". Vanity Fair. May 19, 2021.
  2. ↑ Morrissey, Brian (January 1, 2007). "Lisa Nova On The Spot". Adweek. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved January 4, 2007.
  3. ↑ "Disney Paid $675M For Maker, Its 10Q Discloses". Media Post. February 12, 2016.
  4. ↑ 15 Minutes of Fame: Becoming a Star in the YouTube Revolution by Frederick Levy, P. 75
  5. ↑ "Lisa Donovan Joins the Cast of MADtv". January 31, 2007. Archived from the original on July 14, 2007. Retrieved July 11, 2007.
  6. ↑ "lisa's channel – YouTube". YouTube . Retrieved December 5, 2016.
  7. ↑ "Introducing LisaNova – YouTube". YouTube . June 7, 2006. Archived from the original on December 13, 2021. Retrieved July 16, 2007.
  8. ↑ Wortham, Jenna (September 2, 2008). "YouTube Comedian LisaNova Packs Heat for Sarah Palin Spoof". Wired.
  9. ↑ "YouToo". Forbes. May 7, 2007.
  10. ↑ Nova, Lisa. "Lisa Nova". Huffington Post.
  11. ↑ Wallenstein, Andrew (April 29, 2007). "How YouTube Helped LisaNova Start Her Career". The New York Times . Retrieved July 7, 2007.
  12. ↑ "The Wedding Ringer". IMDb .
  13. ↑ "It's Official: Disney Acquires Maker Studios For At Least $500M". March 24, 2014.
  14. ↑ "The founder of The Pattern and its new dating feature, Connect, decodes what's in store for a season of transformation". W Magazine. June 10, 2021.
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