American media executive (born 1956)
Thomas Berard McGrath
(born 1956) is an American media executive. He is the chairman of Crossroads Media, a company which invests in live and location-based entertainment on a global scale. He was formerly the Chairman of
Crossroads Live
, a global distributor of theatrical entertainment. Previously, the president and COO of
STX Entertainment
; executive chairman of
Key Brand Entertainment
, a producer and distributor of live theatre in the United States and parent company of
Broadway.com
; president and
COO
of
Act III Communications
; and executive vice president and COO of
Viacom Entertainment Group
.
[1]
[2]
He is a nine-time
Tony Award
-winning producer,
[3]
member of the
National Recording Academy
, and board member of the
International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences
.
[4]
He also serves as trustee of
New England Conservatory of Music
[5]
and
American Repertory Theater
at
Harvard
.
[6]
Early life and education
[
edit
]
McGrath was born and raised in
Washington, DC
.
[7]
He received his B.A. from
Harvard University
in 1976, where he was music director for
Hasty Pudding Theatricals
and conductor for the
Harvard University Band
. He earned his M.B.A. from
Harvard Business School
in 1980.
[8]
[9]
While at business school, he wrote a thesis on the potential of home video distribution for film distribution.
[10]
Career
[
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]
Columbia
[
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]
McGrath began his career in entertainment at
Columbia Pictures Industries
in 1980. While at Columbia, McGrath established RCA Columbia Home Video and served as senior vice president of corporate development for
Coca-Cola
, following its acquisition of Columbia in 1982.
[11]
McGrath also engineered the creation of
TriStar Pictures
through the conglomeration of Columbia,
HBO
and
CBS
. He led the acquisitions of
Embassy Communications
from TV producer
Norman Lear
and
Merv Griffin Productions
, producers of
Wheel of Fortune
and
Jeopardy!
.
[12]
[13]
Act III
[
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]
After serving two years as senior vice president,
[14]
McGrath was named president and COO of Norman Lear's entertainment company
Act III Communications
in December 1987.
[15]
He filled that role until 1990.
[10]
While at Act III, McGrath expanded its broadcast, publishing, and exhibition operations, worked on television station acquisitions, and financed multiple films, including
Stand By Me
,
The Princess Bride
, and
Fried Green Tomatoes
.
[13]
Time Warner
[
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]
In the 1990s, McGrath was named President International of
Time Warner
International Broadcasting.
[12]
At Time Warner, he created
Classic FM
, a national radio network in the UK;
n-tv
, a German-language national cable news channel; and
VIVA
, a national German music video channel.
[16]
Viacom
[
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]
McGrath led
Viacom
's acquisition of
Paramount Pictures
in the 1990s.
[12]
He joined Viacom in 1994 as executive vice president and chief operating officer of the Viacom Entertainment Group, where he served until 2004.
[10]
While at Viacom, McGrath was involved in several musical adaptations of Paramount films, including
White Christmas
,
Footloose
and
Saturday Night Fever
.
[17]
In February 2002, McGrath was named President of Paramount Enterprises, Viacom's division for non-studio entertainment properties, including
Paramount Parks
, Canadian cinema chain
Famous Players
, and
United Cinemas International
.
[18]
Key Brand Entertainment
[
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]
From 2008 to 2013, McGrath served as chairman of
Key Brand Entertainment
, later renamed The
John Gore Organization
.
[8]
[19]
McGrath led the company's acquisition of
Live Nation
's theater division in 2008, which included
Broadway.com
, its group ticket sales division Theatre Direct, and its promotional branch
Broadway Across America
.
[12]
[19]
[20]
Through Broadway Across America, McGrath produced several Broadway shows, including the revivals of
Promises, Promises
(2009),
[21]
Hair
(2009),
[22]
and
How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying
(2011).
[23]
In 2013, McGrath joined with Broadway producer
Kevin McCollum
and film producer
John Davis
on a development deal with
20th Century Fox
, in which they would choose Fox film properties from its library to be adapted into theater productions.
[17]
Initial projects include
Mrs. Doubtfire
and
The Devil Wears Prada
.
[24]
McGrath has received nine
Tony Awards
.
[25]
Crossroads Media
[
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]
McGrath serves as the Chairman of Crossroads Media,
[26]
[27]
a private equity firm that acquires music publishing catalogues.
[28]
Working with
Spectrum Equity Investors
, he led the acquisitions of independent music publishing companies, including
Bug Music
in 2006
[26]
[29]
[30]
and Windswept Holdings in 2007.
[28]
McGrath served as chairman of Bug Music
[27]
through its sale to
BMG
in 2011.
[26]
STX Entertainment
[
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]
McGrath was the chief operating officer of media company
STX Entertainment
from its formation in 2014 until May 2019.
[31]
[32]
The company specializes in financing, developing, producing, and distributing midtier-budget star-driven films.
[33]
STX has produced and distributed such films as
The Gift
,
Bad Moms
,
The Edge of Seventeen
,
The Foreigner
, and
Molly's Game
.
In April 2018, STX filed for an initial public offering on the
Hong Kong Stock Exchange
.
[34]
This was originally reported in 2017 with an estimated market value as high as $3.5bn±.
[35]
[36]
Crossroads Live
[
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]
McGrath was the CEO of Crossroads Live, which produces and tours Broadway musicals in international markets.
[4]
Crossroads Live invests in multiple live entertainment ventures, including festivals, immersive attractions, musical theatre production and touring, and financial transactions with live entertainment companies and assets. The company also spans across film, television, music, and theme park industries. In 2019, Crossroads Live acquired
David Ian
Productions, and, in December 2020, the company also acquired the Gordon Frost Organization.
[37]
[38]
Most recently, Crossroads Live has produced
Mrs. Doubtfire
,
Company
and
Almost Famous
the Musical.
[39]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
Los Angeles, Business Journal (23 July 2007).
"Acquisition Means Bug Music Becomes Top Publisher"
.
Los Angeles Business Journal
.
- ^
Broadway.com, Staff (16 December 2010).
"Done Deal! Key Brand Entertainment Acquires Leading Theater Website Broadway.com"
.
Broadway.com
.
- ^
Internet Broadway Database
- ^
a
b
Wall, Mine (1 November 2020).
"Thomas McGrath New Worth"
.
Wallmine
.
- ^
NEC Board of Trustees
- ^
A.R.T. Board of Trustees
- ^
Thomas B. McGrath Broadway and Theatre Credits
, Broadway World. Accessed February 14, 2018.
- ^
a
b
Craig Lambert,
"The Future of Theater,"
Harvard Magazine
, January?February 2012.
- ^
Tom McGrath bio
, Crossroads Live. Accessed February 14, 2018.
- ^
a
b
c
Michael Wolff,
"Executive at the Gate,"
Vanity Fair
, December 2004.
- ^
New York Times, AP (23 June 1982).
"Coke Completes Columbia Merger"
.
The New York Times
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
Hilary Potkewitz,
"Media mogul builds a Broadway empire,"
Crain's New York Business
, December 30, 2009.
- ^
a
b
"Tom McGrath Named President of Paramount Enterprises,"
thefreelibrary.com, 2002.
- ^
"Los Angeles County"
.
Los Angeles Times
. December 12, 1987.
Archived
from the original on April 19, 2022.
- ^
"Executive Changes"
.
The New York Times
. December 14, 1987.
Archived
from the original on April 26, 2022.
- ^
Hans-Jurgen Jakobs (10 January 2005).
"Der V-Faktor"
.
Suddeutsche Zeitung
. Retrieved
26 April
2012
.
- ^
a
b
David Rooney,
"Kevin McCollum, John Davis and Tom McGrath Pact With Fox on Theatrical Joint Venture,"
The Hollywood Reporter
, July 11, 2013.
- ^
Justin Oppelaar,
"McGrath has Enterprises,"
Variety
, February 19, 2002.
- ^
a
b
Gordon Cox,
"Live Nation sells off theater division,"
Variety
, January 24, 2008.
- ^
Campbell Robertson,
"Live Nation Finds a Buyer for Its Theater Business,"
New York Times
, January 25, 2008.
- ^
Dave Itzkoff,
"'Promises, Promises' Gets Its First Broadway Revival,"
New York Times
, October 26, 2009.
- ^
Dave Itzkoff,
"'Hair' Extends From Broadway to London,"
New York Times
, November 17, 2009.
- ^
Dave Itzkoff,
"Daniel Radcliffe to Star in 'How to Succeed' Revival on Broadway,"
New York Times
, April 15, 2010.
- ^
Gordon Cox,
"Fox Stage Prods. Shores Up Executive Suite as Studios Storm Stage,"
Variety
, July 28, 2015.
- ^
Thomas B. McGrath
,
IBDB
. Accessed February 14, 2018.
- ^
a
b
c
David Lieberman,
"BMG Continues Music Publishing Spree With Bug Music,"
Deadline Hollywood
, September 12, 2011.
- ^
a
b
Ayala Ben-Yehuda,
"Bug Music Secures $200M Credit Line,"
Billboard
, September 17, 2008.
- ^
a
b
"Crossroads, Bug Sweep Up Windswept,"
Billboard
, May 30, 2007.
- ^
Ed Christman,
"Bug Music For Sale Again,"
The Hollywood Reporter
, July 20, 2011.
- ^
Michael Wolff,
"Serious Money,"
Vanity Fair
, May 2007.
- ^
"Robert Simonds, Gigi Pritzker Pact with TPG, China's Hony Capital on Production Venture,"
Variety
, March 10, 2014.
- ^
Michael J. de la Merced,
"New Movie Studio Is Formed, With China and Self-Distribution in Mind,"
New York Times
, March 10, 2014.
- ^
Brent Lang,
"STX Entertainment Chief Says Huayi Deal 'Supercharges Our Business Plan',"
Variety
, April 1, 2015.
- ^
David Ng,
"STX Entertainment files for planned IPO in Hong Kong,"
Los Angeles Times
, April 26, 2018.
- ^
Wayne Ma and Julie Steinberg,
"'Bad Moms' Movie Studio Plans Hong Kong IPO,"
Wall Street Journal
, September 27, 2017.
- ^
Anita Busch,
"STX To Launch IPO On Hong Kong Stock Exchange In 2018,"
Deadline.com, September 27, 2017.
- ^
Masso, Giverny (8 December 2020).
"Crossroads Live acquires Australian producer Gordon Frost Organisation"
.
The Stage
.
- ^
Hershberg, Marc.
"Theatre Touring Company Expands Global Footprint With Australian Acquisition"
.
Forbes
. Retrieved
2022-01-26
.
- ^
Playbill, Playbill (2020).
"Crossroads Live"
.
Playbill.com
.
External links
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]