Former NBC Honcho Ben Silverman Dissed Tina Fey's '30 Rock According to Kathy Griffin - Sitcoms Online Message Boards

Brian Damage · 11-10-2011, 09:37 PM

Back when party-boy executive Ben Silverman was famously running NBC into the ground, he took a meeting with Kathy Griffin. "I was really complimenting him on 30 Rock," recalls Griffin to the Post, "and I said, 'What's so great is it's really proven that just like the shows I grew up with — Phyllis and Mary Tyler Moore and Rhoda and all these female-driven comedies — Tina [Fey] has kind of brought that back in a way that's so wonderful and successful.'" Silverman replied that the series wasn't very profitable, then Griffin claims he went one step further. "He said: 'And it's really Alec [Baldwin]'s show.' It’s based on Tina Fey. It’s based on her life. She wrote it. It’s based on her own personal experience that no one ever had, which is to be the first female head writer on Saturday Night Live, so I never forgot that phrase. 'It's really Alec’s show.' So I was like, 'Buh-bye, Ben. Thanks for your time.'" For his part, Silverman's rep quibbled with the story, saying, "Ben denies Kathy’s statement and is proud that he has worked alongside super-talented comediennes including everyone from Tina Fey and Amy Poehler to America Ferrera and Sofia Vergara."

http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment...d-30-rock.html

TV Knowledge Fan · 11-14-2011, 06:33 PM

...this is the same Ben Silverman who operates "Reville Productions", which is responsible for "THE OFFICE"...AND "THE BIGGEST LOSER"- both of which aren't doing that well in the ratings these days. And that he was also responsible for bringing to the network, under Jeff {"Trust me, it'll work!"} Zucker's reign at NBC, a lot of "imported" series [including "MERLIN"] that didn't do anything for the network. So he should talk!!

11-10-2011, 09:37 PM	#1
Brian Damage I'm Rich Bitch Forum Icon Join Date: Feb 03, 2002 Location: What Ain't No Country I Ever Heard Of...They Speak English in What? Posts: 63,107	Former NBC Honcho Ben Silverman Dissed Tina Fey's '30 Rock According to Kathy Griffin Back when party-boy executive Ben Silverman was famously running NBC into the ground, he took a meeting with Kathy Griffin. "I was really complimenting him on 30 Rock," recalls Griffin to the Post, "and I said, 'What's so great is it's really proven that just like the shows I grew up with — Phyllis and Mary Tyler Moore and Rhoda and all these female-driven comedies — Tina [Fey] has kind of brought that back in a way that's so wonderful and successful.'" Silverman replied that the series wasn't very profitable, then Griffin claims he went one step further. "He said: 'And it's really Alec [Baldwin]'s show.' It’s based on Tina Fey. It’s based on her life. She wrote it. It’s based on her own personal experience that no one ever had, which is to be the first female head writer on Saturday Night Live, so I never forgot that phrase. 'It's really Alec’s show.' So I was like, 'Buh-bye, Ben. Thanks for your time.'" For his part, Silverman's rep quibbled with the story, saying, "Ben denies Kathy’s statement and is proud that he has worked alongside super-talented comediennes including everyone from Tina Fey and Amy Poehler to America Ferrera and Sofia Vergara." http://nymag.com/daily/entertainment...d-30-rock.html
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11-14-2011, 06:33 PM	#2
TV Knowledge Fan Member Senior Member Join Date: Mar 29, 2006 Location: Long Branch, N.J. Posts: 2,577	Remember... ...this is the same Ben Silverman who operates "Reville Productions", which is responsible for "THE OFFICE"...AND "THE BIGGEST LOSER"- both of which aren't doing that well in the ratings these days. And that he was also responsible for bringing to the network, under Jeff {"Trust me, it'll work!"} Zucker's reign at NBC, a lot of "imported" series [including "MERLIN"] that didn't do anything for the network. So he should talk!!