|
|
Born around 1955, Michael Tollin grew up in a sports-obsessed family in Philadelphia. Michael started his career in the entertainment industry making films about sports and children's programs, earning three Emmys. His documentary "Hank Aaron: Chasing the Dream" was nominated for an Oscar and won a Peabody Award. He later pushed the Tollin/Robbins series "Arli$$," about an ethically challenged sports agent, which just completed a seven-year run on HBO. When Brian Robbins needed a producer for the first show he created (sports stars against celebrities in a basketball tournament on Maui), he called Robbie Rowe, an Emmy award-winning producer. Robbie handed the phone to her husband Michael Tollin. The two men hit it off and have been in business together eversince. In 1995, Tollins and Robbins created "All That," a successful children's version of "Saturday Night Live," for Nickelodeon. Now, they program the channel's entire Saturday prime-time lineup. (NYT 12/1/02) Tollins-Robbins also make films, which earn better box office than reviews. Their first film appeared in 1997 when Paramount asked them to expand a sketch from Nickelodeon into the movie "Good Burger." It came out five months later grossed $24 million at the box office from a budget of $8.5 million. They next made Varsity Blues, which grossed $53 million box office from a $15 million budget. Warner Brothers, which started the teenager-oriented WB network, signed Tollin/Robbins to a development deal - giving the producers freedom and money to develop projects and shop them to any network. So far they've only made shows for WB, including Smallville. Brian and Michael have a good reputation for courtesy and honesty. Sources: Neal Koch, NY Times, 12/1/02, "Stepping Up in TV, Without Stepping on Toes"
|
|