WGBH Alumni | Pioneers in public media

Stew White, 76, BU scholar, class of ’58

January 30, 2012 | Posted by Jay Collier

Stewart Leanny White, age 76, died at his Ann Arbor home on January 25, 2012.

Stewart was born on April 14, 1935 and raised outside of Philadelphia in Media, Pennsylvania. He graduated from Media High School in 1953, from Penn State University in 1957 and from Boston University in 1959. He served in the US Army at Walter Reed Hospital.

At Boston University, Stewart made lifelong friends working at WGBH, where he did a news, sports and weather show. He liked to boast that he had the second highest rated news show in Boston public radio at the time (there were two).

Stewart worked for Smith, Klein and French in video/communications in the 1960s, and was recruited to do similar work at the University of Michigan Dental School in 1969. In 1977 he transitioned to the UM Medical School as director of Biomedical Communications. He retired in 1995…

There will be a celebration of his life, as per his wishes, in mid-March 2012. Those wishing to make a tangible gift in Stewart’s memory can do so by donating to the Penn State Alumni Association/Michigan chapter scholarship fund, or the annual Ann Arbor winter coat drive.

In: 1950s, 1960s

Unusual rights delay for Downton Abbey: hint of budget strife?

January 30, 2012 | Posted by Jay Collier

From Current.org

"Rights for Downton Abbey were believed to be caught in a heated budget dispute. But the series aired to great effect."

PBS’s ongoing negotiations to curb per-hour costs of producing programs and to assert more control over content are increasing friction with its largest producer, Boston’s powerhouse WGBH, according to sources at other stations with knowledge of the situation.

For a period until just four days before the second-season premiere of the gem of this season’s PBS schedule, Downton Abbey from Masterpiece Classic, the approval of PBS broadcast rights for the series hung in the balance as WGBH protested the network’s contract demands.

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In: 2010s, Downton Abbey, WGBH 2

Alex Beam: Down on season two of Downton Abbey

January 27, 2012 | Posted by Jay Collier

From the Boston Globe — 1/27/2012

Alex Beam. Image from IdentityTheory.com

By any metric, “Downton’’ has hit a home run. Nationally, it has more than doubled PBS’s prime-time audience. Locally, “Downton’’ is enjoying a 5.8 rating, twice as high as “Masterpiece Classic’’ ratings last year. It is too early to know if that translates into increased memberships or pledge commitments for WGBH…

I loved the first season of “Downton,’’ with its obsessive attention to the “law of the entail,’’ which forbad the earl’s daughters from inheriting their father’s magnificent property…

Season two has a phoned-in quality; miracles occur where skillful writing might have intervened, subplots wax and wane randomly. But I am an originalist snob. I’m one of those people who can’t understand why anyone would watch NBC’s “The Office,’’ a show stolen character for character for character and situation for situation from Ricky Gervais’s much funnier British show. But what the heck, it’s television.

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Image from IdentityTheory.com profile

In: 2010s, Downton Abbey, Masterpiece Theater

Downton Abbey continues its success at the Golden Globes

January 16, 2012 | Posted by Jay Collier

From The Mail

It’s the quintessential British period drama series that has captivated and delighted its American cousins. So no one was surprised when Downton Abbey was praised for its Stateside success with a prestigious Golden Globe.

Downton Abbey continues its success at the Golden Globes

And creator Julian Fellowes beamed with pride as he and his Lord and Lady of the manor as they picked up the gong for Best Mini Series.

They were joined by executive producers Rebecca Eaton and Gareth Neame and director Brian Percival….

Bonneville believes the popularity of the period drama is down to its unpredictability as it is one of few pieces not to be adapted from a novel

Speaking backstage he said: ‘People tend to love period dramas, but this is one where you don’t know the ending, it’s not like an adaptation of a book.’

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In: Downton Abbey, WGBH 2

Picturing “Billy the Kid”

January 12, 2012 | Posted by Jay Collier

From the Boston Globe

In the 130 years since Pat Garrett gunned him down in the New Mexico Territory, Billy the Kid has fired the imaginations of millions. Aaron Copland composed a ballet about him. Michael Ondaatje wrote a novel about him. Hollywood has made close to a hundred movies or TV shows about him. Tonight he’s the subject of an hourlong “American Experience’’ documentary on Channel 2, “Billy the Kid.’’

The most interesting thing in the documentary, both for itself and for how it’s used as an artistic device, is the one known photograph of Billy. John Maggio, who wrote and directed, keeps coming back to the image. A visual refrain, it recurs the way a hook does in a hit song.

The picture cost Billy 25 cents, and he has the look of someone out to get his money’s worth. Head cocked, he’s showing off for the camera – while trying not to show that he’s showing off. His sleepy eyes and slightly parted lips give him a casual look (the open mouth also reveals a bit of snaggle tooth). He wears a vest, suspenders, a jauntily knotted bandana, and a Stetson or sombrero whose dented crown is so high it looks like a top hat. Completing the portrait is a Winchester rifle, which Billy holds upright, grasping it by the muzzle. It looks more like walking stick than weapon.

In: WGBH 2

Pioneers in public media

Stew White, 76, BU scholar, class of ’58

Unusual rights delay for Downton Abbey: hint of budget strife?

Alex Beam: Down on season two of Downton Abbey

Downton Abbey continues its success at the Golden Globes

Picturing “Billy the Kid”

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