Steve Leblang

I’m yet again saddened by the passing of someone I had the chance to know and admire from up close, and considering this one came out of seeming nowhere and was far too soon it’s especially unnerving.  On an otherwise quiet and unbearably hot summer Saturday VARIETY’s Michael Schneider was among the many who reported … Read more

I’ve been generally impressed with Donna Langley as both a creative executive and a leader, and I’ve yet to find anyone who truly knows her to refute that first impression.  And an interview she did yesterday that many Hollywood trade reporters, including THE WRAP’s Jeremy Fuster, only enhanced those favorable views: Donna Langley knows there … Read more

There’s been a disproportionate amount of noise and internal strife at the WASHINGTON POST lately, enough to make it newsworthy even amongst Los Angeles-based sites that otherwise cover TV.  This nugget from THE WRAP’s Natalie Korach hit my inbox earlier this week: Jeff Bezos, owner of the Washington Post, assured staffers Tuesday that the “journalistic … Read more

I’m as guilty as anyone when it comes to paying disproportionate attention to hype.  Partially because of the way I’ve prioritized my alerts, which means I get an awful lot of invites for stories on what the latest big gambles from streamers and studios are.  With the glut of summer releases, festivals, upfronts and award … Read more

At last count, I’ve violated eight of the Ten Commandements and am guilty of violating every single one of The Seven Deadly Sins.  Since I’m not writing you from jail, you can rest assured I’ve yet to murder anyone, temptation notwithtanding.  I’ll let you guess which of the other nine is still not yet crossed … Read more

I’m still enough of a glutton for punishment to play fantasy baseball and football, and I’ve been doing so for decades.  Don’t worry, the stakes are far more minimal than they used to be, so even when the inevitable happens and something that some pundits saw as unpredictable occurs, it doesn’t do damage to me … Read more

Father’s Days aren’t easy for guys like moi.  No kids of my own, and this is the tenth that mine hasn’t been around to even try to wish those greetings to.  Truth be told, in practicality it’s been even longer.  My dad suffered what turned out to a be a fatal episode in a short-staffed … Read more

I probably should be a bigger fan of the ANKLER’s mysterious Entertainment Strategy Guy than I am.  He’s the de facto research guru of the snarky, smarmy, elitist counter to everything Penske, and he regularly drops literally tons of data points to make his cases for what and why decisions are made by streaming services … Read more