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Harvey Robert Levin (born September 2, 1950) is an American television producer, legal analyst, celebrity reporter, and former lawyer. He is the founder of celebrity news website TMZ, and the former host of ''OBJECTified'', which aired on the
Fox News Channel The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is ...
.


Early life and education

Levin was born September 2, 1950, in
Los Angeles County, California Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the List of the most populous counties in the United States, most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, ...
to a
Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
family. He attended high school at Grover Cleveland High School in
Reseda, Los Angeles Reseda is a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley region of Los Angeles, California. It was founded in 1912, and its central business district started developing in 1915. The neighborhood was devoted to agriculture for many years. Earthquakes ...
and graduated in 1968 with honors. Levin attended the
University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara (UC Santa Barbara or UCSB) is a public land-grant research university in Santa Barbara, California with 23,196 undergraduates and 2,983 graduate students enrolled in 2021–2022. It is part of the U ...
, where he graduated with a B.A. in political science in 1972. He later attended the
University of Chicago Law School The University of Chicago Law School is the law school of the University of Chicago, a private research university in Chicago, Illinois. It is consistently ranked among the best and most prestigious law schools in the world, and has many dis ...
and graduated with a J.D. in 1975.


Career


Early law career and academia

Levin was an active attorney in the state of California from December 18, 1975, until January 1, 1996. In the mid-1970s, Levin taught law at the
University of Miami School of Law The University of Miami School of Law (Miami Law or UM Law) is the law school of the University of Miami, a private research university in Coral Gables, Florida. Founded in 1926, the University of Miami School of Law is the oldest law school ...
under Soia Mentschikoff. He briefly practiced in
Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...
before returning to teach at Whittier College School of Law. The introduction and debate surrounding California Proposition 13 in 1978 pushed Levin into the public's eye following his performances in a number of public debates. With his newfound fame, he started to contribute legal advice on a radio show where he was nicknamed "Doctor Law", as well as write columns for the ''
Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the ...
''. His columnist career with the ''Times'' spanned seven years.


Transition to entertainment

Levin covered legal issues for
KNBC KNBC (channel 4) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of the NBC network. It is owned and operated by the network's NBC Owned Television Stations division alongside Corona- ...
-TV in 1982. He subsequently joined
KCBS-TV KCBS-TV (channel 2) is a television station in Los Angeles, California, United States, serving as the West Coast flagship of the CBS network. It is owned and operated by the network's CBS News and Stations division alongside independent outl ...
and spent a decade doing investigative reporting and legal analysis, most notably covering the O. J. Simpson murder case. In 1997 he was named co-executive producer and on-air legal anchor for ''
The People's Court ''The People's Court'' is an American arbitration-based reality court show, featuring an arbitrator handling small claims disputes in a simulated courtroom set. Within the court show genre, it is the first of all arbitration-based reality sty ...
''. He created '' Celebrity Justice'', which ran from 2002 to 2005. Levin produced ''Beyond Twisted'', which aired in 2009 for one season before being cancelled. He created '' Famous in 12'' (2014), an experiment in exploiting a family for quick fame, but the show was cancelled after less than one season, with only five of the scheduled twelve episodes having aired. Since 2016, Levin has hosted the weekly prerecorded show ''OBJECTified'' on the
Fox News Channel The Fox News Channel, abbreviated FNC, commonly known as Fox News, and stylized in all caps, is an American multinational conservative cable news television channel based in New York City. It is owned by Fox News Media, which itself is ...
.


TMZ

In 2005,
AOL AOL (stylized as Aol., formerly a company known as AOL Inc. and originally known as America Online) is an American web portal and online service provider based in New York City. It is a brand marketed by the current incarnation of Yahoo! Inc. ...
and
Telepictures Productions Telepictures (also known as Telepictures Productions; formerly known as Telepictures Distribution and Telepictures Corporation) is an American television show and filmmaking company, currently operating as a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Television ...
launched TMZ with Levin as the founder and managing editor. The website quickly rose to prominence when it broke the story of
Mel Gibson Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson (born January 3, 1956) is an American actor, film director, and producer. He is best known for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first three films of the post-apoca ...
's DUI arrest and subsequent antisemitic rant. It continued to break a number of high-profile stories including the abuse of
Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, actress, and businesswoman. Born in Saint Michael and raised in Bridgetown, Barbados, Rihanna auditioned for American record producer Evan Rogers who invited her to th ...
by
Chris Brown Christopher Maurice Brown (born May 5, 1989) is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actor. According to ''Billboard'', Brown is one of the most successful R&B singers of his generation, having often been referred to by many contempor ...
, the deaths of
Heath Ledger Heath Andrew Ledger (4 April 1979 – 22 January 2008) was an Australian actor and music video director. After playing roles in several Australian television and film productions during the 1990s, Ledger moved to the United States in 1998 to ...
,
Brittany Murphy Brittany Anne Murphy-Monjack (; November 10, 1977 – December 20, 2009) was an American actress and singer. Born in Atlanta, Murphy moved to Los Angeles as a teenager and pursued a career in acting. Her breakthrough role was as Tai Fras ...
,
Kobe Bryant Kobe Bean Bryant ( ; August 23, 1978 – January 26, 2020) was an American professional basketball player. A shooting guard, he spent his entire 20-year career with the Los Angeles Lakers in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Widely r ...
, and
Michael Jackson Michael Joseph Jackson (August 29, 1958 – June 25, 2009) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and philanthropist. Dubbed the " King of Pop", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Over ...
. The ''Los Angeles Times'' named TMZ's coverage of the Jackson death as the biggest story the website had covered to date. Levin became increasingly supportive of
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
in the run-up to the
2016 United States presidential election The 2016 United States presidential election was the 58th quadrennial presidential election, held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. The Republican ticket of businessman Donald Trump and Indiana governor Mike Pence defeated the Democratic ticke ...
. After Trump's victory, he met with President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...
on March 7, 2017 in the
Oval Office The Oval Office is the formal working space of the President of the United States. Part of the Executive Office of the President of the United States, it is located in the West Wing of the White House, in Washington, D.C. The oval-shaped roo ...
and chatted for an hour.


Other ventures

Harvey Levin Productions has produced Levin's media projects since he joined ''
The People's Court ''The People's Court'' is an American arbitration-based reality court show, featuring an arbitrator handling small claims disputes in a simulated courtroom set. Within the court show genre, it is the first of all arbitration-based reality sty ...
'' in 1983. In 1985, Levin wrote ''The People's Court: How to Tell It to the Judge'', reviewing and providing commentary on several cases from the show. ''
The Library Journal ''Library Journal'' is an American trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey. It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional practi ...
'' "recommended he bookfor public libraries."


Personal life

Levin appeared as an event speaker for the
National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association NLGJA: The Association of LGBTQ Journalists, is an American professional association dedicated to unbiased coverage of LGBTQ issues in the media. It is based in Washington, D.C., and the membership consists primarily of journalists, students, e ...
in April 2010 in which he publicly confirmed his self-identification as gay. He discussed his fear of losing his career if someone were to find out, which led to Levin compartmentalizing his personal and professional lives. Levin's longtime partner is Andy Mauer, a chiropractor in southern California. The two own multiple properties together, sharing joint-deed listings since the late 1990s and early 2000s. Levin has been named to ''
Out Out may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Out'' (1957 film), a documentary short about the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 * ''Out'' (1982 film), an American film directed by Eli Hollander * ''Out'' (2002 film), a Japanese film ba ...
'' magazine's "Power 50" list as one of the most influential voices in LGBT America since 2012 when he was named #15. He has since been named #25 in 2013, #34 in 2014, #48 in 2015, and #40 in 2016.


Filmography

* ''
Volcano A volcano is a rupture in the crust of a planetary-mass object, such as Earth, that allows hot lava, volcanic ash, and gases to escape from a magma chamber below the surface. On Earth, volcanoes are most often found where tectonic plates ...
'' (1997) – Reporter * '' Celebrity Justice'' – Host * ''
Family Guy ''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom originally conceived and created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The show centers around the Griffins, a dysfunctional family consisting of parents Peter and Lois; their ch ...
'' - Himself - S-8 Ep-14 - "
Peter-assment "Peter-assment" is the 14th episode of the eighth season of the animated comedy series ''Family Guy''. It originally aired on Fox in the United States on March 21, 2010. The title of the episode, like Season 4's "Petarded", " Peterotica" and "Pe ...
" (2010)


Books

* ''The People's Court: How to Tell it to the Judge'' (1985)


Awards and honors

For his broadcast work, Levin has been nominated for nine Emmys.


References


Further reading

* Title in the online table of contents is "TMZ redefines celebrity dirt". ——————— ;Notes


External links

*
Variety profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Levin, Harvey 1950 births Living people American infotainers American businesspeople in the online media industry Television producers from California Fox News people Lawyers from Los Angeles University of California, Santa Barbara alumni University of Chicago Law School alumni Whittier College faculty Jewish American attorneys LGBT Jews LGBT producers LGBT lawyers American LGBT broadcasters American gay writers American gay actors LGBT people from California California lawyers 21st-century American Jews