Strictly Business

Ray Nutt, CEO of Fathom Events, explains how the Denver-based firm has managed to buck the box office downtrend with a roster of special events, classic Hollywood titles, the spectacle of the Metropolitan Opera and indies such as “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey.” Nutt details the business models and market-timing strategies that allow Fathom releases to complement the multiplex menu offered by the distributor’s three parent companies, exhibition chains AMC Entertainment, Regal Cinemas and Cinemark.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Jamie Krents, a 25-year veteran of Universal Music Group, runs the Verve, Impulse! and Verve Forecast imprints, original home to Ella Fitzgerald, then Louis Armstrong, Billie Holiday, Velvet Underground and Frank Zappa. Today, jazz remains a core genre of the company with Grammy winner Samara Joy finding a new (read: younger) audience.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pulitzer Prize-winning authors James B. Stewart and Rachel Abrams of The New York Times discuss their investigations into the downfalls of Sumner Redstone and Leslie Moonves in their new book "Unscripted: The Epic Battle for a Media Empire and the Redstone Family Legacy."  See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Barstool Sports CEO Erika Ayers returns to Strictly Business to discuss a big month for her company, which is set to be wholly acquired this month by casino operator Penn Entertainment. She addresses her brand's foray into sports betting and the many different activations Barstool has going at Sunday's Super Bowl. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Pearlena Igbokwe, chairman of Universal Studio Group, and Erin McPherson, chief content officer of Verizon Consumer Group, discuss how their businesses are evolving as the streaming marketplace matures. Igbokwe details her focus on building library assets for the long haul; McPherson explains Verizon's goal to become a friendly-but-not-competitive portal to help Hollywood with content aggregation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Netflix president of worldwide advertising Jeremi Gorman and Pinterest chief content officer Malik Ducard split a double-interview episode recorded earlier this month at the Variety Entertainment Summit at CES. Both execs discuss what it's like to take established businesses in new directions.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Thai Randolph is CEO of Hartbeat, the production company Kevin Hart founded with an eye on creating comedy across media platforms. She discusses how she's led the company after a $100 million investment aimed at taking Hartbeat to its next phase of growth. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

As the Grammy Awards prepares to present its first ever Songwriter of the Year honor, Warner Chappell Music Publishing Co-Chair Carianne Marshall runs down massive strides in royalty rates and the challenges ahead for the business of songs.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Our 2022 retrospective highlights favorite guests, moments and most significant industry trends in media and entertainment, as selected by Cynthia Littleton, Andrew Wallenstein and Shirley Halperin, hosts of Variety’s weekly podcast Strictly Business.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Producer Tony Thomas tells the story of how his father, entertainer Danny Thomas, pulled together Hollywood stars and Lebanese and Syrian immigrant communities to build a hospital in the deep South. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital thrives today, a testament to the organization’s philosophy of treating children with catastrophic illnesses regardless of their ability to pay. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.