From NATPE: The recipients of NATPE’s 18th Annual Brandon Tartikoff Legacy Awards are Warner Bros. Television Group Chairman Channing Dungey, Oscar, Emmy, Grammy and Tony Award-winner Whoopi Goldberg, film and television writer, producer, and director Alex Kurtzman, actress, comedian, writer, producer, and director Amy Poehler, storied talk show personality Maury Povich, programmer, producer and media investor Jeff Sagansky, and Actor, Director, Producer, Writer, Recording Artist, and Horseman William Shatner. The group will receive the prestigious award at a special reception on Thursday, June 2, 2022, at the Beverly Wilshire.

The 2022 Tartikoff Legacy Award recipients are recognized for exhibiting their extraordinary passion, leadership, independence and vision through their diverse work in being a part of the creation and distribution of content for the world’s traditional and digital marketplaces. Named in honor of Brandon Tartikoff, one of the most esteemed programmers in the history of television, the Award was created to acknowledge a select group of television professionals who have demonstrated the highest degree of excellence in their field.

“Bringing the Brandon Tartikoff Legacy Award to Los Angeles for the first time is a milestone moment for NATPE,” said JP Bommel, President and CEO, NATPE. “This event is such an important part of our mission, and to have it make its return — in person, with such an accomplished group of creatives and executives being honored — is something we are very proud of.”

This will be the first time the Brandon Tartikoff Legacy Awards gala will take place in Los Angeles after previously being a part of the NATPE Miami Marketplace and Conference. The Brandon Tartikoff Legacy Awards are part of a series of events taking place during 2022 as part of NATPE RETURNS. This will include events in New York, Budapest, and Los Angeles.

One of these events, NATPE Hollywood, will be taking place one day earlier at the W Hollywood Hotel. NATPE Hollywood will continue the conversations most important to the content industry including thought leadership keynotes on international drama, a focus on unscripted, sessions on international co-productions, conversations on streaming, and audience acquisition discussions. Please visit www.natpe.com for more information on everything happening at NATPE in 2022.

This year’s recipients of the Brandon Tartikoff Legacy Award are:

Channing Dungey – Highly esteemed TV industry leader Channing Dungey has served as Chairman, Warner Bros. Television Group, since January 2021. In this role, she has creative responsibility for all of Warner Bros.’ unrivaled television production activities, including  more than 100 scripted and unscripted/alternative series for on-demand/streaming platforms, premium/pay and basic cable channels, and the broadcast networks. She is the first woman to run the television operations at Warner Bros. in the Studio’s history, and she was previously the first Black executive to run the entertainment division at a major U.S. broadcast network as President of ABC Entertainment. See full bio HERE.

Whoopi Goldberg – Whoopi Goldberg is one of a very elite group of artists who have won the Grammy, the Academy Award, the Golden Globe, the Emmy and a Tony. She is also a prolific producer, entrepreneur and is well-known around the world for her many humanitarian endeavors. Born and raised in New York City, she performed in San Diego and the Bay Area with the Blake Street Hawkeyes theatre troupe. It was there that she created the characters which became “The Spook Show” and evolved into her hit Broadway show, Grammy Award-winning album and the HBO special that helped launch her career. Whoopi appeared in the 2020 adaptation of Stephen King’s best-selling novel “The Stand” for Paramount+ and played a recurring role on Amazon’s “Harlem.”  She reprises her iconic role of Guinan in season two of the Paramount+ series, “Star Trek: Picard” and has joined the cast of the Amazon series, “Anansi Boys,” based on Neil Gaiman’s acclaimed fantasy novel.   She lends her voice to the upcoming animated features “Pierre the Pigeon-Hawk” and “Luck,” and she appears in and produces the feature film, “Till,” for MGM’s Orion Pictures. Full bio can be HERE.

Alex Kurtzman – As one of the leading creative voices in the entertainment industry today, Alex Kurtzman is known for his ability to bring complex source material, recognizable IP and original stories to screens with relatable, character-driven narratives that reach mass audiences and receive critical acclaim. Kurtzman and his production company Secret Hideout are dedicated to developing and producing a wide array of sophisticated and compelling content across all platforms through their overall TV deal with CBS Studios. Through the company, Kurtzman is at the helm of the growing “Star Trek” universe on Paramount+ including the award-winning STAR TREK: DISCOVERY; the critically acclaimed STAR TREK: PICARD, featuring Sir Patrick Stewart reprising his iconic role as Jean-Luc Picard; the animated comedy STAR TREK: LOWER DECKS; the animated series STAR TREK: PRODIGY, in partnership with Nickelodeon, that expands the franchise to young audiences; and highly anticipated new series STAR TREK: STRANGE NEW WORLDS. In addition, Secret Hideout is in development on a “Star Trek” project based on “Section 31,” with Michelle Yeoh attached to star. Kurtzman is also co-creator/executive producer and director of THE MAN WHO FELL TO EARTH, based on the Walter Tevis novel of the same name for Showtime. Full bio HERE.

Amy Poehler – Amy Poehler is one of Hollywood’s most versatile and sought-after talents with credits including that of actress, writer, executive producer, and bestselling author. Poehler, perhaps best known for her starring role on the Emmy-nominated NBC comedy series Parks and Recreation, currently serves as co-creator, executive producer, and the lead voice of FOX’s animated series Duncanville, executive producer of Netflix’s Emmy-nominated series Russian Doll, and appears as co-host (alongside Nick Offerman) and executive producer of the hit crafting competition series Making It. In March 2022 Poehler made her documentary directorial debut with Amazon’s critically acclaimed documentary Lucy & Desi where she also executive produces alongside Imagine Documentaries & White Horse Pictures. She also serves as executive producer on the Amazon series Harlem on and Making It spinoff Baking It at Peacock both of which are now streaming. She recently starred and directed in Netflix’s Moxie and continues to serve as executive producer on Adult Swim’s half hour comedy series Three Busy Debras. She has a number of additional projects in development as part of her successful production company Paper Kite Productions, including the thriller-drama The Mother-In-Law, Peacock’s unscripted series The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning and the Netflix animated feature Steps.

Maury Povich – Maury Povich is the only television personality to have had three consecutive successful syndicated shows, beginning with the groundbreaking Fox tabloid news magazine A Current Affair (1986-1990), Paramount’s The Maury Povich Show (1991-1998), and NBCUniversal’s Maury (1998-present). Maury Povich is the longest running Daytime Talk Show Host in television history. See full bio HERE.

Jeff Sagansky – Jeff sagansky has been a longtime programmer, producer and investor in the entertainment/tech business. Over the past 11 years Sagansky has co-founded nine special purpose acquisition companies which have acquired and taken public companies including Draft Kings, Videocon DTH, India’s fastest growing satellite tv provider and most recently Gingko Bioworks, the leader in cell engineering in the largest biotech IPO in history. He is the former President of CBS Entertainment, Sony Pictures Entertainment and Tristar Pictures. Please find his full bio HERE.

William Shatner – William Shatner has cultivated a career spanning over 60 years as an Actor, Director, Producer, Writer, Recording Artist, and Horseman.  He is one of Hollywood’s most recognizable figures and a major philanthropist. Full bio can be found HERE.