Showtime
Launched	July 1, 1976; 35 years ago  (July 1, 1976)
Owned by	Showtime Networks, Inc. (CBS Corporation)
Picture format	480i (SDTV) 1080i (HDTV)
Slogan	Brace Yourself
Country	United States
Broadcast area	Nationwide
Headquarters	New York City
Sister channel(s)	The Movie Channel Smithsonian Channel Flix
Website	http://www.sho.com
Availability
Satellite
DirecTV	545 Showtime (east) (SD/HD) 546 Showtime (west) (SD/HD) 547 Showtime 2 (SD/HD) 548 Showcase (SD/HD) 549 Showtime Extreme (SD/HD) 550 Showtime Beyond (HD) 551 Showtime Next (HD) 552 Showtime Women (HD) 1545 Showtime On Demand
Dish Network	318 Showtime (east) (SD/HD) 319 Showtime (west) (SD/HD) 320 Showtime 2 (SD/HD) 321 Showcase (SD/HD) 322 Showtime Extreme 323 Showtime Beyond
Cable
Available on most cable systems	Check local listings for channels
IPTV
Verizon FiOS	365-380
AT&T U-verse	See AT&T U-verse channel lineup

Showtime is an American premium cable television service featuring programming that consists primarily of theatrically released motion pictures, along with original series, made-for-cable movies, and occasional boxing and mixed martial arts matches. The channel is owned by Showtime Networks, Inc., a division of CBS Corporation.

As of January 2012, Showtime's programming reaches 21.3 million subscribers in the United States.^[1] The Showtime brand is used by a number of channels and platforms around the world, but primarily refers to the group of channels in the United States.

History[link]

Showtime, originally a service of Viacom, went on the air on July 1, 1976, first shown on a local cable system in Dublin, California.^[2] Its first program was Celebration, a concert special featuring Rod Stewart, Pink Floyd and ABBA.^[3]

On March 7, 1978, Showtime expanded to the national market via satellite, competing with HBO and other pay cable networks.

In 1979, Viacom sold 50% of Showtime to TelePrompTer. In 1982, Westinghouse, who had acquired TelePrompTer the previous year, sold its share of Showtime back to Viacom. In 1983, Viacom and Warner-Amex Satellite Entertainment merged Showtime and The Movie Channel to form Showtime/The Movie Channel, Inc. (later Showtime Networks, Inc.). 1984 saw the premiere of Showtime's first original movie, The Ratings Game, both starring, and directed by, Danny DeVito. In 1985, Viacom acquired Warner's share of Showtime/TMC, making them the sole owner of Showtime once again.

In 1990, Showtime ventured into acquiring and premiering independent films directly for the channel, originally as part of its 30-Minute Movie anthology series of short films. One of its first premieres, 12:01 PM, was nominated for an Academy Award. In the years that followed, Showtime expanded its acquisitions into the realm of feature-length fare, including the 1997 remake of Lolita, directed by Adrian Lyne.

In the early 2000s, Showtime launched several additional multiplex channels including Showtime Too (a pun on its current name, Showtime 2), Showcase (formerly Showtime 3), Showtime Beyond and Showtime Extreme. Showtime had also launched several channels exclusively for digital cable: Showtime Family Zone, Showtime Next, and Showtime Women.

Showtime logo used from 1984 to 1997; a 3D circle containing a TV screen was included with this logo from 1984 to 1988. This logo was also used on Showtime Australia until 2009.

Showtime Networks also owns the channels The Movie Channel, The Movie Channel Xtra and Flix. Each multiplex channel offers movies and programs fitting each channel's particular theme. Premieres of popular movies are usually made on the primary channel.

In 2000, Showtime launched the "Showtime Interactive 24.7" channel—providing DVD-like interaction opportunities to its entertainment offerings. In the 2000s, Showtime began test marketing a subscription-video-on-demand SVOD system; the subscription-video-on-demand channel called Showtime On Demand, which users are able to see episodes of Showtime original series, movies, adult programming and boxing, was launched officially in 2002.^[4] Showtime also became one of the first cable TV networks to broadcast an HDTV version of its channel, along with Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound.^[5][6]

In 2005, Viacom and CBS announced its intention to split up only six years after Viacom bought the network and its television assets. The original Viacom was renamed CBS Corporation and got the broadcasting elements, Paramount Television's production operations (renamed CBS Paramount Television, now two separate arms, CBS Television Studios for production and CBS Television Distribution for syndicated program distribution), Viacom Outdoor advertising (renamed CBS Outdoor), Showtime Networks, Simon & Schuster and Paramount Parks, which the company later sold, while the new Viacom kept Paramount Pictures, MTV Networks, BET Networks, and (until it was sold off in 2007), Famous Music. National Amusements retains ownership of both companies to this day.

In May 2010, it was reported that Showtime plans to launch a service to stream episodes of original series to subscribers.^[7]

Channels[link]

Showtime operates eight multiplex channels and a video on demand service (Showtime On Demand): Showtime also packages the Eastern and Pacific feeds of the main channel and its multiplex services together, giving viewers a second chance to watch the same movie/program three hours earlier or later — depending on their geographic location. However, certain cable systems only offer the main channel in this manner.
Note: the abbreviation in parenthesis is used as an on-screen identifier and in programming guides

• Showtime (SHO): The flagship channel; blockbuster movies, first-run films, original series, specials, mixed martial arts events and championship boxing.
• Showtime 2, referred on-air as SHO2 (SHO2): Secondary channel; offers more movies, original series and specials. Launched in 1991, the channel was rebranded as Showtime Too from 2001 to 2006.^[8]
• Showcase (SHO3): Similar to Showtime Two, features movies, first-run films and original pictures. The channel was previously known as Showtime 3 from 1996 to 2001.^[9]
• Showtime Beyond (SHOB): The channel features a mix of science fiction, fantasy and horror films as well as Showtime original sci-fi series; launched in 1999.^[10]
• Showtime Extreme (SHOX): Action and adventure, thrillers, gangster and martial arts. Airs over 60 movies each month and a Sunday double feature spotlighting a different action star; launched in 1998.
• Showtime Family Zone (SHOF): Family-oriented programming, including movies and specials aimed at a younger audience. All movies are G, PG, or PG-13 rated and no R-rated movies or TV-MA rated programming airs on Showtime Family Zone. The channel is currently exclusively available on digital cable, but is not available in all areas; launched in 2001.^[9]
• Showtime Next (SHON): Movies geared towards adults 18–24; features over 50 films each month, original pictures, short films and animated shorts; launched in 2001.^[10]
• Showtime Women (SHOW): Targeted to women; airs films, Showtime original series and specials geared primarily at women; launched in 2001.^[9]

Other services[link]

Showtime HD[link]

Showtime provides 1080i high definition simulcast feeds of all of its channels except Showtime Family Zone, which are carried by most of the major American television providers.

Showtime On Demand[link]

Showtime On Demand is the Video on Demand counterpart to Showtime and is available to subscribers of Showtime on most providers.

Showtime Anytime[link]

On October 27, 2010, Showtime launched Showtime Anytime to customers of Comcast's Xfinity TV service who are subscribers to Showtime. Showtime Anytime comprises a web site which distributes around 400 hours of program content available for streaming in standard or high definition. Content includes Showtime original programming, feature films, comedy specials, documentaries and sports programming.^[11]

Programming[link]

Showtime has several original programs airing on the network. The most popular shows are Dexter, starring Michael C. Hall as a police department blood-spatter analyst who maintains a secret life as a vigilante serial killer, and Weeds, starring Mary-Louise Parker as a widow from an upper-middle class suburb of Los Angeles who turns to dealing marijuana to support her family after her husband dies.

Other shows include Dead Like Me, Californication, Homeland, Nurse Jackie, The Tudors, Shameless, Soul Food, Queer as Folk, The L Word, The Big C and United States of Tara.

Another Showtime series, Brotherhood, about the intertwining lives of the Irish-American Caffee brothers from Providence, Rhode Island: Tommy, a local politician and Michael, a professional criminal, was quite popular critically with some even comparing the show to The Wire and The Sopranos. It was even said by one critic to be "the jewel Showtime has sought for years." However, it was not popular with viewers and was not renewed after its third season.

Showtime 2 carries one original program exclusive to the network, a late night program called Big Brother After Dark as a companion series to the American Big Brother series airing on sister broadcast network CBS.

Showtime has long employed a late night block of programming called "Showtime After Hours", a block consisting of programming aimed at adults, airing after 12 a.m. ET; the programming featured within the block, which has existed since the early 1980s^[when?], includes smaller feature films and occasionally stand-up comedy specials. Softcore erotica programming typically does not air within the block and adult films have been absent from the main Showtime channel since the mid-2000s (though a limited amount of original erotica series have resurfaced on the main channel in 2010 such as Beach Heat: Miami, after having been absent for most of the previous decade), although the network's multiplex channels Showtime 2 and Showcase do occasionally feature adult films on their overnight schedules.

Movie library[link]

As of 2011, Showtime holds first-run premium cable rights to films from Summit Entertainment, The Weinstein Company, Miramax Films (also including rights to Dimension Films releases), DreamWorks Pictures (live-action releases through Touchstone Pictures only), CBS Films, First Look Pictures, IFC Films (rights are shared with Starz), THINKFilm and Anchor Bay Entertainment. Showtime holds sub-run rights to films from MGM, Sony Pictures, Paramount, and Disney. Starting in July 2012, Showtime will also hold sub-run rights to films from Universal Studios.

After its launch, Showtime signed licensing agreements with several movie studios. After being merged with WASEC's The Movie Channel, Paramount Pictures (then owned by Gulf + Western) signed an exclusive first-run deal with the newly formed Showtime/The Movie Channel for 75 films for the next five years. In 1986, Showtime/TMC signed deals with Buena Vista Motion Pictures Group and Orion Pictures. They lost the rights for new Paramount films in 1989 after HBO signed a deal with the studio two years earlier for features released from May 1988. By 1989, Showtime had already exclusive deals with Carolco Pictures, Atlantic Entertainment Group, Cannon Films, Buena Vista, Universal Studios, De Laurentiis Entertainment Group, Imagine Entertainment and Weintraub. They lost out the rights for new Disney releases to Liberty's Starz in 1997. On April 13, 1990, Showtime signed an exclusive first-run deal with New Line Cinema. The deal expired in 1995, when the first-run rights were moved to Starz. On November 22, 1993, Showtime signed exclusive first-run premium cable rights with MGM and United Artists which was renewed in 2000 for eight additional years.

After being acquired by Viacom in 1994, Paramount Pictures began a 10-year output deal with Showtime (then also owned by Viacom), effective after 1997, after Paramount's contract with HBO expired. After the old Viacom was split in two corporations, the output deal with Paramount was not renewed after 2007, thus the pay-cable rights transferred in 2009 to Viacom's Epix premium venture. Showtime has also agreements with IFC Films (which it shares broadcasting rights with Starz), ThinkFilm, certain films put out by The Weinstein Company (those that are distributed theatrically in conjunction with MGM Studios), and the newly re-formed United Artists (still a subsidiary of MGM). In 2008, the channel signed a deal with First Look Pictures to air their films.

The future of the channel was put into question when it was announced that three of its major suppliers of films Paramount Pictures, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and Lions Gate Entertainment, as well as their respected subsidiaries (Paramount Vantage and United Artists), would be teaming up together to form a new premium movie channel. Called Epix, it launched in May 2009 as a broadband Internet service, and arrived on television on October 31 of that year.^[12] This is primary due to the company split-up of parent company Viacom into two separate entities, Viacom and CBS Corporation, the latter owning Showtime (though both companies are still controlled by National Amusements). Paramount's contract with the channel expired January 2008. This includes such films as Cloverfield and Iron Man being available to the new channel upon its initial run. MGM and Lions Gate's contracts expired at the end of 2008.^[13]

On July 15, 2008, it was announced that Showtime had signed a seven-year deal with The Weinstein Company to exclusively air their films during their initial premium-channel broadcasts, starting with their 2009 film slate. This includes films such as Nine, All Good Things and Quentin Tarantino's Inglourious Basterds. The deal also includes films from the studio's subsidiary Dimension Films.^[14] On December 4, 2008, Showtime entered into an exclusive 4-year output deal with Summit Entertainment to air 42 of their films during their initial premium cable run. The deal includes all the films in the Twilight franchise, as well as the films Push, Knowing with Nicolas Cage, and the horror remake Sorority Row.^[15]

Though not owning the broadcasting rights to show first-run movies from 20th Century Fox, Showtime has been able to show independent films the studio owns the home video rights to, even if they didn't release them theatrically, most notably being Mel Gibson's 2004 film, The Passion of the Christ. Others include Party Monster, Ong-Bak: Muay Thai Warrior, Woman Thou Art Loosed and Donnie Darko. As of 2006, Showtime has a partial deal with Rogue Pictures, allowing them to broadcast particular films put out by the studio (especially those originally produced for video), including Carlito's Way: Rise to Power and Dave Chappelle's Block Party.

On November 6, 2009, Showtime came to an agreement with The Walt Disney Company, which had recently purchased the distribution rights to DreamWorks Pictures, to air at least 35 movies from the latter studio between 2009 and 2015 during their premium-cable run. The distribution rights originally fell under Starz's pay television deal with Disney, but Starz found it too expensive. ^[16] This deal also allows Showtime first-choice to renew their contract when the initial tenure lapses. The deal does not include films from DreamWorks Animation (the pay-cable rights to those films are held by HBO and Netflix starting in 2013). Showtime also inked a pay-cable output deal with CBS Films, which is also owned by the network's parent company CBS Corporation.

Usually films to which Showtime has pay-cable rights will also run on The Movie Channel and Flix during its time of license.

Sports programming[link]

Showtime broadcasts a limited amount of sports programming on its schedule produced by the channel's Showtime Sports division. Beginning in March 1986, Showtime's sports programming consisted largely of boxing matches produced under the banner Showtime Championship Boxing; in 2001, the network launched ShoBox: The New Generation, focusing primarily on up-and-coming boxers. In 2004, Showtime began broadcasting all domestic fights telecast on the channel in high definition.^[17] In December 2006, Showtime announced a deal to broadcast mixed martial arts matches from the then-newly formed Elite Xtreme Combat (or EliteXC), an MMA organization formed by Showtime Networks and ProElite, Inc., with all events broadcast under the banner ShoXC; the league folded two years later in 2008.^[18]

In 2008, Showtime acquired Inside the NFL, the longest-running program in the history of HBO, from that network when it had cancelled the seasonal analysis and interview program in February 2008. In February 2009, Strikeforce announced a three-year broadcast agreement with Showtime, allowing it to broadcast up to 16 events per year, as well as a deal with sister network CBS for an option to produce up to four events for them.^[19] In addition to broadcasting big-ticket Strikeforce events on Showtime, it also announced it would produce ShoMMA: Strikeforce Challengers, an event series highlighting up-and-coming fighters.^[20] In 2010, Showtime debuted another original sports insider program Inside NASCAR. Showtime also operates Showtime PPV, formerly SET (Showtime Entertainment Television), which broadcasts boxing matches and other select event programming to pay-per-view subscribers. In 2011, Showtime announced they were expanding their MMA programming by televising events produced by M-1 Global,^[21] the Russian PTC company of popular Strikeforce fighter Fedor Emelianenko.

Branding[link]

Showtime's original logo was a circle with a TV screen inside (very similar to the logo used by Brazilian television network Rede Globo, though without the circle in the center), accompanied by a generic "Showtime" text in Avant Garde font.^[22] From 1984 to 1990, the screen was accompanied by an italic "Showtime" text in Franklin Gothic type, with the "W" and "T" connected.^[23] The TV screen was dropped in 1989, and the italic text became the network logo from that point until 1997. That year, the current logo was implemented, consisting of the network's name in all capitals with the 'SHO' prefix imprinted on a circle (as with Cinemax's highlighting of 'MAX' in their logo, the use of 'SHO' as the logo focal point comes from the channel's former TV Guide abbreviation in the magazine's local listings era).

Showtime was one of the first U.S. premium channels to brand its programming with digital on-screen graphic logos starting in 1999, this originally pertained to only the main Showtime channel and Showtime 2 and was only done during promo breaks between programs; Showtime only shows their logo bug off-and-on during programming, while Showtime 2 runs theirs during all programming. On April 1, 2010 the remaining Showtime multiplex channels, Showtime Beyond, Showtime Extreme, Showtime Family Zone, Showtime Next and Showtime Women (as well as The Movie Channel, The Movie Channel Xtra and Flix) began using on-screen logo bugs during all of their programming.

Just like Starz, Showtime has recently begun to air lower-third promotions for upcoming programs during films airing during primetime slots on the main channel and during original series on the main Showtime channel, Showtime 2 and Showcase (in the case of its original series, the closing credits are typically replaced with a marginalized credit sequence similar to those used by the major U.S. broadcast networks).

Network slogans[link]

• 1976–1980: We're Sure You're Going to Like What You See
• 1980–1982: You Ain't Seen Nothin' Yet
• 1982–1984: All Eyes Turn for Showtime^[24]
• 1984–1988: Showtime Excitement / We Make Excitement^[23][25]
• 1987: Showtime Has the Hits HBO Misses
• 1987–1990: Where the Action Is
• 1989: Here You See Them. There You Don't.^[26] ("Here" refers to Showtime; "There" refers to HBO)
• 1990–1993: We Entertain You Like No One Can
• 1993–1995: Something Good is Gonna Happen
• 1997–2005: No Limits^[27]
• 2005–2011: TV. At Its Best.
• 2011–2012: Brace Yourself
• 2012-Present: Hold on Tight

This film, television or video-related list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it with reliably sourced additions.

International[link]

Showtime has two main pay TV networks that operate using its name; Showtime Australia and Showtime Arabia. It also has several channels that are licenced to use its name; Showtime Scandinavia (Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden), Showtime Extreme (Spain), and others.

Showtime debuted on South African television for the first time as part of the new TopTV satellite provider's package on May 1, 2010.^[28]

See also[link]

• Showtime Networks

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Showtime Anytime

Look up showtime in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Showtime or Show Time may refer to:

Film and television[link]

• Showtime (TV network), a premium subscription television brand
  • Showtime Networks, a division of CBS which owns the Showtime brand
  • Showtime (brand), worldwide stations using this brand, including:
    • Showtime Arabia, formerly the dominant subscription television service in the Middle East and North Africa
    • Showtime movie channels, a suite of Australian premium networks owned under a studio consortium which licenses the Showtime name
    • Showtime Scandinavia, a television channel broadcasting action movies to the Nordic countries
• Showtime (film), a 2002 American action/comedy film
• Showtime (variety show), now known as It's Showtime, a Philippine noontime variety show
• Showtime (Croatian TV show), a Croatian talent show similar to Pop Idol
• Showtime at the Apollo, a syndicated music program
• "Showtime" (Buffy the Vampire Slayer), an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer
• "Showtime" (M*A*S*H), an episode of M*A*S*H
• "Showtime", an episode of Law and Order

Music[link]

Albums

• Showtime!, an album by The J. Geils Band
• Showtime (Angel & Khriz album)
• Showtime (Avril Lavigne album)
• Showtime (Bro'Sis album)
• Showtime (Dizzee Rascal album)
• Show Time (Doris Day album)
• Showtime (James Brown album)
• Showtime (Mick Ronson album)
• Showtime (Nitzer Ebb album)
• Show Time (Show Luo album)
• Showtime, an album by TV-2
• Showtime, an album by Ry Cooder
• Showtime: Still 51/50, an upcoming album by Hurricane Chris

Songs

• "Showtime", a song by Lil Wayne from Tha Carter III
• "Showtime", a song by Nelly Furtado from Loose

People with the nickname[link]

• Zakeem Graham, American boxer
• Anthony Pettis, American mixed martial arts fighter
• Javier Vazquez (fighter), Cuban American mixed martial arts fighter
• Eric Young (wrestler), Jeremy Fritz, Canadian professional wrestler

Other uses[link]

• Showtime All-Star Wrestling, an American professional wrestling promotion based in Nashville, Tennessee
• Showtime Rotisserie, a small oven invented and advertised by Ron Popeil
• "Showtime", a style of play associated with the Los Angeles Lakers during the 1980s
• Showtime, a fragrance endorsed by Kylie Minogue
• The Sims 3: Showtime, the sixth expansion pack for The Sims 3

See also[link]

• All pages with titles containing "Showtime"

This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the same title. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.

Dylan Taylor is a Canadian actor, best known for playing Steve Wassenfelder, the ship’s out of shape theoretical physicist on the TV series Defying Gravity.

Filmography[link]

He was a series lead in the Comedy Network’s House Party, Dylan’s television credits also include guest-starring roles in

• The CW’s Aliens In America,
• CTV’s Murdoch Mysteries,
• Disney’s Life With Derek, and
• Global Television’s The Jane Show.

Dylan’s feature film credits include

• Terry Gilliam’s Tideland
• The Incredible Hulk
• Warriors of Terra
• Hooked on Speedman
• Charlie Bartlett

He currently resides in Toronto, Canada.

External links[link]

• Dylan Taylor at the Internet Movie Database

David Peaston (March 13, 1957 – February 1, 2012) was an American R&B and gospel singer who in 1990 won a Soul Train Music Award for Best R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist. He is mostly known for the singles, "Two Wrongs (Don't Make it Right)" and "Can I?", the latter of which was originally recorded by Eddie Kendricks.

Life and career[link]

He was a native of Saint Louis, Missouri. As a child he attended the Pleasant Green Missionary Baptist Church along with his mother, Martha Bass, a member of The Clara Ward Singers gospel group. His sister is R&B/soul singer Fontella Bass.^[1]

After graduating he worked as a school teacher but, after being laid off in 1981, moved to New York City and begin working as a background singer on recording sessions.^[2] In the late 1980s, he won several competitions on the Showtime at the Apollo television show, winning over the audience with a powerful rendition of "God Bless the Child."^[1] He was signed by Geffen Records, and his first single, "Two Wrongs (Don't Make It Right)" rose to no. 3 on the Billboard Black Singles chart in 1989.^[3] He had further hits on the R&B chart with "Can I?" and "We're All In This Together", and released an album, Introducing...David Peaston. He also toured with Gerald Alston in Europe, and with Gladys Knight in the US, before moving to the MCA label in 1991, where he issued the album Mixed Emotions.^[4]

In 1993, he recorded a gospel album with Fontella and Martha Bass entitled Promises: A Family Portrait Of Faith. He also sang on Lester Bowie's 1982 album, The One and Only (ECM).

Peaston was later diagnosed with diabetes and had his legs amputated, forcing him to use prostheses.

In 2006, Peaston returned to music with his album, Song Book: Songs of Soul & Inspiration. The album featured eight new tracks by Peaston, as well as several of his biggest hits.

Peaston died from complications of diabetes in St. Louis, Missouri, on February 1, 2012, at the age of 54.^[5][6]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• Introducing...David Peaston (1988)
• Mixed Emotions (1991)

Singles[link]

• "Two Wrongs (Don't Make It Right)" (1989) #3 R&B
• "Can I?" (1989) #14 R&B
• "We're All in This Together" (1990) #11 R&B, #45 Dance
• "Take Me Now" (1990) #77 R&B
• "String" (1991) #69 R&B
• "Luxury of Love" (1991) #41 R&B

References[link]

External links[link]

• R&B Haven - Biography, photos, videos

Ira Glass
Born	(1959-03-03) March 3, 1959 (age 53) Baltimore, Maryland, United States
Show	This American Life
Station(s)	WBEZ[1]
Network	Public Radio International
Time slot	Syndication
Style	Presenter
Country	United States
Website	thisamericanlife.org

Ira Glass (born March 3, 1959) is an American public radio personality, and host and producer of the radio and television show This American Life.

Personal life[link]

Glass was born in Baltimore, Maryland, United States, to Barry Glass, an accountant, and Shirley Glass, a psychologist, infidelity researcher, and author whom the New York Times called "the godmother of infidelity research."^[2][3] He attended Milford Mill High School in Baltimore County where he was active in student theater. He attended Northwestern University, in Evanston, Illinois,^[4] but transferred to Brown University, where he concentrated in semiotics and graduated in 1982.^[5] He is the first cousin once removed of composer Philip Glass, who has appeared on Ira's show and whose music can often be heard on the program. Glass stated on This American Life that he is a staunch atheist.^[6]

Glass married Anaheed Alani, a writer and editor, in August 2005.^[7]

Career[link]

Radio broadcasting[link]

Glass has worked in public radio for some 30 years. At 19 he began as an intern at National Public Radio's headquarters in Washington, D.C.^[8] He was a reporter and host on several NPR programs, including Morning Edition, All Things Considered, and Talk of the Nation. Glass wrote,

"The very first National Public Radio show that I worked on was Joe Frank's. I think I was influenced in a huge way... Before I saw Joe put together a show, I had never thought about radio as a place where you could tell a certain kind of story."^[9]

From November 1990 until September 1995, he co-hosted, with NPR producer Gary Covino a weekly, local program on Chicago Public Radio called The Wild Room. In 1993, Glass said,

“I like to think of it as the only show on public radio other than Car Talk that both Daniel Schorr [NPR news analyst] and Kurt Cobain [lead singer/guitarist of Nirvana] could listen to. I think it’s appropriate that the show [which aired on Friday evenings] is on a station that most people don’t listen to at a time when most people won’t hear it. And the fact that public radio never puts a new show on the air or takes any off is definitely to our advantage.”^[10]

During this time, he spent two years reporting on the Chicago Public School System—one year at a high school, and another at an elementary school. The largest finding of his investigations was that smaller class sizes would contribute to more success in impoverished, inner-city schools.^[11]

In 1995, the MacArthur Foundation approached Torey Malatia, general manager of Chicago Public Radio, with an offer of $150,000 to produce a show featuring local Chicago writers and performance artists. Malatia approached Glass who countered that he wanted to do a weekly program with a budget of $300,000. In 1998, Covino told the Chicago Reader, "The show he proposed was The Wild Room. He just didn't call it The Wild Room."^[12] Covino continued to produce The Wild Room until February 1996.

Glass invited David Sedaris to read his essays on NPR, which led to Sedaris's success as an independent author; Glass also produced Sedaris' commentaries on NPR.^[13]

Since 1995, he has hosted and produced This American Life, from WBEZ. The show was nationally syndicated in June 1996 by Public Radio International and has been national ever since. PRI was eager to take on the program, even as NPR passed on it.^[14]

This American Life reaches over 1.7 million listeners on over 500 stations weekly, with an average listening time of 48 minutes. Glass can be heard in all but four episodes.

On November 17, 2005, This American Life celebrated its 10th anniversary. The following week, as a special show celebrating the anniversary, the first episode, "New Beginnings", was re-broadcast. Prior to this, the first episode had never been aired outside of Chicago. When the first episode was broadcast in 1995, the show was known as Your Radio Playhouse. That first episode includes interviews with talk-show host Joe Franklin and Ira's mother, as well as stories by Kevin Kelly, founding editor of Wired, and performance artist Lawrence Steger.

In May 2009, the This American Life radio show episode "Return to the Scene of the Crime" was broadcast live to over 300 movie theaters.^[15]

In 2009, Glass was named the recipient of the Edward R. Murrow Award for Outstanding Contributions to Public Radio.^[16][17]

In 2011, Ira Glass earned the George Polk Award in Radio Reporting for "Very Tough Love," an hour-long report that showed alarmingly severe punishments being meted out by a county drug court judge in Georgia. Drug courts were set up to emphasize rehabilitation instead of incarceration, but Glass’ investigation revealed that Judge Amanda Williams strayed far from the principles and philosophy by routinely piling on jail sentences for relapses. One 17-year-old girl, initially in trouble for forging two small checks on her father’s account, was facing more than 10 years in jail. Following the airing of "Very Tough Love," Georgia’s Judicial Qualifying Commission filed 14 ethical misconduct charges against Williams. Within weeks of the filing of charges, Williams stepped down from the bench and agreed never to seek other judicial offices.^[18]

In 2012, Glass received a Doctorate of Humane Letters honoris causa from Goucher College in Baltimore, MD.

Other works[link]

While in high school, he wrote jokes for Baltimore radio personality Johnny Walker.

In September 1999, Ira collaborated on a comic book, Radio: An Illustrated Guide, with Jessica Abel. The book showcases how This American Life is produced, and how to produce your own radio program.

In 2006, he served as one of the executive producers of the feature film Unaccompanied Minors. It is based on the true story of what happened to This American Life contributing editor Susan Burton and her sister Betsy at an airport on the day before Christmas. Burton had already produced a segment on This American Life about the same experience before the story was adapted to film.

In October 2007, he published the anthology The New Kings of Nonfiction.

On March 22, 2007, Glass and company began airing a television version of This American Life as half-hour episodes on the Showtime network. During an interview with Patt Morrison on 89.3 KPCC, Southern California Public Radio, Glass said that he lost 30 lb (13.5 kg) for this venture.^[19] The show aired for thirteen episodes over two seasons, and ended in 2009 because of the heavy workload required to produce it.^[20]

Appearances[link]

On April 25, 2008, Glass again appeared on The Late Show.^[21] On April 22, 2009, Glass appeared as the featured guest on The Colbert Report. He also was on TBTL on September 18, 2009. Glass served as the monologist for ASSSSCAT at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theatre in New York on February 21, 2010. He appeared in a green motion capture suit in a John Hodgman segment on the Daily Show with Jon Stewart on Thursday, November 4, 2010 where he acted as the main character of the Grand Theft Auto: Vice City video game. Glass appeared on the June 24th, 2011 edition of Adam Carolla's podcast, where they discussed The Adam Carolla Podcast claiming the title of "Most Downloaded Podcast" from the Guinness Book of World Records. On September 17, 2011, Glass participated in the Drunk Show at the Eugene Mirman Comedy Festival,^[22][23] during which Glass became so drunk he blacked out and vomited backstage.^[24] On September 19, 2011, Glass appeared on WTF Live with Marc Maron^[25], which aired as Episode 213^[26] of WTF with Marc Maron, on September 26, 2011. Ira Glass guest co-hosted Dan Savage's sex advice podcast, Savage Love, on January 31, 2012.^[27] He also lent his voice to The Simpsons in Season 22 in the episode entitled "Elementary School Musical."

On May 18, 2012, Glass gave the commencement address for Goucher College class of 2012 graduation ceremony.^[28] where he also received an honorary degree.

References[link]

External links[link]

• Official website
• Ira Glass at the Internet Movie Database
• Works by Ira Glass on Open Library at the Internet Archive
• The Onion A/V Club's interview with Ira Glass, November 5, 2003