LOS ANGELES (OCT. 23, 2007) – Jeremy Piven, two-time Emmy Award-winning actor and Chicago native, will receive Columbia College Chicago’s 2007 Impact Award, which honors Windy City natives who have made an indelible impact on the entertainment industry. Piven will accept the honor on Saturday, November 17, 2007, at the Montmartre Lounge [6757 Hollywood Blvd, Hollywood]. Steve Kmetko (’76), Columbia College alumnus and entertainment reporter, will host the event.
Dr. Warrick L. Carter, Columbia President, said, “Jeremy and his family have a rich history in the arts community of Chicago. The Piven legacy has produced many talented performers working in the entertainment industry today, and we are proud to have Jeremy as our honoree this year.”
Piven was born and raised in Chicago where his parents founded the Piven Theatre Workshop. It was here that Piven was first introduced to the stage, and, under his parents’ tutelage, studied alongside John and Joan Cusack, Roseanna Arquette and Aidan Quinn. Piven continues to be involved with the Workshop and returns to Chicago frequently to help keep his father’s dream alive.
Piven is presently best known for his critically acclaimed portrayal of the slick, fast talking super agent ‘Ari Gold’ in the HBO original series “Entourage,” for which he has earned two Emmy Awards and three Golden Globe nominations, among other honors.
Currently, Piven stars opposite Jamie Foxx and Jennifer Garner in director Peter Berg’s political drama “The Kingdom.” He will next be seen in Guy Ritchie’s forthcoming crime action flick, “Rocknrolla,” scheduled for release next year. Piven recently signed on for the title role in the Will Farrell-produced comedy “The Goods: The Don Ready Story,” which begins production in December.
Piven has an established presence in both film and television, having appeared in over 40 feature films including “Smokin’ Aces,” “Runaway Jury,” “Old School,” “Serendipity,” “Black Hawk Down,” “Very Bad Things,” “Singles, Rush Hour 2,” “Gross Pointe Blank” and “The Family Man.” On the small screen, Piven was a series regular on “Cupid” and “Ellen” and appeared on “The Larry Sanders Show” and in the telepic “Don King: Only in America.”
The Columbia College Chicago Impact Awards event recognizes and funds Columbia College Chicago’s premiere Semester in L.A. program, the only academic program permanently located on a studio lot. Located at CBS Studio Center, Semester in L.A. introduces students to the nuts and bolts of the entertainment business. Students are immersed in a variety of intense courses where they learn how to pitch projects to professionals in the business and meet key industry players who give their time as guest speakers. Semester in L.A. gives students a unique jump-start on their burgeoning careers in the film, television, music and entertainment industry.
Presenter, performers and celebrity guests will be announced shortly.
Columbia College Chicago Impact Awards History
The Columbia College Chicago Impact Awards (formerly the Chicago Spirit Awards) was created in 2003 to honor Chicagoans who have “made it” in Hollywood without losing touch with their roots. The award is presented annually to individuals who succeed in the entertainment industry while maintaining the work ethic and loyalty that are synonymous with Chicago. Previous honorees and attendees have included Virginia Madsen, Jim Belushi, Joe Mantegna, Dennis Franz, director Charlie Carner, and former chairman of Paramount Pictures, Sherry Lansing.
Columbia College Chicago
Columbia College Chicago is the largest and most diverse arts and media college in the nation with 80,000 living alumni, 3,000 of whom work and reside in the Los Angeles area. Among notable alumni are producer Len Amato (“Analyze This”), cinematographer Janusz Kaminski (“Schindler’s List”), comedian Andy Richter, rapper Common, Michelle Monaghan (“Mission: Impossible III”), animator Genndy Tartakovsky (“Star Wars: Clone Wars”), and producing partners Bob Teitel and George Tillman (“Barbershop” and “Roll Bounce”). Enrolling some 12,000 students on its Chicago campus, Columbia offers more than 120 undergraduate and graduate programs in the visual, performing, media and communication arts.
Media contact: Chicago: Priscilla Hunter, 312.344.7805, 312.286.6624 (cell) or phunter@colum.edu
CHICAGO, IL – The Board of Governors of the Chicago/Midwest Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) will bestow its highest honor on Columbia College Chicago professor Lucas Palermo at the 49th Chicago Emmy Awards. The NATAS Governors’ Award is given to an individual or organization for outstanding contributions to Chicago broadcasting and to the Television Academy. Palermo will receive the award on November 18.
“Luke Palermo is a perfect example of the sort of teaching professional we particularly prize at Columbia,” said Television Department Chair Michael Niederman. “In his more than 20 years at Columbia, he has helped train and educate several generations of TV production professionals, who work in television stations and production houses around the country. His service to the television industry is the reason for this particular award and in that role, Luke also serves our students by bringing his professional expertise and connections into the classroom, as they train and plan for their careers out in the competitive world of broadcast media.”
At Columbia, Palermo serves as Associate Chair of the Television Department. He is a certified Avid editing instructor and has also taught studio production, lighting, soap opera directing and producing, sketch comedy directing, and remote TV production. He is co-author of a textbook on using media production in the high school curriculum.
For more than a dozen years, Palermo has served on the board of NATAS and he has served on the Emmy rules committee during his entire tenure. He also served as Emmy co-chair for a decade arranging Emmy judging trades with TV Academy chapters across the country. During his tenure, he has coordinated the processing of more than 6,000 regional Emmy entries, recruited countless local Emmy judges and led more than 50 Emmy judging panels.
Palermo has played a key role in NATAS Chicago/Midwest’s educational initiatives, including the National Student Television Awards and the Chicagoland High School Video Contest. These events partner NATAS Chicago/Midwest with the Chicagoland Television Educators Council (CTEC) – an organization Palermo helped found. These events recognize the achievement of aspiring television professionals and videographers at the high school level, encouraging them in their artistic and career goals and providing a forum for industry and higher education professionals to spot emerging talent.
Media education is very important for Palermo, who backs up his priorities with philanthropy: he contributes to the NATAS Chicago/Midwest Chapter’s Governors’ Scholarship, and provides $4,000 annually to a Columbia College Chicago scholarship through the NATAS Chicago Foundation. The Columbia scholarship was established in memory of his wife Sharon who passed away in 2005. Palermo also serves on the Executive Committee of the Television Academy as Chapter Secretary and is a member of the planning committee for the upcoming 50th Chicago Emmy Awards.
Says Barbara Williams Perry, president of the Chicago/Midwest Chapter of NATAS: “The Chicago/Midwest Chapter of NATAS considers itself privileged to be associated with this consummate TV pro as he follows in the footsteps of his mentor, the late, great Ed Morris, former Chair of the Columbia Television Department, who was honored with the Governors’ Award in 1985.”
About the NATAS Chicago/Midwest Governors’ Award. This award is presented to a member (or members) of the Chicago community who has made an outstanding contribution and/or has had a major impact on Chicago broadcasting. Letters may be submitted by any member or Governor of the Chicago/Midwest Chapter of the Academy. This award can be given to an individual, a company or an organization for outstanding achievement in the arts, sciences or management of television which is either of a cumulative nature or so extraordinary and universal in nature as to be beyond the realm of the awards presented in the categories of achievement. Past winners include: Jim Disch, John Drury, Gene Siskel and Roger Ebert, Bill Kurtis, Irv Kupcinet, Ed Morris, Len O’Connor, Jim Ruddle, and many others.
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CHICAGO, IL -- Five leaders in the business and philanthropic communities have recently been named to the Columbia College Chicago Board of Trustees, announced college President Warrick L. Carter, Ph.D.
The five individuals are: Lester Coney, Executive Vice President in the Office of the Chairman at Mesirow Financial; philanthropist Susan V. Downing; Chester T. Kamin, J.D., Senior Partner at Jenner & Block, LLP; Paul R. Knapp, Senior Executive at DST Systems, Inc. and President of Vermont Western Assurance, Inc.; and business advisor and consultant Barry M. Sabloff.
“We are very excited that our newest elected trustees bring a corporate emphasis that will serve to further enhance the spectrum of an already powerful and diverse group of professionals,” said Carter. “It is our continued focus to provide open educational access to students in arts and media, making it imperative that we reach an even broader audience of supporters and potential stakeholders.”
“By educating the minds and honing the skills of the next generation of artists, communicators and managers – the individuals who will run the arts, entertainment and media industries -- Columbia College Chicago is not only ensuring the future of American culture, but making a significant contribution to the economy of the country,” said Allen M. Turner, chairman of the college’s board of trustees. “That means that everyone is a stakeholder in the education that Columbia delivers and that is the message that our board leadership will be carrying forward as we continue to grow and stake our claim as the best student centered arts and media college in the country.”
Lester Coney joined Mesirow Financial in 2006 as Executive Vice President in the Office of the Chairman. In this role he is responsible for originating and nurturing new business opportunities as well as expanding and maintaining client relationships across all lines of business including investment management, investment services, insurance, investment banking, consulting and real estate.
At Mesirow Financial, Mr. Coney also makes it his unofficial business to make diversity a priority by identifying potential employee talent. Furthermore, he keeps the company connected to ethnic, minority, and community organizations by providing corporate support for key initiatives and events.
Prior to joining Mesirow Financial, Mr. Coney spent nine years at Aon Corporation. Earlier, Les spent 15 years at United Healthcare and Traveler's Insurance where he was director of key accounts and national sales director, respectively.
Board, cultural, civic and philanthropic activities include President of the DuSable Museum of African American History and founding Chairman of the Board of Directors of Congo Square Theatre Mr. Coney is currently a member of the Boards of Directors of Chicago United, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Roosevelt University, Lincoln University, Kohl's Children's Museum and the Athletes Against Drugs organization.
Honors include: Executive Leader Award from the Association of Fund Raising Professionals Chicago (2007); King Legacy Award from the Boys & Girls' Club of Chicago (2007); Leadership in the Arts Award from the Arts & Business Council of Chicago (2006); the Community Service Award by the 100 Black Men (2005); Crain’s Chicago Business’ Top 50 Minorities in Business (2004); Chicago United’s Business Leaders of Color (2003); Human Resources Development Institute's Seeds of Africa Award (2002) and the Keeper of the Dream Award (2001). In 2000 he was a delegate for the Governor of Illinois Trade Mission to South Africa.
Mr. Coney holds a Bachelor of Science degree business from George Williams University. He resides in Chicago’s West Loop and he is the father of two children, Chanel and Javon.
Susan V. Downing is a lifelong activist and philanthropist who promotes culture and the arts in Chicago and has been responsible for coordinating and developing numerous successful fund raising events around the city.
Board, cultural, civic and philanthropic activities include: membership on the Board of Trustees of the Adler Planetarium, the Sarah Siddons Society and the Gold Coast Neighbors. She is the President of the Women’s Board of the Adler Planetarium and sits on the Goodman Theatre’s Women’s Board. She is also active with the Achievement Rewards for College Scientists (ARCS) and the Junior League of Chicago. Ms. Downing has been an active volunteer with and donor to Columbia since her son graduated from the college in 1999. She has co-chaired the Parents’ Fund and the Institutional Advancement Committee, has been a member of the President’s Club giving society since 2000 and has secured scholarship support for Columbia theater students from the Sarah Siddons Society.
Ms. Downing lives in the Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago and has three grown sons.
Chester T. Kamin, J.D., is a Senior Partner at Jenner & Block, LLP where he has a business litigation practice that includes antitrust, intellectual property, real estate and financial institutions litigation.
Board, cultural, civic and philanthropic activities include: service as Special Counsel to the Governor of Illinois and Commissioner of the Illinois Law Enforcement Commission; active in bar associations at the national, state and local levels; Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and of the American Bar Foundation; member of the Lawyers Club of Chicago and the Quadrangle Club. Kamin has served on a number of charitable boards including Chicago Volunteer Legal Services, Committee on Illinois Government and An Alliance for Action, a joint educational initiative between the National Writing Project and the National Collegiate Athletic Association; and Sherwood Conservatory of Music (past board chair);
Kamin serves as Adjunct Professor at the University of Chicago Law School in the field of antitrust and telecommunications and has written numerous articles and lectured in a variety of continuing legal educational programs.
His cultural and avocation interests include music, drama and the visual arts. He plays cello, which he has studied at Sherwood Conservatory.
Mr. Kamin holds a Bachelor of Arts degree (magna cum laude) from Harvard College and a J.D. from the University of Chicago Law School. He is married to Nancy Schaefer, also a lawyer. The couple reside in the South Kenwood neighborhood of Chicago and have two adult children and three grandchildren.
Paul R. Knapp is a Senior Executive with DST Systems, Inc., a publicly held, New York Stock Exchange listed corporation offering information processing and computer software services to corporate and institutional customers. He first joined DST in 1997 as president and chief executive of DST Catalyst, an international software and consulting business serving securities exchanges and securities brokerage firms. He currently serves as president and chief executive of Vermont Western Assurance, a property and casualty insurance company formed and owned by DST and also serves on the boards of other DST-owned companies and participates in management direction and oversight of several DST companies, particularly international and insurance aspects of their businesses.
Before joining DST Systems Mr. Knapp was chairman, president and chief executive of Catalyst Institute and Catalyst Consulting. Catalyst, which he founded in 1991 dealt in global financial markets. Mr. Knapp joined DST Systems when it acquired Catalyst Consulting in 1997.
Prior to his affiliations with Catalyst and DST, From Mr. Knapp was partner, president and chief executive officer of Kessler Asher Group and prior to that served in a variety of executive positions with the Kemper Group of insurance and financial services companies over a period of 20 years.
Board, cultural, civic and philanthropic activities include: member, Board of Directors, J.E. Dunn Vermont Assurance, Inc. and past member of the Boards of Directors, Berger family of mutual funds and Chicago Capital Fund. Knapp is an elected Community Representative on the Local School Council for William B. Ogden Elementary School and President of the Board of Friends of Ogden. He is a member of the board and treasurer of Chicago’s TimeLine Theatre, a past board member of the Allendale Association, a residential treatment facility for emotionally and behaviorally disturbed children, and is involved in and a supporter of other Chicago community, arts and political activities. Through Children International, Mr. Knapp and his wife initiated and have supported a four-year college funding program for students in the Philippines.
Mr. Knapp holds a Bachelor of Science degree in industrial administration from California State University and an MBA (Magna Cum Laude) in finance from The University of Chicago Graduate School of Business. He holds the professional designation of Chartered Property and Casualty Underwriter. He lives in the Gold Coast neighborhood of Chicago with his wife Nancy. Between them they have five grown children.
Barry M. Sabloff is an experienced senior executive, banker and board member. During a 30 year career with First Chicago NBD; and Bank One (now merged with JP Morgan Chase & Co.) he held key leadership roles including Executive Vice President and Head of the International Group (Bank One); Head of Global Risk Management (First Chicago NBD); Area Head for Europe, Middle East and Africa (First Chicago) and Head of Syndications and Private Placements (First Chicago). He currently serves as a business advisor and member of a number of corporate boards including CoBank (Denver) and Calypso Technology, Inc. (San Francisco), as well as serving as Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Marquette National Corporation/Marquette Bank.
Other board, cultural, civic and philanthropic activities include: current member of the Boards of Trustees of the Marquette Bank Foundation and the American School in London Foundation; current Chairman of the Board of the Sherwood Conservatory of Music at Columbia College Chicago; former member of the boards of The Feltre School, Mid-America Committee for International Business; Inroads, Inc.; Inroads/Chicago, Inc.; and Illinois Cancer Center.
Mr. Sabloff holds a Bachelor of Arts (Cum Laude) in economics from Trinity College (Hartford CT) and an MBA in finance and international business from the University of Chicago. He resides in Winnetka, Illinois with his wife, Anne. They have two grown children.
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CHICAGO, IL – Columbia College Chicago, the nation’s largest private arts and media college, and The Center for American Places (CAP), publisher of works that “enhance the public’s understanding of, appreciation for, and affection for the places of America and the rest of the world - whether urban, suburban, rural, or wild,” have signed an agreement of acquisition, announced Columbia President Warrick L. Carter, Ph.D. The acquisition will take effect on December 31, 2007.
CAP will be a wholly-owned imprint of the college and will be known as The Center for American Places at Columbia College Chicago. Business and marketing operations will shift to Chicago offices on the Columbia campus, while design functions will remain in Santa Fe, New Mexico and editorial functions in Staunton, Virginia.
CAP was founded in 1990 by George F. Thompson, a former editor at the Johns Hopkins University Press. Since that time, the Center has brought to publication more than 320 works across dozens of disciplines including geography, history, land scape and urban studies, photography, and creative non-fiction. The Center has won or shared more than 100 editorial prizes, including best-book honors in 31 academic fields.
A relationship first formed with Columbia College in 2001 when Thompson worked with Bob Thall, chair of the school’s photography department, and forged an agreement to co-publish fine-art photography books. The first volume in the co-publishing arrangement was Melissa Ann Pinney’s critically acclaimed Regarding Emma: Photographs of American Women and Girls (2003). As the publishing relationship progressed, the two organizations came to recognize a common philosophy and mission, as well as mutually beneficial business objectives, according to Columbia Provost Steven Kapelke.
“The Center’s motto is ‘Books live. Books endure. Books make a difference. Books are gifts to civilization.’ – and that is a sentiment that resonates deeply with Columbia’s values and our emphasis on the importance of a solid liberal arts education,” says Kapelke. “At Columbia we work across disciplines and encourage our faculty and students to explore collaborative and innovative approaches to the arts and media. The vision and commitment of George Thompson and the publishing history of the Center has emphasized connections between art and science, photography and literature, architecture and the natural environment. This is a great match.”
“For 17 years, the Center for American Places has been committed to developing and bringing to publication books of lasting value whose authors reflect the culture of our times,” says CAP founder George Thompson. “In becoming the Press of Columbia College Chicago we wish to enhance the visibility and impact of both the Center’s books and Columbia’s educational mission. Just as books make an important contribution to civilization, so too do our students and teachers, scholars and artists.
“Chicago has always been very good to our books,” Thompson added. “We already feel a warm embrace in Chicago, one of North America’s great cities, and we look forward to being a very good neighbor in the years to come.”
Among the Center’s award winning titles are: The City in a Garden: A Photographic History of Chicago’s Parks by Julia Sniderman Bachrach, Route 66: Iconography of an American Highway by Arthur Krim, New Orleans: The Making of an Urban Landscape by Peirce F. Lewis, and Biography of a Tenement House in New York City: An Architectural History of 97 Orchard Street by Andrew S. Dolkart.
Upcoming titles, scheduled for release in 2008 under The Center for American Places at Columbia College Chicago imprint, include: Forests Forever: Their Ecology, Restoration, and Protection by John J. Berger; the Center's first novel, The Great River by Chicagoan Charles Dee Sharp; the Center's first memoir, Southern Comforts: Rooted in a Florida Place by Sudye Cauthen; Urban Wilderness: Exploring a Metropolitan Watershed by Eddee Daniel, Civil Rights Memorials and the Geography of Memory by Owen Dwyer and Derek H. Alderman; From Yard to Garden: The Domestication of America's Home Grounds by Christopher Grampp; and Cleveland: The Flats, The Mill, and the Hills by Andrew Borowiec, among others.
The University of Chicago Press will continue to serve as the principal distributor for both backlisted and future titles published by The Center for American Places at Columbia College Chicago. More information on the Center's publications and history can be found at www.americanplaces.org.
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For Immediate Release
September 15, 2007
Media contact: Priscilla L. Hunter, 312.344.7805, 312.286.6624 (cell) or phunter@colum.edu
Chicago, IL—On Saturday, September 15 a Mary Todd Lincoln dress from 1861, along with twelve paper dresses created by Columbia College Chicago fine art faculty members and fashion design students, will go on exhibit as part of the “Mary Todd Lincoln: First Lady of Controversy” temporary exhibit currently at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library & Museum in Springfield, Illinois. The exhibit runs from April 28 through October 28.
The Mary Todd Lincoln Paper Dress Project was conceived by Virginia Heaven, faculty in the fashion design concentration in the college’s art and design department. Heaven also work as an independent consultant on Museum exhibitions involving dress. In December 2006, she was asked to evaluate a famous dress worn by Mary Todd Lincoln photographed by Mathew Brady in c1861. After it was determined the dress was too fragile to be placed on a mannequin, Heaven suggested that the dress could be exhibited at a 45 degree angle at low light levels for a short period of time, and then it could be replaced by a reproduction.
Heaven says she considered the cost of a cloth reproduction of the original dress and then thought, “why not a paper reproduction?” which could be printed with the textile design. “After I decided on a paper reproduction, I thought that our students could use the dress as inspiration to create other types of paper dresses,” said Heaven. “The project grew from there to include some really interesting interpretations designed by faculty members, as well as students working individually and as teams.”
An historical image of Mrs. Lincoln in the original dress will be on display in the exhibit along with many artifacts that provide an intimate look at her through her clothing, accessories, jewelry, photos and letters. Mary Todd Lincoln was known to be a “clothes horse” and was publicly criticized for her “spend-thrift” ways. Upon her arrival in Washington as the First Lady, newspapers criticized her for using taxpayers’ money to refurbish the White House as well as funding her personal shopping sprees.
The First Lady of Controversy temporary exhibit reveals the many contentious aspects of Mary Todd Lincoln. Many of the artifacts included in the exhibit are on display for the first time. “The exhibit continues the Museum’s commitment to telling the Lincoln story, warts and all,” said Rick Beard, executive director of the Museum. “Everyone agrees that Mary Todd Lincoln was one of our nation’s most controversial first ladies, but the jury is still undecided as to her true nature. This new exhibition will not settle the issue. However, it will certainly give visitors plenty of new evidence to shape their own conclusions.”