Veteran agent Norman Brokaw and the nonprofit Ad Council have been named 2010 recipients of the Governors Award from the Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, Academy chairman John Shaffner announced on Wednesday.
The awards, which were created more than 30 years ago to honor individuals or companies that have “made a substantial impact and demonstrated the extraordinary use of television,” will be presented to Brokaw and the Ad Council at the Creative Arts Emmys on Saturday, August 21 at the Nokia Theatre in downtown Los Angeles.
Brokaw (right) is the chairman emeritus of the WME agency, and an agent who helped form the William Morris Agency’s television department, and later moved the agency into the fields of sports, journalism and politics. His longtime client Bill Cosby was one of the most influential stars in television for decades.
“Norman Brokaw like many of us started out in the mailroom at William Morris, but the difference is he came first and paved the way for the rest of us,” said David Geffen in an Academy press release announcing the awards. “He is a pioneer and a visionary and helped shaped the television industry.”
The Ad Council, formed in 1942 as the War Advertising Council, is the dominant producer of Public Service Advertisements in the United States. Its initial wartime efforts included the “Loose Lips Sink Ships” and “Rosie the Riveter” campaigns, while subsequent ads have addressed the issues of mental health, smoking, seat belts, drug abuse, domestic violence and obesity prevention.
Portions of the Creative Arts Emmys will be aired on E! Entertainment television on Friday, August 27.
(Photo by David Livingston/Getty Images)
