Michael Darnell was born on 1962 or 1963 and is an American entertainment executive.
14 Facts About Mike Darnell
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Mike Darnell was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, to Eileen and Doyle E Darnell.
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Mike Darnell's father was a policeman, and Darnell was raised and attended public school in Philadelphia's northeast section.
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Mike Darnell appeared in TV episodes such as Sanford and Son, Welcome Back, Kotter and Kojak.
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Mike Darnell is married to Carolyn Oberman, a public relations executive who works for the Emmy Awards, and they have a daughter.
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Mike Darnell became an executive at Fox in 1994, initially under the title "director of specials", and during his 19 years at the network he rose through the ranks to become President of Alternative Entertainment.
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Mike Darnell quickly made a name for himself with one of his first hits that came to broad attention in 1995 when a producer brought Darnell black-and-white footage that appeared to portray an alien being dissected.
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Mike Darnell's projects were known for their often lurid and controversial nature, leading The New York Times to call him "Fox's point man for perversity" in 2000.
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Mike Darnell oversaw American Idol from its creation through its twelfth season.
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Mike Darnell told Variety that his proudest achievements during his time at Fox included American Idol, the success he had with Gordon Ramsay, and the season finale of Joe Millionaire, which drew about forty million viewers, outranking that year's Academy Awards, and became the network's most-viewed entertainment telecast.
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Mike Darnell created and executive produced the competition series Mental Samurai on Fox hosted by Rob Lowe.
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In 2021, Mike Darnell launched the much-anticipated Friends: The Reunion, rebuilding the sets and bringing the whole cast back together at Warner Bros Stage 24 where the original show was filmed.
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Mike Darnell continued to find success with documentaries and events such as the Emmy-nominated HBO Max documentary Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts, bringing the ensemble cast back together in a retrospective celebration of the franchise.
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In July 2023, Mike Darnell resigned from his position as President of Unscripted Television at Warner Bros, after 10 years in that role.