Margaret Loesch, a veteran of the children’s entertainment and animation industries, is the new president and CEO of Hasbro and Discovery’s multiplatform joint venture.
Loesch will head up the venture, which has yet to be named and will debut in Fall 2010 on what is now the Discovery Kids channel. She will oversee all business and creative areas of the rebranded channel and multimedia ventures, reporting to a board of directors split between Hasbro and Discovery representatives.
Her career spans almost forty years in the business and has been involved in the development and programming of such successful shows as Smurfs, Mighty Morphin’ Power Ranges, Muppet Babies, Animaniacs, Transformers and Bear in the Big Blue House.
She also launched and expanded the Fox Kids Network, created the U.S. Hallmark Channel, headed up Marvel Productions and co-founded the family media company The Hatchery. She has won four Emmy Awards, a George Foster Peabody Award, a Vision Award, and the Chair Award from the Caucus for Television Producers, Writers, and Directors.
‘The opportunity to work with Hasbro and Discovery ‘ two companies that are synonymous with quality, values and success ‘ is the type of once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that I could not resist,’ said Loesch. ‘Since I started in the children’s entertainment industry, I have believed there always is a yearning among viewers for high-quality, family-friendly entertainment filled with positive messages and built on strong and engaging brands, characters and stories. With Hasbro’s world-class brands and Discovery’s established distribution strength, we have the tools to address that yearning and create a network and programming that will entertain, inform and truly resonate with viewers.’
