"The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes 'awww!' "
-- Jack Kerouac
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Who • View Reel • View Photos
Mark Finkelpearl is Senior Vice President of Development & Production for ShootersTV, a division of ShootersInc, a multi-faceted content creation company on the vanguard of non-fiction TV, feature film post production, and advertising & branded content. Finkelpearl has a background on the staffs of RLTV, Discovery Channel, Travel Channel, TLC, and National Geographic Television. He’s contributed in his career to more than 800 hours of television.
Finkelpearl started working in 1986 in the National Programming department of WQED/Pittsburgh. He moved to Hollywood and freelanced there, contributing to TV on networks including PBS, FOX, A&E, USA Network, & Discovery Channel.
He was recruited by Korn/Ferry International to join National Geographic Television in their Washington, DC, headquarters and served as a supervising producer on the long-running "Explorer" series. In 1999, Finkelpearl joined Travel Channel where he was an executive producer and director of production for five years, helping to propel the network from 25 million homes in the USA to 75 million and overseeing hundreds of hours of television. At Travel Channel, he was on the team that launched shows like "World Poker Tour," "Travel Channel’s World’s Best," and "John Ratzenberger’s Made In America."
Finkelpearl joined Discovery Channel as an executive producer in 2004 and was responsible there for the editorial and creative direction of millions upon millions of dollars worth of TV. He was the network’s production executive in charge of shows like "American Chopper," "American HotRod," & "American Casino."
In 2006, Finkelpearl jumped back to the indie production side of the desk and created and launched shows like "Car Czar" for National Geographic Channel and "Lock and Load with R. Lee Ermey" for History. He executive produced series like "The Lottery Changed My Life" for TLC and made programming for clients like HGTV & planetgreen.
At the end of 2009, Finkelpearl created, developed, and sold "DC Cupcakes" to TLC. The shows 23 episodes so far have made Washington’s Georgetown Cupcake shop a regular stop on Grey Line bus tours of the nation’s capitol.
Finkelpearl’s most recent television creations include "Snipers, Inc" for National Geographic Channel, a program about a family of American arms dealers based outside of Nashville.
He’s a member of the Television Academy of Arts and Sciences (ATAS), the Producers Guild of America (PGA) and held a seat on the board of directors of CINE.
Finkelpearl comes from a family with a footprint in showbiz. His cousins include brother comedians, Seth & Josh Meyers ("Saturday Night Live," "That 70’s Show," "MadTV"), Emmy-award winning Hollywood editor, Debra Light, and Leo Robin, the American songwriter who penned, among other classics, "Diamonds Are A Girl’s Best Friend," "Blue Hawaii," and "Thanks for the Memory."
Finkelpearl is repped by Adam Leibner at N.S. Bienstock/New York City.
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Music
Finkelpearl launched Treadmill Productions in 2006 as a way to combine his skill for documentary production with his love of rock and roll and create meaningful media for musicians. Say that three times fast. Since launching, Finkelpearl has completed productions for Jon Dee Graham, the Weepies, Peter Case, Freedy Johnston, Susan Cowsill, and Chuck Leavell of the Rolling Stones and Allman Brothers
Finkelpearl is a long-time music fanatic. He’s played guitar since the age of 14, he attended 80 Grateful Dead shows (putting Garcia’s daughter through a LEAST a year of college!), and he has a particular interest in Americana, alt.country, and roots rock.
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Guitars
Mark created a handbuilt line of American guitars. You can find them at www.finkelpearlguitars.com
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Listen
Mark Finkelpearl also promotes concerts in one venue: the Mansion on O Street in the heart of Washington, DC's Dupont Circle neighborhood.
Past performers include JD Souther, Emmylou Harris, Buddy Miller, Joe Bonamassa, Jeff "Skunk" Baxter, Alejandro Escovedo, Jon Dee Graham and the Fighting Cocks, Lee Roy Parnell, Tom Freund, Mike Stinson, the Weepies, Peter Case, and Sarah Lee Guthrie & Johnny Irion.
The Mansion is an artist-friendly, non-profit venue owned and operated by a member of the board of trustees of the rock and roll hall of fame and museum.
Visit the mansion and book tickets at http://omansion.com
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Wow
Critical Praise for the DVD Release of Jon Dee Graham: Swept Away:
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Friends & Colleagues
http://marquisautorestorations.com
Mark's Agent:
Adam Leibner
N.S. Bienstock
250 West 57th Street Suite 333
New York, NY 10107
212.765.3040
