28 April 2015 International TV Distribution Hall of Fame Alan Silverbach: An International Television Distribution Pioneer Mark Kaner finally got his wish. For years, the president of 20th Century Fox TelevisionDistributionhad been inviting his long-time friend and mentor Alan Silverbach as his guest to Fox’s L.A. Screenings party. In 2013, Silverbach accepted. Silverbach, then 92, once again stood on the famed 20th Century Fox lot. He saw many of the now 100-plus employees in the Fox International Television division, and about 1,500 buyers from around the world. His thoughts took him back more than 67 years earlier when 20th Century Fox Television International’s Television department had a total of one executive — Alan Silverbach himself. Silverbach spent his entire studio career — spanning more than 30 years — at Fox. In 1977, he formed his own independent television sales company, later recruitingHerb Lazarus—another of the pioneering figures in studio TV sales and the first executive Silverbach hired at Fox — to join with him as partner. The Silverbach-Lazarus Group (SLG) grew into a successful independent TV distribution company, taking on programming from top producers attracted to the company by its business model. Lorimar, Chuck Fries, Metromedia and London Weekend Television are just a few of the major players SLG helped propel into domestic television syndication and international distribution. He retired from SLG in 2010. Silverbach, now 94, is among a handful of executives who helped forge international television distribution as a business. At the end of WWII, Silverbach — a bomber for the U.S. Air Force who flew 65 missions piloting B-26s — was accepted into a 20th Century Fox training program for Vets. Whereas his fellow trainees competed for film sales jobs in Europe, Silverbach opted to remain in New York City, believing, at 25 years old, he had more to learn by remaining at headquarters. He became an assistant to Albert Cornfield, the vice president of International Sales, soaking up the ins and outs of foreign film sales. In the years following World War II, there weren’t many television sets in the international marketplace, or TV broadcasters for that matter. Families were busy putting their lives back together. Governments placed priorities on housing and employment. Against this backdrop, With this Issue, VideoAge launches the printed and Web editions of the “International TV Distribution Hall of Fame,” a recurring feature that pays tribute to the pioneers of international televisiondistribution. It honors and recognizes a very select group of executives whose careers shaped an industry and in the process, helped the development of commercial television around the world. These men and womenworked forHollywood studios, filmandTVcontent suppliers across Europe andentertainment companies fromaround theworld. Theyoperatedwithout anykindof roadmap,writing the rulebookas theywent along—yet transformedanancillarybusiness intoaglobal industry. These are the individuals who built the foundation we all stand upon. (Continued on Page 30)
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