Thomas Berard McGrath (born 1956) is an American media executive. He is the

CEO A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

and chairman of Crossroads Live, a production company which invests in live and location-based entertainment on a global scale. He was formerly the CEO of

STX Entertainment STX Entertainment is a mini-major American entertainment and media company. Founded in March 2014 by film producer Robert Simonds, the studio produces film, television, and digital media projects. In April 2020, STX announced that it would merg ...

; chairman of Key Brand Entertainment, a producer and distributor of live theatre in the United States and parent company of Broadway.com; President and COO of

Act III Communications Act III Communications is a media and entertainment company owned by TV producer Norman Lear. It was started in 1985 following Lear's sale of Embassy Communications to The Coca-Cola Company. In a Wall St. Journal interview in 1988, Lear explaine ...

; Executive Vice President and COO of Viacom Entertainment Group; and Senior Managing Director of Crossroads Media, Inc. He is a nine-time

Tony Award The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

-winning producer, member of the National Recording Academy, and board member of the International Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. He also serves as trustee of New England Conservatory of Music and American Repertory Theater at

Harvard Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

Early life and education

McGrath was born and raised in

Washington, DC ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morg ...

. He received his B.A. from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...

in 1976, where he was music director for

Hasty Pudding Theatricals The Hasty Pudding Theatricals, known informally simply as The Pudding, is a theatrical student society at Harvard University, known for its burlesque crossdressing musicals. The Hasty Pudding is the oldest theatrical organization in the United S ...

and conductor for the Harvard University Band. He earned his M.B.A. from

Harvard Business School Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA ...

in 1980.Craig Lambert
"The Future of Theater,"
''

Harvard Magazine ''Harvard Magazine'' is an independently edited magazine and separately incorporated affiliate of Harvard University. Aside from ''The Harvard Crimson'', it is the only publication covering the entire university, and also regularly distributed t ...

'', January–February 2012. While at business school, he wrote a thesis on the potential of home video distribution for film distribution.Michael Wolff
"Executive at the Gate,"
''

Vanity Fair Vanity Fair may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Literature * Vanity Fair, a location in '' The Pilgrim's Progress'' (1678), by John Bunyan * ''Vanity Fair'' (novel), 1848, by William Makepeace Thackeray * ''Vanity Fair'' (magazines), the ...

'', December 2004.

Career

Columbia

McGrath began his career in entertainment at Columbia Pictures Industries in 1980. While at Columbia, McGrath established RCA Columbia Home Video and served as Senior Vice President of Corporate Development for

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance bar, temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pembe ...

, following its acquisition of Columbia in 1982. McGrath also engineered the creation of TriStar Pictures through the conglomeration of Columbia, HBO and CBS. He led the acquisitions of Embassy Communications from TV producer

Norman Lear Norman Milton Lear (born July 27, 1922) is an American producer and screenwriter, who has produced, written, created, or developed over 100 shows. Lear is known for many popular 1970s sitcoms, including the multi-award winning '' All in the Fami ...

and Merv Griffin Productions, producers of ''

Wheel of Fortune The Wheel of Fortune or '' Rota Fortunae'' has been a concept and metaphor since ancient times referring to the capricious nature of Fate. Wheel of Fortune may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Art * ''The Wheel of Fortune'' (Burne-J ...

'' and ''

Jeopardy! ''Jeopardy!'' is an American game show created by Merv Griffin. The show is a quiz competition that reverses the traditional question-and-answer format of many quiz shows. Rather than being given questions, contestants are instead given genera ...

''.Hilary Potkewitz
"Media mogul builds a Broadway empire,"
'' Crain's New York Business'', December 30, 2009."Tom McGrath Named President of Paramount Enterprises,"
thefreelibrary.com, 2002.

Act III

After serving two years as Senior Vice President, McGrath was named President and COO of Norman Lear's entertainment company

in December 1987. He filled that role until 1990. While at Act III, McGrath expanded its broadcast, publishing, and exhibition operations, worked on television station acquisitions, and financed multiple films, including '' Stand By Me'', ''

The Princess Bride The Princess Bride may refer to: * ''The Princess Bride'' (novel), 1973 fantasy romance novel by American writer William Goldman William Goldman (August 12, 1931 – November 16, 2018) was an American novelist, playwright, and screenwriter. He ...

'', and ''

Fried Green Tomatoes ''Fried Green Tomatoes'' is a 1991 American comedy-drama film directed by Jon Avnet and based on Fannie Flagg's 1987 novel ''Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe''. Written by Flagg and Carol Sobieski, and starring Kathy Bates, Jes ...

''.

Time Warner

In the 1990s, McGrath was named President International of

Time Warner Warner Media, LLC ( traded as WarnerMedia) was an American multinational mass media and entertainment conglomerate. It was headquartered at the 30 Hudson Yards complex in New York City, United States. It was originally established in 1972 by ...

International Broadcasting. At Time Warner, he created Classic FM, a national radio network in the UK; n-tv, a German-language national cable news channel; and

VIVA Viva may refer to: Companies and organisations * Viva (network operator), a Dominican mobile network operator * Viva Air, a Spanish airline taken over by flag carrier Iberia * Viva Air Dominicana * VIVA Bahrain, a telecommunication company * V ...

, a national German music video channel.

Viacom

McGrath led Viacom's acquisition of

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

in the 1990s. He joined Viacom in 1994 as Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of the Viacom Entertainment Group, where he served until 2004. While at Viacom, McGrath was involved in several musical adaptations of Paramount films, including '' White Christmas'', '' Footloose'' and ''

Saturday Night Fever ''Saturday Night Fever'' is a 1977 American dance drama film directed by John Badham and produced by Robert Stigwood. It stars John Travolta as Tony Manero, a young Italian-American man from the Brooklyn borough of New York. Manero spends h ...

''.David Rooney
"Kevin McCollum, John Davis and Tom McGrath Pact With Fox on Theatrical Joint Venture,"
''

The Hollywood Reporter ''The Hollywood Reporter'' (''THR'') is an American digital and print magazine which focuses on the Hollywood film, television, and entertainment industries. It was founded in 1930 as a daily trade paper, and in 2010 switched to a weekly large ...

'', July 11, 2013. In February 2002, McGrath was named President of Paramount Enterprises, Viacom's division for non-studio entertainment properties, including

Paramount Parks Paramount Parks was the operator of Paramount's Kings Island, Paramount's Kings Dominion, Paramount's Great America, Paramount's Carowinds, and Paramount Canada's Wonderland, which annually attracted about 13 million patrons. National Amusemen ...

, Canadian cinema chain

Famous Players Famous Players Limited Partnership, DBA Famous Players, is a Canadian-based subsidiary of Cineplex Entertainment. As an independent company, it existed as a film exhibitor and cable television service provider. Famous Players operated numerous m ...

, and

United Cinemas International UCI Cinemas (''United Cinemas International'') is a brand of cinema, currently operating in Germany, Italy, Portugal, and Brazil, which has been owned since 2004 by Odeon Cinemas Group, whose owner is now AMC Theatres, except for the UCI Cinemas ...

.Justin Oppelaar
"McGrath has Enterprises,"
''Variety'', February 19, 2002.

Key Brand Entertainment

From 2008 to 2013, McGrath served as chairman of Key Brand Entertainment, later renamed The John Gore Organization.Gordon Cox
"Live Nation sells off theater division,"
''Variety'', January 24, 2008. McGrath led the company's acquisition of

Live Nation Live Nation Entertainment, Inc. is an American global entertainment company and monopoly that was founded in 2010 following the merger of Live Nation and Ticketmaster. The company promotes, operates, and manages ticket sales for live entertai ...

's theater division in 2008, which included Broadway.com, its group ticket sales division Theatre Direct, and its promotional branch Broadway Across America. Through Broadway Across America, McGrath produced several Broadway shows, including the revivals of '' Promises, Promises'' (2009), ''

Hair Hair is a protein filament that grows from follicles found in the dermis. Hair is one of the defining characteristics of mammals. The human body, apart from areas of glabrous skin, is covered in follicles which produce thick terminal and fi ...

'' (2009), and ''

How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'' may refer to: * ''How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying'' (book), a 1952 book written by Shepherd Mead and the inspiration for the musical of the same name. * ''How to Succeed in Bu ...

'' (2011). In 2013, McGrath joined with Broadway producer Kevin McCollum and film producer John Davis on a development deal with

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Disn ...

, in which they would choose Fox film properties from its library to be adapted into theater productions. Initial projects include '' Mrs. Doubtfire'' and '' The Devil Wears Prada''. McGrath has received nine

Tony Awards The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Broadway Theatre, more commonly known as the Tony Award, recognizes excellence in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual c ...

Crossroads Media

McGrath served as the Chief Executive Officer and chairman of Crossroads Media,David Lieberman
"BMG Continues Music Publishing Spree With Bug Music,"
''

Deadline Hollywood ''Deadline Hollywood'', commonly known as ''Deadline'' and also referred to as ''Deadline.com'', is an online news site founded as the news blog ''Deadline Hollywood Daily'' by Nikki Finke in 2006. The site is updated several times a day, wi ...

'', September 12, 2011.Ayala Ben-Yehuda
"Bug Music Secures $200M Credit Line,"
''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'', September 17, 2008. a private equity firm that acquires music publishing catalogues."Crossroads, Bug Sweep Up Windswept,"
''Billboard'', May 30, 2007. Working with

Spectrum Equity Investors Spectrum Equity is an American growth equity firm that invests in businesses related to the information economy. The company operates out of offices in Boston, MA and San Francisco, CA. The company was an early investor in Ancestry.com and Grub ...

, he led the acquisitions of independent music publishing companies, including

Bug Music Bug Music was an influential independent music publisher in Los Angeles, California. The company was founded in 1975 by Dan Bourgoise to represent the catalogue of musician Del Shannon. Their clients included Johnny Cash and Rosanne Cash, Los L ...

in 2006 and Windswept Holdings in 2007. McGrath served as chairman of Bug Music through its sale to BMG in 2011.

STX Entertainment

McGrath was the Chief Operating Officer of media company

from its formation in 2014 until May 2019. The company specializes in financing, developing, producing, and distributing midtier-budget star-driven films. STX has produced and distributed such films as '' The Gift'', '' Bad Moms'', ''

The Edge of Seventeen ''The Edge of Seventeen'' is a 2016 American coming-of-age comedy-drama film written and directed by Kelly Fremon Craig, in her directorial debut. The film stars Hailee Steinfeld, Woody Harrelson, Kyra Sedgwick, and Haley Lu Richardson. The f ...

'', '' The Foreigner'', and ''

Molly's Game ''Molly's Game'' is a 2017 American biographical crime drama film written and directed by Aaron Sorkin (in his directorial debut), based on the 2014 memoir of the same name by Molly Bloom. It stars Jessica Chastain, Idris Elba, Kevin Costne ...

''. In April 2018, STX filed for an initial public offering on the

Hong Kong Stock Exchange The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong (SEHK, also known as Hong Kong Stock Exchange) is a stock exchange based in Hong Kong. As of the end of 2020, it has 2,538 listed companies with a combined market capitalization of HK$47 trillion. It is rep ...

.David Ng
"STX Entertainment files for planned IPO in Hong Kong,"
''Los Angeles Times'', April 26, 2018. This was originally reported in 2017 with an estimated market value as high as $3.5bn±.Anita Busch
"STX To Launch IPO On Hong Kong Stock Exchange In 2018,"
Deadline.com, September 27, 2017.

Crossroads Live

McGrath is currently the CEO of Crossroads Live, which produces and tours Broadway musicals in international markets. Crossroads Live invests in multiple live entertainment ventures, including festivals, immersive attractions, musical theatre production and touring, and financial transactions with live entertainment companies and assets. The company also spans across film, television, music, and theme park industries. In 2019, Crossroads Live acquired

David Ian David Ian (born David Ian LaneFebruary 1961 is a British theatre producer and former actor. Biography Ian started out as an actor and appeared in a number of UK theatre productions, including the musicals ''The Pirates of Penzance'', ''Joseph ...

Productions, and, in December 2020, the company also acquired the Gordon Frost Organization. Most recently, Crossroads Live has produced ''Mrs. Doubtfire'', ''Company'' and Almost Famous the Musical.

References

External links

* *
Crossroads LiveTom McGrath
at

Bloomberg.com Bloomberg News (originally Bloomberg Business News) is an international news agency headquartered in New York City and a division of Bloomberg L.P. Content produced by Bloomberg News is disseminated through Bloomberg Terminals, Bloomberg Televi ...

Tom McGrath
TED profile
STX Entertainment
{{DEFAULTSORT:McGrath, Tom 1956 births Living people American media executives Harvard Business School alumni Hasty Pudding alumni American chief operating officers Businesspeople from Washington, D.C. American film studio executives American music industry executives STX Entertainment