From Hollywoodreporter.com
The WB’s CEO Jordan Levin poised to resign
By Cynthia Littleton
Monday 14 June 2004, by Webmaster
In a bombshell shakeup at the WB Network, sources said Jordan Levin resigned his post as chief executive of the network that he has helped shape during the past decade as he rose through the programming ranks.
WB chairman Garth Ancier will take on sole responsibility for running the network. Ancier said he would soon appoint an entertainment president to fill the void in programming left by Levin’s departure. There was speculation that the WB was eyeing producer David Janollari, a former Warner Bros. Television executive, for the post, but WB reps would not comment and Janollari could not immediately be reached for comment.
The shakeup at the WB came to a head during the past weekend, when Warner Bros. chairman and CEO Barry Meyer, who oversees the WB, told Levin that he wanted Ancier to be the sole leader at the helm of the network. Levin was offered the chance to stay with the network in his former post as entertainment president, which Levin rejected in favor of a producing deal with Warner Bros. Television.
In announcing the management change, Warner Bros. chairman and CEO Barry Meyer made it clear that he felt that even though Ancier and Levin had been working as team for less than a year, the WB’s bifurcated management structure was in need of an overhaul.
Levin was promoted to the CEO post at the WB in September in preparation for the departure of founding WB chairman and CEO Jamie Kellner, who formally stepped down last month. At the time of Levin’s promotion, WB, Fox and NBC veteran Garth Ancier was brought back to the WB fold as chairman to share Kellner’s former duties with Levin. There was no replacement named for Levin as entertainment president as Levin maintained day-to-day oversight of programming and scheduling matters.
"Taking the non-traditional organizational route was a noble effort, but having a sole leader is simply more productive, efficient and effective," Meyer said in a statement. "Garth and Jordan are both extraordinarily talented executives and superstars in their own right. We are delighted that Jordan will become an independent producer for Warner Bros. Television. Once cannot overstate Jordan’s contribution to the success of the WB, and we look forward to him duplicating that success at WBTV."
Levin also was candid in a statement about the circumstances surrounding his resignation.
"They had a management structure in mind that although would have allowed me to continue to drive the creative direction of the company, did not allow me the opportunities and responsibilities that I had already embraced with great enthusiasm," Levin said, adding "My goals are to continue my career as both a creative and a business executive." 37
Forum messages
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14 June 2004 22:43, by Anonymous
Cancel your best show and then quit the following month. Nice one, Jordy. ;)
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14 June 2004 22:43, by Anonymous
He should of left a long time ago. Maybe then Angel would still be around and Buffy wouldnt of left for UPN and 7th Heaven and Charmed would be gone by now. Lets hope the next one is better.
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14 June 2004 22:45, by Shane
If only he would have resigned 6 months ago, we may still have Angel.
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15 June 2004 00:16, by iHateLevin
WHAT A LOSER!! Ok, so he’s there to cancel the BEST television show that was on TV and then the little b***h is too scared to stay!?! I thought he’d at least have the balls to deal with the consequences...what a loserrrrr!
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15 June 2004 00:27, by Anonymous
ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha! Wheee!
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15 June 2004 01:30, by Djungelurban
Oups, I think we got him fired! :)
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15 June 2004 01:42, by Vince
OMG MY PREDICTION WAS CORRECT!!!
lol
You didn’t need to be Nostradamus to have seen this one coming.
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15 June 2004 02:17, by Gonzalo
WHY DIDN’T HE RESIGNED BEFORE ANGEL GOT CANCELLED?! WHY?!
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15 June 2004 02:19, by Ron H
Glad to hear it. Which he would have resigned February 12, 2004, instead of now. We’d still have our show.
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15 June 2004 02:37, by Anonymous
HAHAHA YESSSSSSS TAKE THAT U SHIT!!!!!!! YESS HE FINALLY GETS WHAT HE DESERVES!!! MAY LEVIN ROT IN HELL :@:@:@:@:@
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15 June 2004 03:45, by Anonymous
Good riddance. Get someone with brains in there.
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15 June 2004 04:14, by Anonymous
That’s good news I’m glad he retired the way he treated us Angel fans for axing the show!
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15 June 2004 05:15, by PISSED OFF IN GA
AFTER THAT FAGGOT CANCELED ANGEL!!! SON OF A BITCH!!!
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15 June 2004 05:56, by faith
was he the one who axed angel?
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15 June 2004 06:26, by Potential
All I can say is... HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! Die and burn, Levin.
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15 June 2004 06:48, by Anonymous
too bad his resignation didn’t come a few months ago, there’d be a lot of happy Angel fans looking forward to season 6 if he had.
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15 June 2004 07:00, by Stephen
Oh, of course, after exacting his damage on Angel — then, he leaves.
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15 June 2004 07:32, by sspoiled
::giggles::
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15 June 2004 07:47, by WattMan
Da na na na
Da na na na
Da na na naaaah
Hey hey hey hey
GoodBye!!!!
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15 June 2004 08:13, by tailmonkey
Maybe a "Ressurect Angel" campaign should be gearing up to target new ears...
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15 June 2004 08:29, by Anonymous
ha ha.. too many bad decisions, huh? ha!
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15 June 2004 08:56, by Gwahir
Let’s not be too hasty in saying "yey he’s gone but only if..."
Do not forget that if he had not been there, Angel may never have goten this far! And who’s to say that the alternative would’ve kept Angel?
What I am saying is that what he did (cancelling Angel) was the worst and stupidest move ever and I hate him colossally for that, but you all seem to think that ONLY he would do it - I find it hard to believe that no-one else would be capable and willing.
...stupid Jordan Levin.
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15 June 2004 09:00, by Jemmy
Gahhhhh good riddance...
Gahhh. Stupid man.
As to whether he was pushed or not? I suspect he was. And if not... he should have been.
Hey, maybe there’s hope now! Who knows - maybe his replacement will be so disgusted with the current state of TV crap and reinstate Angel (with a better timeslot and some advertisement hopefully)
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15 June 2004 09:47, by Seaneeboy
This story has now been confirmed, he’s jumped before he was pushed into a demotion...
See online : Article from Digital Spy (UK)
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15 June 2004 10:00, by AngelFan3131
Now if only we could get joss whedon to somehow be the ceo that would be hilairously awesome
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15 June 2004 10:59, by Slayer
I’m sure this has nothing to do with him defying all protests by cancelling ’Angel’... NOT!!!
Good riddance to the bastard, I say. It’s just a shame that he managed to take out ’Angel’ before getting fired. I say he got fired, because it’s too coincidental with him deciding to leave one month after the WB lose their second-highest rating show.
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15 June 2004 16:04, by jjjay
Once you’ve captured lightning in a bottle - Beware the small minded prick with a hammer !
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15 June 2004 17:01, by Anonymous
this guy is a total idiot . first he takes the best show on tv off THE AIR then he goes and quits
jordan levin i just want to say ....YOU SUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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15 June 2004 21:43, by Spikearette31
Its the ANGEL prophecy, You messed with the angel show and angel fans and people make decisions that make no sense. Like, they didnt want levin anymore so they offered to give him his old job back:Canceling Angel a money making show. Can you see the balance here people?
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15 June 2004 21:50, by Jason
FAO Site Administrator
You must be new to this whole "validating" concept: The term FAGGOT is offensive. Don’t allow it on messages again.
Got that?
P***ed off buffy/angel fan.
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15 June 2004 22:36, by Lil
OK, why don’t we think a little? Do you really think that JL is out because ATS? Come one.... dismal ratings season for all shows, failed pilots (anybody say with me Tarzan)Charmed going down, Gilmore girls in trouble, Smallville with bad ratings... and it was because ATS?
Don’t you know how it works this?
HE WAS NOT THE OWNER OF THE WB, he had bosses. They DID agree about the cancellation. It was not only JL. And even if the campaign for Saving Angel was incredible in terms of money, that DIDN’T WAS REFLECTED IN RATINGS... the numbers were a media of 2.5 even after the announce of the end, the only exception was NFA.
See the numbers and you maybe could understand WHY was cancelled: Millons of viewers average.
Season 1: N/A
Season 2: 4.8
Season 3 (remember, BTVS in UPN, so this was basic to know the real base of ATS fan): 4.7
Season 4: 3.9
Season 5 (without the reruns, wich made will make the number down): 4.1
So, they lost almost a millon of viewers in season 4 thanks to the awfull plot that bored a lot of fans. Season 5, with BTVS ended and Angel as the only one show from the Buffyverse, WAS SUPPOUSED TO HAVE ALL THE BTVS VIEWERS. And that DIDN’T HAPPEN! The last part, the numbers were similar or even worst (harms way, WWF, etc), than season 4. A lot of fans didn’t like the changes and stopped watching, a lot of people keep watching but they were protesting for the changes and the almost irreconocible show for them, the non BTVS viewers were pissed off because all the reference to a show that they didn’t care: one thing is the natural reference that they were used in season 1 to 4 and another is buffy every two seconds and a love triangle that never happened in the show aa one of the principal plot (even more when the character was saying that he was over Buffy for two seasons and calling his past life a tragic farse, that alienates fans!)...
So when the big boost of ratings didn’t happened (the opening was similar to the one in season 3) and the number started to go down, the choice was obvious, guys:
A expensive show, that made horrible in reruns (a media of 1 point of rating..), and you read in your forum, and feedback section that the show is not the same as before, that you’re getting bored, etc (like it was happening in WB’s site), plus the big campaign for saving it makes a big buuzz but the ratings are the same or lower, the decision is clear: out.
I’m sad about ATS not being there, but maybe because of my work, I can understand why and, being honest, was logical. Sad, but predictable. I saw it coming.
Now it’s JL blame, before this was the Cordy fans and C/A that make the show cancelled (I read this from a big B/A thread at WB and in several forums)...Grow up!
JL is not the Devil. HE DIDN’T TAKE THE DESICION ALONE, HE HAD BACK-UP FROM HIS BOSSES, IF NOT, THE OWNERS OF WB WOULD ORDER HIM TAKE ANGEL BACK...
I know you will start to insult me, blah, blah, blah. I don’t care. JW made "some" mistakes with the season 4: the arc, the destruction of Cordelia’s character for his personal problems with the actress, the ilogicals explanations, the contradictions, the sex between the son of the hero and the suppoused love interest of the father, the soft Angelus (kill the best, not killing humans, discovering that was Jazmine using Cordy’s body....Boy he did more good than Angel), etc... almost ended in a cancelation. He couldn’t recuperate/keep the viewers in season 5. He changed the show and tried to make a mix with BTVS that didn’t like a lot of former viewers, the lack of ideas, the same thing again and again: father vs son (Wes, Spike/Angel, Angel/sailor), someone taking the body of some character, episodes almost copied from other seasons of ATS or BTVS...
Joss is not a poor guy and JL is not the DEvil.I don’t find any guilty here, just production/writing’s mistake and a bussines desicion
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16 June 2004 01:06, by Lex
Talk about following Angel into Hell.
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16 June 2004 04:08, by Anonymous
Thank gods! Maybe they’ll get somebody with brains in there and we can get some desent programing for once.
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16 June 2004 08:37, by Lia
Ha! Who’s the beyatch now?
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16 June 2004 13:18, by judy -Canada
He got what was coming.I haven’t watched wb since the end of Angel!!!
See online : jordan levin
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17 June 2004 01:26, by stephanie
please don’t say faggot.
it makes you sound like a basher.
and come on,
this is a buffy site.
and on buffy, willow is/was gay, as was tara, and keneddy.
think twice next time. seriously.
you sound really lame.
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18 June 2004 19:00, by Anonymous
I don’t think many people are actually evil. It’s not like he’s got any obligation to do the decent thing or anything. It’s all business and money and all that. And he probably wasn’t the sole responsible either. Still, he did it. And now, wether or not it’s a consequence of those actions, he’s getting canned. You gotta admit it’s pretty good irony.
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