LARRY NAMER: Founder of E! Network, Changing the Landscape with Stall Talk
Larry Namer is a well-known media executive/entrepreneur with over 50 years of experience in entertainment. In the US he is best known as the Founder of E! Entertainment TV Networks however he has built other media companies in Russia and China. E! is known globally for shows such as Talk Soup, Howard Stern, The Kardashians.
E! is now seen in 142 countries and is recognized as the world’s biggest pop culture influencer. Under the Compsan Communication banner, he had the number-one TV show in the former Soviet Union for ten years. Also with Compsan, he was the number one promoter of Western music artists having done over 300 music shows. As a co-producer of the White Nights Festival, Compsan attracted over 750K attendees over the 6 days of the festival.
He built a media company in China called Metan Global after his work in Russia. Metan Global produces film, TV, internet content, music, and other live events. The comedy show he created, Return To The Village of Good Fortune, ran 72 episodes on China’s national TV station CCTV 8 and was nominated for best sitcom at the Asia TV Awards (the only one from China).
Tell us about your new show, Stall Talk.
Stall Talk was first conceived out of my curiosity about the way women think and the comradery among women that I don’t think us guys share or even understand. You can be out to dinner with a few couples when one woman says ” I’m going to the restroom” and they all get up and leave together. Guys are sitting there wondering what it is they actually do in there together and soon realize it’s a safe place for the chats they have with each other that they don’t necessarily want to share with their make companions. So while Stall Talk Podcast is not literally shot in a bathroom it features women of different generations exploring issues and ideas in a very open forum.
How has it evolved since its inception?
When we started we were finding our way, with two hosts and two recurring guest hosts. They were from different generations and different backgrounds so the conversations were fascinating and showed how generational differences varied widely yet there was this underlying sense that there was something common that women shared. The initial episode was good but it was clear to me that the four of them were nervous about being on camera and were not necessarily comfortable opening up. Only Jenilee Harrison (3s Company, Dallas) was ever on camera before. The first episode focused a lot on sex and sensational thoughts which I attributed mainly to their studying other female focused podcasts and just thinking that’s what drives the audience. I think the turning point was episode 3 where the guest was Cheyenne Hunt, the first Gen Z woman to run for congress. That episode was simply intelligent and for me I walked away thinking that there is indeed hope for the human race. These gals were not just party goers but were really smart and thoughtful and that’s what we need to emphasize. That became the direction we took all the subsequent episodes and for our hosts it set the stage for letting them be exactly who they are and not worry about trying to be someone else. The talks became VERY real.
Episode 6: The Pressures + Presence of Influencers w/ Karma Carr (‘Girl Dinner’)
www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLF6bGs0F3o
Episode 15: Learning Skills4Startups w/ Sophie Azam
www.youtube.com/watch?v=U8KzCoODW1Y&t=27s
Tell us about what we can find on your show, Natasha After Dark. Who is it for?
In case your readers haven’t noticed late night tv talks shows are dominated by the boys club. It’s all guys and the shows are basically promotional platforms for celebs to pitch their new projects. Over the years I have had dozens (probably hundreds) of folks pitch me on why they would be the next big talks show host. Everyone thought of themselves as the next Oprah. What most if not all didn’t realize was the amount of dedication and work went into being Oprah and having the personality and talent was just part of the equation. When I would explain that to be a daytime talk show host meant that they would be up at 3 AM for hair and make-up, and would start shooting early AM until about 11 when they would go home, have lunch, then go to sleep. This would be their routine 50 weeks a year. That was usually met with the response of why they can’t work those hours and certainly 50 weeks a year would interfere with summers in the Hampton’s and ski trips in the winter. Then I met Natasha Graziano who gave me the pitch on why she can be the next big thing in talk show hosting. She was a single mom from the UK, broke and struggling financially 8 years ago. She moved to the US, became a life coach and social media influencer (20 million followers), and is now living in Bel Air. I thought she would be an easy one to shake so I would call her from whatever country I was in, at 3 AM. She would stay on the phone for hours. The more I tested her the more I started to see she was different in many ways. Because she is very unfiltered we decided that she had to be nighttime and that her focus should be inspirational and motivational, not promotional. We shot a pilot in a nightclub instead of a studio and it really showed how different this show could be. Today we have several platforms vying for the show and we will have it up and running by spring.
In 2025, you will produce the “Oscars of the Metaverse” as a global celebration of creativity in the spheres of NFTYs, Crypto, Blockchain, and AI. How excited are you for the event?
The NFTYs (https://nftys.org) will be a celebration of all that’s new in the world of technology, project financing, art, etc. It will go out on a zoom platform to a global audience and showcase these new things and also bring light to the fact that Hollywood is not longer the geographic center of the production world but rather a symbol and measure of creativity and quality. After all I no longer need to come to Hollywood to find the resources to make good film or TV. I can take my IPhone to anywhere in the world and make content today. By using Ai our hosts who speak English will be able to be seen speaking the local language of the viewer (now up to 37 languages). By having viewers obtain the NFT as the entry ticket we establish a mechanism that will provide proof that that person actually was present for the first NFTYs. Its recorded on the blockchain and can easily be referenced and authenticated. Look at Woodstock 1969 where about 500 thousand folks converged for that music festival. Yet when surveys were done some years later, there were almost 20 million people who claimed they were there. By doing it this way, it is irrefutable proof of who was there. Then our hosts will be dressed buy fashion designers like Richie Rich who has dressed everyone from Pam Anderson to Paris Hilton and well as many rock stars. Viewers will be able to by the digital versions of those designs so they can go out into the metaverse very well dressed.
You will host a fireside chat at the Skills4Startups, “The Future of Tech” on June 14, 2025 in LA. What trends are you seeing in tech?
Well, I think the biggest thing is to learn how to use all the new tools available, especially Ai. It’s not going away but it also does not eliminate the unique ability we humans have for imagination and creativity. It’s a tool that helps reduce the mundane tasks and let content creators do what they do best. I’m really looking forward to this event in June and expect my presentation will spark many constructive conversations.
If you are interested, or know someone who may be of fit, feel free to contact us here: https://www.stalltalkpodcast.net/contact
