McPherson
HOLLYWOOD -- ABC Entertainment prexy Stephen McPherson will receive the Executive of the Year award from the Caucus of Television Producers, Writers & Directors.
Caucus also announced noms for producer, writer, director and the newly added actor category for its 23rd annual gala.
Kudos will be presented Jan. 15 at the Beverly Hills Hotel.
J.J. Abrams, Steven Bochco, Suzanne de Passe and producing team Frank von Zerneck and Robert Sertner were nominated in the producer category, while Stephen J. Cannell, Sam Denoff, David E. Kelley and Barry Kemp were nommed as scribes.
Robert Butler, Dwight Hemion, Mimi Leder and Gene Reynolds are up for director.
Byron Allen, Ellen DeGeneres, Ray Romano and Henry Winkler are on the inaugural actor ballot.
Creation of the actor nod reflects the caucus' recognition that more thesps are expanding their roles into the production field.
McPherson's award recognizes his achievement in gaining a 17% increase in the number of adults 18-49 watching primetime from one season to the next -- the biggest gain of any major network in the last 25 years -- during his first year at ABC.
He also helped develop "Desperate Housewives," "Grey's Anatomy" and "Lost" while prexy of Touchstone Television.
Additional nods to be doled out are the Chair's Award to Comedy Central prexy Doug Herzog, the Journalism Award to Larry King, the Diversity Award to producer Moctesuma Esparza, the Lifetime Achievement Award to exec producer Jerry Isenberg and the Distinguished Service Award to Weller/Grossman exec producer Gary Grossman.
Contact the Variety newsroom at
news@variety.com