David Holman

David Holman is a former television producer and executive for over forty years, both in New York and Los Angeles.^[1] While working for Jim Henson and the Muppets he helped launch the original The Muppet Show in 1975,^[1] and worked on that series, "Sesame Street",^[1] "Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas" Special, and The Muppet Movie for six years.^[2] He later went on to produce and manage dozens of productions eventually working on several thousand individual shows from daytime soap operas, to primetime shows such as "Mad About You",^[3] and late night shows such as The Dick Cavett Show.^[1] He won an Emmy Award for his work ABC Sports on the 1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympic Games.^[1] Although semi-retired he is still developing screenplays.

History

Holman began his career in 1962 at KTBC-TV, Austin, TX, while attending the University of Texas, Austin, TX, where he was studying Radio & TV Broadcasting. First as a Floor-crew member at KTBC-TV and worked his way up to being an award-winning TV director. In 1964 while still at KTBC-TV he produced, directed, choreographed & danced in a "music video" before music videos had even been know or become popular. That short B&W 16mm film got Holman this first job in New York City that same year as an Associate Producer of national TV & Radio commercials with Norman, Craig & Kummel Advertising, one of the largest advertising agencies in the world. Within 3 months Holman was made a producer and produced over 100 TV & Radio commercials, a few of which became "classic" including Ajax Laundry Detergent's "White Knight" and Hertz Rent-A-Car's "The Flying Man". After 3 years, ABC Sports hired Holman to be a Unit Manager for "Wide World of Sports" covering sporting events in the U.S. and England including NBA basketball, NCAA football, Track & Field, Swimming & Diving, and PGA Golf tournaments, including the British Open in Blackpool, England. After 3 years Holman was promoted by ABC to be the first Production Administrator assigned to a multiple of TV series & specials including "The Dick Cavett Show", "The Tony Awards", "The Grammy Awards" & "The EMMY Awards". While in this ABC position in 1973 Holman met Jim Henson.^[2] ABC was producing a Muppet TV Special called "A Muppet Valentine Special" with actress Mia Farrow as the only human guest star.^[2] (Miss Piggy had not been "born" yet, nor was Kermit the Frog the host) When ABC ordered a second TV special, "The Muppet Show: Sex and Violence" for a possible Muppet TV series in prime-time, Henson hired Holman away from ABC to be his associate producer for that second pilot.^[4][5] After the two Specials aired it was surprising to Henson and Holman to learn that the network "passed" on hiring the Muppets to be in prime-time.^[2] The two other networks at the time – NBC and CBS – also "passed".^[2] "The Muppet Show" was picked up as a syndicated TV series by several affiliates instead,^[2][6] and later became a hit in syndication.^[2] "By the second season, the series was breaking syndication records and broadcasting in more than 100 countries. And it won several EMMY Awards."^[2] Holman worked as the production manager over-seeing Sesame Street, The Muppet Show, the first year of NBC's "Saturday Night Live".^[7] During these 6 years (1974-1979) Holman also produced 3 seasons of "Big Bird's (of "Sesame Street") Live Symphony Concerts" all of the U.S. & Canada. Also while at the Muppets Holman conceived the Parker Bros. "The Muppet Show Board Game" for Henson.

Holman continued his career in Los Angeles first as Merv Griffin's Unit Manager for the Vine Street Theater. In 1971 Paramount produced the first season of "Entertainment Tonight" on the same stage as "The Merv Griffin Show". ABC Sports was preparing for the "1984 Los Angeles Summer Olympic Games" and hired Holman to be a Production Administrator in 1982, and then promoted him a year later as the Head of Logistics for the International Broadcast Center (IBC) on the Sunset-Gower Studio lot. Holman won a TV Emmy Award for his work on that world TV event. After Holman wrapped this 2-year free-lance position he was named Director of Live & Tape production for Columbia Pictures Television. Within a few years Holman was named VP of Production for all of Columbia's TV productions at the Sunset Gower Studios and later after Sony purchased Columbia, most of the TV productions were produced at Sony Pictures (formerly MGM) and the Culver Studios, both in Culver City, CA. During this time Holman worked on several thousand episodes of television series and pilots, including "The Young and the Restless",^[1] "Days of Our Lives",^[1] "Punky Brewster", "Designing Women", "What's Happening Now", "Who's the Boss?",^[1] 227,^[1] My Two Dads,^[1] Entertainment Tonight,^[1] "The Nanny",^[3] "Mad About You",^[3] "King of Queens", "Married With Children", "Jeopardy", and "Wheel of Fortune". After his retirement in 2000, Holman wrote his first essay about his experiences with Jim Henson and The Muppets and that was published in the December 2004 issue of Palm Springs Life.^[2]

During his semi-retirement Holman met author Joyce Spizer and together they co-wrote (with another first-time writer) their first screenplay. Holman and Spizer (now Joyce Foy) have written a second screenplay and formed Hollywood East Productions,^[8] in 2005 to write and produce independent films. Holman also co-wrote a TV Special bout the career of country legend Patsy Cline with singer Cali McCord in Las Cruces, NM. Holman currently lives with his life-partner Tom Young and their Westie "Mactavish" in Surprise, AZ, and Holman continues to do creative writing and has been speaking to numerous film & TV students in Texas, California, Illinois & New Mexico.

Holman also was named an Outstanding Young Man of America in 1970 by the U.S. Jacees, and given an Award of Merit by the Texas Society of Professional Engineers, for directing "Paths of Progress" TV series at KTBC-TV, Austin, Texas, in 1963. He served in the U.S. Army in Munich, Germany, between 1960 and 1962, and was honorably discharged in 1962. He studied Broadcasting at the University of Texas, Austin, Texas.^[1]

Holman remains an active member of the Producers Guild of America, the Academy of TV Arts & Sciences, a founding member of the Palm Springs Chapter of Women In Film, a Guest Lecturer for colleges & universities in the U.S., and is a Life Member of the University of Texas Ex-Students' Association. Holman is listed in Who's Who in Entertainment 1990–Present and in Who's Who in California 1983–2006.

References