Jump to content

Albie Hecht

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Albie Hecht
Hecht in 2023
EducationColumbia University
Occupation(s)TV and Film Producer, Entertainment Executive
Known forTelevision industry
Notable work
TelevisionNickelodeon, Spike TV, HLN
SpouseSusan 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.

Early life and career

[edit]

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's and Tommy West's Lifesong Records in the 1970s,[9] where he oversaw the career of Crack the Sky and then became manager to pop star Dean Friedman.

Television

[edit]

In the mid-1980s, Hecht ran productions[10][11] for the advertising agency Fred/Alan Inc with Alan Goodman and Fred Seibert.[12] Together, they established Chauncey Street Productions[13][14][15] for their independent television productions.

Through Chauncey Street, Hecht co-created and executive produced Kids Court and GUTS[16] for Nickelodeon, 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.

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,[3] and such live-action shows as All That and Kenan and Kel.[17] He also co-created and executive produced the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards,[18] and built the Nick Digital Studio in New York City and the Nick animation studio in Los Angeles. When establishing his independent production company Worldwide Biggies in 2005, Hecht developed and executive produced The Naked Brothers Band (2007-09), which was among the production company's most successful live action TV shows on Nickelodeon.[19]

When Hecht became the president of the TV channel The New TNN, he revised the network's title to Spike TV, where his shows included The Joe Schmo Show, MXC and signing the Ultimate Fighting Championship franchise.[20]

In 2017, Hecht joined Pocket.watch as Chief Content Officer.[21] Pocket.watch is a new studio creating global franchises from the YouTube stars characters loved by generation alpha. Hecht is the creator and Executive Producer of Ryan's Mystery Playdate[22] on the Nick Jr. Channel,[23] the number one preschool show on TV.[24] 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.[25]

Hecht is the current Chief Content Officer of pocket.watch[26][27] that creates content for over 40 prominent Kids and Family YouTube creators,[28] resulting in more than 600 hours of programming produced to date. Currently, Hecht is overseeing the production of a series of 50 animated and live-action series and 5 specials. Featuring digital stars like Toys and Colors[29] (38.9 million subscribers) and Dan Rhodes [30] (22.5 million subscribers). Additionally, he is directing and producing "Ryan's World: them Movie" [31][32] the first feature film for the youtube star Ryan (34.6 million subscribers), set to be released in Fall 2024.

In his role as Creator and Executive Producer at pocket.watch, Hecht led the successful launch of "Ryan’s Mystery Playdate," which garnered a Daytime Emmy Award Nomination.[33] Creating and producing hits such as "Love, Diana" with over 1 billion views, "Onyx Family Dinner," recognized with a Cynopsis Best of the Best Award [34] and a MIPCOM CANNES Diversify TV Award [35] for its contributions to representation in Kids Programming, and "HobbyKids Adventures," in collaboration with[36][37] "The Fairly OddParents" creator Butch Hartman.

Movies

[edit]

In movies, Hecht produced films for Paramount including Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events.[38] The SpongeBob SquarePants Movie, The Rugrats Movie and the Oscar nominated[39] animated feature Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius.[38] The Rugrats Movie holds the distinction of being the first non-Disney animated feature to hit $100 million at the US domestic box office.[40]

Non-profit media

[edit]

In 2005, Hecht co-founded Shine Global with his wife Susan MacLaury,[41] Shine Global is a nonprofit media company that gives voice to children and their families by telling stories of resilience to raise awareness, promote action, inspire change. Through Shine, Hecht produced the Oscar winning[42] short documentary Inocente, and the Emmy winning[43] and Oscar nominated documentary feature War/Dance.[44]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Albie Hecht Named Head of HLN". The Hollywood Reporter. 18 September 2013. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  2. ^ "Albie Hecht Resigns as Spike TV President | TVWeek". Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  3. ^ a b Molloy, Tim (2013-09-18). "Spike TV Founder Albie Hecht Named Head of HLN". TheWrap. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  4. ^ 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.
  8. ^ "PS Albie". fredseibert.com. Retrieved 2023-11-25.
  9. ^ Alleyne, P. Llanor (Mar 16, 2018). "Kid From Queens Counts on NYC Energy". Broadcastingcable. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  10. ^ "The Honeymooners Lost Episodes Showtime 1984". fredalan.org. Retrieved 2023-11-25.
  11. ^ ""The client for pay for it all!"". fredalan.org. Retrieved 2023-11-25.
  12. ^ "Fred/Alan Inc".
  13. ^ "We're going to Bensonhoist!". fredalan.org. Retrieved 2023-11-25.
  14. ^ "Chauncey Street creates the Kids' Choice Awards". fredalan.org. Retrieved 2023-11-25.
  15. ^ ""Greetings from Gilbert" on Cinemax". fredalan.org. Retrieved 2023-11-25.
  16. ^ Sentinel, Catherine Hinman, Orlando (29 August 1995). "NICKELODEON'S 'GUTS' WINS OVER THE WORLD". chicagotribune.com. Retrieved 2019-09-12.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  17. ^ Karan, Tim (August 2017). "Kenan Thompson developing kids' sketch comedy show". Looper.com. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  18. ^ Owen, Rob (2019-03-20). "Nickelodeon at 40: Breaking Down the Big Hits From 'Dora' to 'SpongeBob'". Variety. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  19. ^ Haugsted, Linda (27 January 2007). "Cox Backs 'Naked' Band". Multichannel. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  20. ^ Ball, Ryan (2005-01-31). "Albie Hecht Leaves Spike TV". Animation Magazine. Retrieved 2019-09-12.
  21. ^ Calvario, Liz (March 22, 2017). "Chris Williams, Albie Hecht & Jon Moonves Announce Pocketwatch, New Media Brand Catered To Kids". Deadline. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
  22. ^ "Nickelodeon Unveils Ryan's Mystery Playdate, Brand-New Preschool Series Starring YouTube Superstar Ryan of Ryan ToysReview". www.businesswire.com. 2019-02-14. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  23. ^ "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.
  24. ^ Farrell, Mike (31 July 2019). "TIS 2019: Bakish Mends Fences With Small Cable". Multichannel. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  25. ^ "HobbyKidsTV". YouTube. Retrieved 2019-09-16.
  26. ^ Longwell, Todd (2022-06-23). "Digital Studio Pocket.watch Builds Kids' Biz on YouTube Stars". Variety. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  27. ^ Calvario, Liz (2017-03-22). "Chris Williams, Albie Hecht & Jon Moonves Announce Pocketwatch, New Media Brand Catered To Kids". Deadline. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  28. ^ pocket.watch. "Pocket.watch Unveils Largest Content Slate To Date; Underpins Studio's Ability To Meet Growing Demand For Kids Entertainment". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  29. ^ Media, aNb (2021-10-08). "Pocket.watch Launches Franchise with Toys & Colors". aNb Media, Inc. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  30. ^ Pocket.watch. "POCKET.WATCH SIGNS TEEN MAGICIAN DAN RHODES". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  31. ^ "Ryan's World heads to the big screen". Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  32. ^ "You are being redirected..." www.animationmagazine.net. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  33. ^ 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.
  34. ^ "Best of the Best Rising Stars 2021". Cynopsis Media. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  35. ^ Roxborough, Scott (2022-10-19). "MIPCOM: 2022 Diversify TV Award Winners Revealed". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  36. ^ Pressberg, Matt (2017-10-11). "New Kids-Focused Media Brand pocket.watch Teams With Butch Hartman for 3 Original Series". TheWrap. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  37. ^ "Butch Hartman to Create Three Series for pocket.watch". Animation World Network. Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  38. ^ a b Dade Hayes (2008-11-26). "Albie Hecht keeps an eye on web". Variety. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  39. ^ Feldman, Brian (2016-02-26). "Was 2001 the Most Important Year in Film-Meme History?". NYmag. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  40. ^ "The Rugrats Movie has hit $100 million". AWN.com. Retrieved 2023-11-25.
  41. ^ Dixon, Christopher. "THE WRONG LIGHT: Who Is Mickey? | Montclair Film". montclairfilm.org. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  42. ^ "MacLaury's Inocente Wins the Academy Award". www.cnjscl.org. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  43. ^ "NOMINEES FOR THE 31st ANNUAL NEWS & 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". Archived from the original on 2020-09-29. Retrieved 2019-09-13.
  44. ^ "War Documentaries: Old Oscar Statuette Returned to Army + Two Acclaimed Takes on Iraq Conflagration – Alt Film Guide". Retrieved 2019-09-12.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Albie_Hecht&oldid=1241392576"