Brown Johnson Named President, Animation, Nickelodeon/MTVN Kids and Family Group

Brown Johnson Named President, Animation, Nickelodeon/MTVN Kids and Family Group

Longtime Nick Exec Who Brought Blue's Clues, Dora the Explorer and Latest Pop-Culture Hit Yo Gabba Gabba to Television to Now Lead Nick's Top-Rated Animation Unit; Will Continue to Oversee Preschool Development and Production

NEW YORK and BURBANK, Calif., Jan. 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Brown Johnson, formerly Executive Vice President, Creative Director, Nickelodeon Preschool, and General Manager, NOGGIN and the driving force behind Nick Jr.'s "play to learn" philosophy and signature animated hits Blue's Clues and Dora the Explorer, has been promoted to the newly created position of President, Animation, Nickelodeon and MTVN Kids and Family Group, it was announced today by Cyma Zarghami, President, Nickelodeon and MTVN Kids and Family Group, to whom she will continue to report. In this newly created position, Ms. Johnson will spearhead development and production for all animated programming across Nickelodeon, the largest provider of television animation in the US, while continuing to oversee development and production for all preschool programming. Nickelodeon's top-rated live action series and TV movie development and production will continue to be led by Executive Vice President Marjorie Cohn, who also will continue to report to Ms. Zarghami.

(Photo:

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080128/NYM122 )

"Brown has been an innovator from the moment she joined our company and has a great track record for spotting great, creative properties that resonate in the pop culture," Zarghami said. "She takes on our storied animation group at a time when exciting new programs are on the horizon and international production and distribution are ramping up in very exciting ways. This marks a great day for the present and future of Nickelodeon."

Ms. Johnson, a 20-year Nickelodeon veteran, has been the driving force behind Nick Jr. and its groundbreaking preschool properties, including Blue's Clues, Dora the Explorer, Go, Diego, Go!, The Wonder Pets!, The Backyardigans and the newest hit and growing pop culture phenomenon Yo Gabba Gabba!, among many others. Her creative leadership and brand strategy have made Nick Jr. the number-one brand for preschoolers, spawning multiple businesses for Nickelodeon including an extensive consumer products line, Nick Jr. Family Magazine and nickjr.com.

In her new role, Ms. Johnson will oversee the development and production of all animated programming on Nickelodeon, which will include more than 225 new episodes of Nicktoon series in 2008. In addition to supervising the creative direction of contemporary classics such as SpongeBob Squarepants, The Fairly OddParents and Nick's latest hit Back At The Barnyard, Ms. Johnson will also be the driving force in shepherding upcoming Nicktoon series The Mighty B starring Amy Poehler and The Penguins of Madagascar in partnership with DreamWorks SKG. She will supervise creative executive teams on both the East and West Coasts, managing the creative direction and coordination efforts between series production, on-air promotions, marketing and consumer products. Ms. Johnson will be based in both Nickelodeon's New York City headquarters and the Nick Animation Studio in Burbank, Calif.

Ms. Johnson joined Nickelodeon in 1988 as Executive in Charge of Production and in 1989 was promoted to Vice President, Production for Nickelodeon/Nick at Nite, where she oversaw all Nickelodeon production, production management, talent and Nickelodeon Studios' production staff in Florida. Under her auspices, series such as Clarissa Explains It All, Hey Dude, and Double Dare were produced and contributed to Nickelodeon's standing as one of the world's leading producers of kids' programming. In 1993, she became Vice President/Executive Producer of Nick Jr. Production and Development. She was promoted to Executive Vice President, Nick Jr. in 2001 and then became Executive Creative Director, Preschool Television and General Manager, NOGGIN in 2007. With Ms. Johnson at the helm, Nick Jr. and NOGGIN's pioneering work in interactive educational programming have changed the preschool landscape.

Nickelodeon, in its 28th year, is the number-one entertainment brand for kids. It has built a diverse, global business by putting kids first in everything it does. The company includes television programming and production in the United States and around the world, plus consumer products, online, recreation, books, magazines and feature films. Nickelodeon's U.S. television network is seen in more than 96 million households and has been the number- one-rated basic cable network for 13 consecutive years. Nickelodeon and all related titles, characters and logos are trademarks of Viacom Inc. (NYSE:VIA)(NYSE: VIA.B).

Photo: NewsCom:

http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080128/NYM122
AP Archive:

http://photoarchive.ap.org/
AP PhotoExpress Network: PRN11
PRN Photo Desk, photodesk@prnewswire.com
Source: Nickelodeon

CONTACT: David Bittler of MTV, +1-212-846-5263,
david.bittler@mtvstaff.com; or Marianne Romano of Nickelodeon,
+1-310-752-8208, marianne.romano@nick.com

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