Paul Brownstein
Encyclopedia
Paul Brownstein is a director, writer, stage manager
, and executive producer
, working in the fields of television, music, recording, radio, concert touring, and home video
. Brownstein’s company owns worldwide TV and home video distribution rights to more than 4,000 hours of classic TV comedy
and variety series and specials, for clients like Cher
, Richard Pryor
, Groucho Marx
Productions, and Lucille Ball Productions. Brownstein lives in Los Angeles, California.
, The Phil Silvers Show
, and Perry Mason
, the 40th Anniversary of The Wild Wild West
and Hogan's Heroes
, and full season DVDs of The Odd Couple
, The Beverly Hillbillies
, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
, and The Twilight Zone
.
He is active in Public Television, as an Executive Producer on the My Music series of Pledge break specials with the original artists of Doo-wop
, Soul, Disco, and folk music
. Other TV credits include Executive Producer of VH1 Goes Inside the American Music Awards
, and Consulting Producer on CBS…50 Years From Television City
.
Brownstein was an Executive Producer of VH1’s The Best of American Bandstand
. He also produced the highly rated VH1 Archives series of episodes from the Mike Douglas, David Frost
, and Dick Cavett
talk show
s with artists like John Lennon
, David Bowie
, and James Brown
.
Brownstein was Executive Producer with Jeff Margolis for The Honeymooners
50th Anniversary Celebration, and appeared as a guest on Larry King Live
. Brownstein also supervised the digital remastering of the Classic 39 Honeymooners episodes for CBS
, and produced the clip segments for the CBS Special The Dick Van Dyke Show Revisited .
the original negatives and master tapes and tracked down never before seen outtakes, promos, behind the scenes footage, and rare clips from other programs as DVD bonus footage, plus recording audio commentary.
As Executive Producer for the revival of the original Smothers Brothers
Comedy Hour, he restored segments deleted by CBS censors from that groundbreaking TV series, which enjoyed renewed success when it found a whole new generation of fans on the E!
television channel.
Brownstein also saw an 8-year project come to fruition with the completion of a fully remastered Richard Burton's Hamlet
—a filmed record of the 1963 Broadway stage triumph, acknowledged as the highpoint of the actor’s theatrical career. After Brownstein's discovery of the original 35mm negative, negotiations of the production rights and digital remastering , the restored film premiered at the British Film Institute
in London as the final event in its yearlong festival of Shakespeare On Film
. The Burton Hamlet is now available on DVD and was the subject of a new play at The Public Theater in New York in 2008.
DVD, and also won multiple DVD awards for Get Smart
. Brownstein’s other DVD releases include Here's Lucy
, The Richard Pryor Show
, and The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
.
Stage management
Stage management is the practice of organizing and coordinating a theatrical production. It encompasses a variety of activities, including organizing the production and coordinating communications between various personnel...
, and executive producer
Executive producer
An executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
, working in the fields of television, music, recording, radio, concert touring, and home video
Home video
Home video is a blanket term used for pre-recorded media that is either sold or rented/hired for home cinema entertainment. The term originates from the VHS/Betamax era but has carried over into current optical disc formats like DVD and Blu-ray Disc and, to a lesser extent, into methods of digital...
. Brownstein’s company owns worldwide TV and home video distribution rights to more than 4,000 hours of classic TV comedy
Television comedy
Television comedy had a presence from the earliest days of broadcasting. Among the earliest BBC television programmes in the 1930s was Starlight, which offered a series of guests from the music hall era — singers and comedians amongst them...
and variety series and specials, for clients like Cher
Cher
Cher is an American recording artist, television personality, actress, director, record producer and philanthropist. Referred to as the Goddess of Pop, she has won an Academy Award, a Grammy Award, an Emmy Award, three Golden Globes and a Cannes Film Festival Award among others for her work in...
, Richard Pryor
Richard Pryor
Richard Franklin Lennox Thomas Pryor was an American stand-up comedian, actor, social critic, writer and MC. Pryor was known for uncompromising examinations of racism and topical contemporary issues, which employed colorful vulgarities, and profanity, as well as racial epithets...
, Groucho Marx
Groucho Marx
Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx was an American comedian and film star famed as a master of wit. His rapid-fire delivery of innuendo-laden patter earned him many admirers. He made 13 feature films with his siblings the Marx Brothers, of whom he was the third-born...
Productions, and Lucille Ball Productions. Brownstein lives in Los Angeles, California.
Executive producer
As an Executive Producer for CBS Home Entertainment, he created special features for the 50th Anniversary of GunsmokeGunsmoke
Gunsmoke is an American radio and television Western drama series created by director Norman MacDonnell and writer John Meston. The stories take place in and around Dodge City, Kansas, during the settlement of the American West....
, The Phil Silvers Show
The Phil Silvers Show
The Phil Silvers Show is a comedy television series which ran on CBS from 1955 to 1959 for 142 episodes, plus a 1959 special. The series starred Phil Silvers as Master Sergeant Ernest G...
, and Perry Mason
Perry Mason (TV series)
Perry Mason is an American legal drama produced by Paisano Productions that ran from September 1957 to May 1966 on CBS. The title character, portrayed by Raymond Burr, is a fictional Los Angeles defense attorney who originally appeared in detective fiction by Erle Stanley Gardner...
, the 40th Anniversary of The Wild Wild West
The Wild Wild West
The Wild Wild West is an American television series that ran on CBS for four seasons from September 17, 1965 to April 4, 1969....
and Hogan's Heroes
Hogan's Heroes
Hogan's Heroes is an American television sitcom that ran for 168 episodes from September 17, 1965, to March 28, 1971, on the CBS network. The show was set in a German prisoner of war camp during the Second World War. Bob Crane had the starring role as Colonel Robert E...
, and full season DVDs of The Odd Couple
The Odd Couple (TV series)
The Odd Couple is a television situation comedy broadcast from September 24, 1970 to July 4, 1975 on ABC. It starred Tony Randall as Felix Unger and Jack Klugman as Oscar Madison. It was based upon the play of the same name, which was written by Neil Simon.Felix and Oscar are two divorced men....
, The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies
The Beverly Hillbillies is an American situation comedy originally broadcast for nine seasons on CBS from 1962 to 1971, starring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer, Jr....
, Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.
Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C.The show renders the title as Gomer Pyle - USMC. is an American situation comedy that originally aired on CBS from September 25, 1964, to May 2, 1969. The series was a spinoff of The Andy Griffith Show, and the pilot was aired as the finale of the fourth season of The Andy...
, and The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone
The Twilight Zone is an American television anthology series created by Rod Serling. Each episode is a mixture of self-contained drama, psychological thriller, fantasy, science fiction, suspense, or horror, often concluding with a macabre or unexpected twist...
.
He is active in Public Television, as an Executive Producer on the My Music series of Pledge break specials with the original artists of Doo-wop
Doo-wop
The name Doo-wop is given to a style of vocal-based rhythm and blues music that developed in African American communities in the 1940s and achieved mainstream popularity in the 1950s and early 1960s. It emerged from New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Baltimore, Newark, Pittsburgh, Cincinnati and...
, Soul, Disco, and folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
. Other TV credits include Executive Producer of VH1 Goes Inside the American Music Awards
American Music Awards
-Conception:The AMAs were created by Dick Clark in 1973 to compete with the Grammys after the move of that year's show to Nashville, Tennessee led to CBS picking up the Grammy telecasts after its first two in 1971 and 1972 were broadcast on ABC...
, and Consulting Producer on CBS…50 Years From Television City
CBS Television City
CBS Television City is a television studio complex located in the Fairfax District of Los Angeles at 7800 Beverly Boulevard, at the corner of North Fairfax Avenue...
.
Brownstein was an Executive Producer of VH1’s The Best of American Bandstand
American Bandstand
American Bandstand is an American music-performance show that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989 and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as producer...
. He also produced the highly rated VH1 Archives series of episodes from the Mike Douglas, David Frost
David Frost
Sir David Frost is a British broadcaster.David Frost may also refer to:*David Frost , South African golfer*David Frost , classical record producer*David Frost *Dave Frost, baseball pitcher...
, and Dick Cavett
Dick Cavett
Richard Alva "Dick" Cavett is a former American television talk show host known for his conversational style and in-depth discussion of issues...
talk show
Talk show
A talk show or chat show is a television program or radio program where one person discuss various topics put forth by a talk show host....
s with artists like John Lennon
John Lennon
John Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
, David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
, and James Brown
James Brown
James Joseph Brown was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and recording artist. He is the originator of Funk and is recognized as a major figure in the 20th century popular music for both his vocals and dancing. He has been referred to as "The Godfather of Soul," "Mr...
.
Brownstein was Executive Producer with Jeff Margolis for The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners
The Honeymooners is an American situation comedy television show, based on a recurring 1951–'55 sketch of the same name. It originally aired on the DuMont network's Cavalcade of Stars and subsequently on the CBS network's The Jackie Gleason Show hosted by Jackie Gleason, and filmed before a live...
50th Anniversary Celebration, and appeared as a guest on Larry King Live
Larry King Live
Larry King Live is an American talk show hosted by Larry King on CNN from 1985 to 2010. It was CNN's most watched and longest-running program, with over one million viewers nightly....
. Brownstein also supervised the digital remastering of the Classic 39 Honeymooners episodes for CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
, and produced the clip segments for the CBS Special The Dick Van Dyke Show Revisited .
TV's supersleuth
Variety once called him TV’s supersleuth, for his unique role as Raider of the Lost Archives. For all of his DVDs, Brownstein has digitally remasteredRemaster
Remaster is a word marketed mostly in the digital audio age, although the remastering process has existed since recording began...
the original negatives and master tapes and tracked down never before seen outtakes, promos, behind the scenes footage, and rare clips from other programs as DVD bonus footage, plus recording audio commentary.
As Executive Producer for the revival of the original Smothers Brothers
Smothers Brothers
The Smothers Brothers are Thomas and Richard , American singers, musicians, comedians and folk heroes. The brothers' trademark act was performing folk songs , which usually led to arguments between the siblings...
Comedy Hour, he restored segments deleted by CBS censors from that groundbreaking TV series, which enjoyed renewed success when it found a whole new generation of fans on the E!
E!
E! Entertainment Television is an American basic cable and satellite television network, owned by NBCUniversal. It features entertainment-related programming, reality television, feature films and occasionally series and specials unrelated to the entertainment industry.E! has an audience reach of...
television channel.
Brownstein also saw an 8-year project come to fruition with the completion of a fully remastered Richard Burton's Hamlet
Richard Burton's Hamlet
Richard Burton’s Hamlet is a common name for both the Broadway production of William Shakespeare's tragedy that played from April 9 through August 8 of 1964 at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre, and for the filmed record of it that has been released theatrically and on home video.-Background:The production...
—a filmed record of the 1963 Broadway stage triumph, acknowledged as the highpoint of the actor’s theatrical career. After Brownstein's discovery of the original 35mm negative, negotiations of the production rights and digital remastering , the restored film premiered at the British Film Institute
British Film Institute
The British Film Institute is a charitable organisation established by Royal Charter to:-Cinemas:The BFI runs the BFI Southbank and IMAX theatre, both located on the south bank of the River Thames in London...
in London as the final event in its yearlong festival of Shakespeare On Film
Shakespeare on screen
More than 420 feature-length film and TV versions of William Shakespeares plays have been produced, making Shakespeare the most filmed author ever in any language...
. The Burton Hamlet is now available on DVD and was the subject of a new play at The Public Theater in New York in 2008.
Awards
He won the DVD Exclusive Award for Best Overall TV DVD as well as the TV on DVD Award for 2004 as producer of the The Dick Van Dyke ShowThe Dick Van Dyke Show
The Dick Van Dyke Show is an American television sitcom that initially aired on the Columbia Broadcasting System from October 3, 1961, until June 1, 1966. The show was created by Carl Reiner and starred Dick Van Dyke and Mary Tyler Moore. It was produced by Reiner with Bill Persky and Sam Denoff....
DVD, and also won multiple DVD awards for Get Smart
Get Smart
Get Smart is an American comedy television series that satirizes the secret agent genre. Created by Mel Brooks with Buck Henry, the show starred Don Adams , Barbara Feldon , and Edward Platt...
. Brownstein’s other DVD releases include Here's Lucy
Here's Lucy
Here's Lucy is Lucille Ball's third network television sitcom. It ran on CBS from 1968 to 1974.-Background:Though The Lucy Show was still hugely popular during the previous season, finishing in the top five of the Nielsen Ratings , Ball opted to end that series at the end of that season and create...
, The Richard Pryor Show
The Richard Pryor Show
The Richard Pryor Show is an American comedy variety series starring Richard Pryor. It premiered on NBC on Tuesday, September 13, 1977 at 8 p.m. opposite ABC's popular television shows Laverne & Shirley and Happy Days....
, and The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour
The Sonny & Cher Comedy Hour is an American variety show based on the married couple of American pop-singer Cher and her husband, Sonny Bono. The show ran on CBS in the United States, when it premiered in August 1971...
.