On the road for our new pilot...

We're back out on the road again...feels like it has been ages, and it has been almost a year since we shot the last DECLASSIFIED interview.

Here's Kosh and Mike Balog on the streets of Portland for our latest excursion. We're still messing about with the title...all I can say at this point is that it's about the moon landings. We've also lined up an amazing on-camera host...more on him soon. In this shot, Kosh and Mike are getting ready to shoot exteriors for a place called Dante's.

I also had a chance to see my old friend Dr. Mead Hunter, who is now Literary Manager up at Portland Center Stage ... he showed me the new space they're building at the amazing old Portland Armory. I can't wait to go back.

All in all...what a great town! I didn't have a bad meal outside of the airport, and the hotel that our genius Line Producer Jennifer Knott lined up for us... Fifth Avenue Suites ... absolutely spectacular.

Next stop: Louisville... 

May Day in Mid-Wilshire

I had a ringside seat at the enormous rally today...it was quite an amazing site. I was working in Koreatown that day and I know I only saw a fraction of the march. By the time I left I doubt more than a quarter of the half million had passed my corner.

From Wilshire & Vermont...I call this photo "Hollywood Gets it Wrong...Again," since the date should have been 5/1/06. Still, for those who paid attenion, The Signs Were All Around...

Of all the signs I saw, I think this was the most...er...endearing? Touching? In Pico Union and Koreatown...in fact, in a lot of downtown and east L.A. you'll see these vendors selling hot dogs wrapped in a strip of bacon and fried on little pushcart griddles: it's the L.A. rejoinder to the great street junk food of the east.

Well, they had a banner...the Organization of Hot Dog Vendors in Solidarity. Right on!

The office building I was in was pretty much empty by 4:00PM...the guard was a little tired of having to get up to let me in and out of the lobby...by 5, we were all gone, but the march was still going. 

Back in Rotation...

I've just gotten my hand on a series of re-broadcasts for DECLASSIFIED...and our last premiere!

Here's what's coming up...all these times are Eastern. Check your local listings: different cable and satellite providers run shows at different times...

Declassified: Godfathers of Havana. Monday, May 01 @ 10am ET
Declassified: Godfathers of Havana. Monday, May 01 @ 4pm ET

(And this is the Premiere...)
Declassified: Secrets of World War I. Thursday, May 04 @ 10pm ET
Declassified: Secrets of World War I. Friday, May 05 @ 2am ET

Declassified: The Taliban. Thursday, May 11 @ 10pm ET
Declassified: The Taliban. Friday, May 12 @ 2am ET

Premiere #12, Show #1

This Thursday will see the premiere of the first regular episode of DECLASSIFIED that we created: THE TET OFFENSIVE. It's an important show because it was the one on which we created the template for everything that came afterwards.

We were very lucky in terms of our interview subjects: it was really pretty stunning (as it always it) to hear from the troops who took the time to talk with us. It was a frightening story to work on because those guys really give you a sense of how bloody and desperate Hue and Khe Sanh were. We also had the luck to talk to Allan Wendt, who was actually in the US Embassy when the attack began: now that is a story. Two journalists, Jack Languuth and Don Oberdorfer, were tremendously helpful on this episode and our program about the Viet Cong.

Perhaps the most dizzying interview I got to do all year is the one that closes out this show: Daniel Ellsberg. My one regret about the series is that I never found the answer to his challenge: find out who leaked LBJ's troop increases to the NY Times.

This one was our first baby: I'm looking forward to sitting down and watching it with fresh eyes this Thursday, April 20.

Change is in the air...

In recent weeks I've been shooting more material for the new Cornerstone video, working on a few other proposals, and prepping the next "DE-" series while the lawyers work out the details. It's been quite a whirl.

One rather interesting island was the Wende Museum, which I've visited the last couple of Fridays. I wish I'd known about this collection when we started DECLASSIFIED. It's a private archive/museum consisting of about 50,000 items from the USSR and GDR: socialist realist art, Checkpoint Charlie artifacts, uniforms, books, medals, photos, banners, plates, and on and on.

What's wild is that it's all in an office park in Culver City, just around the hill from my house. A recreation of a section of Eric Hoenneker's office right here in Mayberry, L.A.

I've had a chance to talk to the Wende's curator Kelly Ann Kolar a couple of times, and I'm hoping we can work with her on our next couple of programs. What she and her colleagues have put together is really a treasure.

What's really new this weekend is...

...the stuff I'm working on in my other blog! I'm traveling to a few spots in the storied past of Cornerstone Theater company, creating a new film about them. Here's the scoop...

New Premiere Schedule

OK...another change from scheduling...here is the current list of premieres...

3/23: Godfathers of Havana
3/30: Chairman Mao
4/20: Tet Offensive
5/4: Secrets of WWI

There are obviously going to be repeats on the schedule, starting with John Lennon this week.

New Listing of Premieres!

Good news from scheduling...although you're going to have to wait for it. We're now going into a cycle of repeats punctuated by premieres. We're still on THC on Thursdays...this week is the re-scheduled AYATOLLAH, but after that comes a repeat of John Lennon. Here's the list of premieres...

3/9: Ayatollah
3/23: Godfathers of Havana
4/20: Tet Offensive
5/4: WWI
6/1: Chairman Mao

...and in between, we'll have repeats and the occasional pre-emption for a THC special event. I'll post more when I get them!

Schedule Changes: More Rebroadcasts!

Last night our show about the Ayatollah was pre-empted for a special, and THC has used that as an excuse to rebroadcast some of our more popular episodes and stretch out our schedule! Yay! Here's a look at the next couple of weeks...check you local listings for correct times!

Declassified: Tiananmen Square. Saturday, March 11 @ 1pm ET
Declassified: Ayatollah Khomeini. Thursday, March 09 @ 10pm ET
Declassified: Ayatollah Khomeini. Friday, March 10 @ 2am ET
Declassified: Ayatollah Khomeini. Saturday, March 11 @ 2pm ET
Declassified: Joseph Stalin. Saturday, March 11 @ 3pm ET
Declassified: Viet Cong. Monday, March 13 @ 12pm ET
Declassified: Viet Cong.Monday, March 13 @ 6pm ET
Declassified: John Lennon. Thursday, March 16 @ 10pm ET
Declassified: John Lennon. Friday, March 17 @ 2am ET

DAM (fine) TV (satire)

Jeff Strong over at Discovery sent me an email to let me know that he was one of the three guys behind Ms. I Don’t Know How to View a Roughcut Lady, the very funny little Real Marketing Genius MP3 I posted a couple of days ago.

Jeff, along with his fellow artistes J.R. Soldano and Tyler Korba, produced that for an internal presentation for something called DAM TV -- which stands for Discovery Advertising and Marketing TV. " We can’t believe that they’ve found their way on the net...totally hilarious," Jeff wrote, "There are 6 of them in total..." And then he sent them to me...they're great!

Half of them apply to pretty much any corporate setting...and half are cable-specific...Enjoy! And again--thanks Jeff & JR & Tyler!

Regular bureaucracy according to DAM TV...
Mr. Waiting For the Conference Room Guy
Miss Small Talk in the Elevator Lady
Mr. Asking Us To Think Outside the Box Guy


Life in TV, according to DAM TV...
Ms. I Don’t Know How to View a Roughcut Lady
Mr. Cutting a Promo for a Lame Show Guy
Mr. Impossible Approval Man

Wrap Party & What's Next...

Yay! DECLASSIFIED Season 1 is history (although there are still 6 episodes coming, and then reruns) Wrap Party photos below...what a great time. 10 Worlds knows how to throw a hell of a party. Two bands, fire dancing by Jennifer, belly dancing, electric ukes, an Endless Margarita Fountain, all at the foot of the revolving Crossroads of the World. A fabulous end to a fabulous year: here's hoping S2 is on its way (gotta wait for those numbers, of course....)

Susan, Kosh & Me

That's Jennifer doing her Fire Dance magic...

Michael and Susie D



Next up? Another DE- project, and it's a pilot, and it's still CLASSIFIED although it's not DECLASSIFIED. More soon! Woo hoo!

And that's Hilary, Jeanna and Jon (researchers extraordinaire), Koshmeister, and Oz (editor extraordinaire).

Rough Cut Lady...

This one's for all you who've worked in television...Miss I Don't Know How to View A Rough Cut Lady -- the MP3.

I want to say that NONE of the broadcasters I have ever worked with fit this profile...NONE! Still, I wish I knew who created this first...I'd gladly give them credit. Thanks to Carl for this one...it had us all in stiches for quite some time!

Sing along! Woo Hoo!

We've been Wiki-ed

Hey! We've been Wiki-ed!

There's a Declassified post on Wikipedia now...check it out...

I also hear that the numbers were great for our program on the Viet Cong. Looks like we're picking up some steam!

Premiere Party Animals

We're right around the halfway mark, and the reviews have been terrific so far. Some great numbers, particularly in terms of the age of the audience: it's gratifying to know that we are getting to a younger segement than THC usually does.

I've forgotten to post these for the longest time...here are a few snaps from the Premiere Party...gotta get them up because the Wrap Party's just around the corner.

There's Shirley Jahad (of KPCC, author of CASTRO), Kosh, Me, Jennifer, Oz, Kareema and Tom












And this other one is Susan and I ... I expect we'll have more soon, including Jennifer doing amazing things with fire...

LAC DMH renews Story Tactics contract...again!

I was very pleased to find a renewed contract from LA County in the mail this week...I've had the best time working with these folks. For the past couple of years I've been helping them implement a complex project created by Sierra Systems: the Integrated System, the Department of Mental Health's HIPAA-compliant MIS system.

I first worked with DMH in the early 90's on LA's disasters: I was one of the people who helped create Project REBOUND, the nation's first large-scale crisis counseling project funded by FEMA (back when they were run by people who knew what they were doing, like James Lee Witt).

This current project has let me play around with all sorts of design stuff, starting with Dreamweaver and leading to Macromedia's Captivate. In between I've done tons of content, loads of training, and all sorts of interesting stuff (like managing online listservs, etc.).

I know it sounds a little crazy, but somehow between this and DECLASSIFIED I feel a little more balanced. Yin = insanity of TV production, Yang = insanity of massive bureaucracy.

Funny how these things even out...thanks again, DMH! Looks like I will be around (at least part time) through July.

Thank you, LA TIMES

I think this makes six in a row--we're a highlight again in the LA Times.

Even more remarkable is the spot THC has been running for us this week...it's THE VIET CONG this Thursday, and the ad they have up makes the comparison between the "insurgency then, and the insurgency now."

I've said it all along: each and every episode of this season is absolutely about today. Thanks to THC for highlighting it in this important instance.

Looks like the Wrap Party is FINALLY in sight! Woo hoo!

Real Screen sees a DECLASSIFIED Screening

Damn! I knew I should have gone to Real Screen this year!

One of our field producers was in a session featuring Carl Lindhal, our most excellent exec. producer from The History Channel...he reports that Carl showed a segment of the pilot (THE RISE AND FALL OF THE BERLIN WALL), and then said nice things about the show. Thanks for the props, Carl!

Can we do it again next year? I promise, I'll be there! :)

I understand that one audience member said she thought her 70-year old dad would be a bit flummoxed by our style...but my unofficial motto for DECLASSIFIED has always been...

IT'S NOT YOUR FATHER'S HISTORY CHANNEL!!!

DECLASSIFIED goes International...

Woo hoo! We've landed in the UK!

Declassified is set to start showing in Great Britain...you can check the UK History Website...

Also, Uncle Joe did great for us this past week. Another banner night for the numbers. This week: Fidel!

On the Boards at history.com

Not only are the numbers good, but DECLASSIFIED's generating some discussion about style and content. Nice to be working on a show that's got some depth.

Check out the chatter at THC's Declassified Discussion Thread

"The only thing worse than being talked about, is NOT being talked about."

Oscar Wilde, right?

Even Better Graphics..

I like this one better...a little higher res than the one I published earlier...