December 1, 2008

CableFAX: 27. Musical Man: Rich Ross

Rich Ross
Title: Pres, Disney Channel Worldwide
Last Year: #5
Age: 47
Ed: U of PA, BA; Fordham U, JD

Why Him? To quote Sharpay, the delightfully overambitious vixen from High School Musical, "Bigger is better, and better is bigger." This clearly is the mantra for Ross, who drove the sizzling tween franchises into more markets through more media channels, including the big screen. HSM 3 grossed close to $46mln at the domestic box office during its first two weeks and is churning out ancillary sales like nobody’s business. Disney Channel continued to crank the TV musical machine with Camp Rock, which premiered to 8.9mln viewers and had the largest DVR audience for a cable show at the time of its debut, according to Nielsen. Ross also oversaw the well-oiled success of girl-magnet series Hannah Montana.

Worth Watching: Eyes will be on Ross and Disney’s attempt to woo tween boys with the launch of splinter network Disney XD.

The Year Ahead:
Miley and Selena continue to rock girls’ worlds, and the network’s new series starring next teen queen Demi Lovato should make for a grand slam.

Favorite Restaurant: Sean’s Panorama (Sydney, Australia)

Fave Show Not on Disney: Top Chef

Last Book Read: The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Favorite Part of My Job: Seeing kids inspired by High School Musical express themselves

Trait I Most Admire: Honesty

CO

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