USA Network Names Melanie Frankel Vice President, Original Comedy Series

Melanie Frankel joins USA Network as vice president, original comedy series, it was announced today by Bill McGoldrick, senior vice president, USA original scripted programming. Frankel will focus on comedy development and production, reporting directly to McGoldrick.

"As we aggressively expand our scripted portfolio to include half-hours, this is the perfect time to add an experienced comedy executive to our team," said McGoldrick. "We feel lucky to have found someone with Melanie's keen instincts, depth of experience and collaborative spirit as we create our own distinctive brand of comedy with the most talented minds in the genre."

Frankel was most recently director of comedy for ABC Studios where she was the primary studio executive for overall/script deals with Mark Gordon Company, Warren Littlefield Company, Stu Bloomberg, Mandeville, Coquette, Little Engine, Sally Bradford, Steven Cragg & Brian Bradley, Laurie Zaks/Beacon and Jennifer Weiner. She was also involved with developing and overseeing pilots ("Great State of Georgia," "How To Be A Better American," "This Little Piggy") in all aspects of production and served as the current executive for the CBS multi-cam comedy "Gary Unmarried." In addition, Frankel developed and set-up scripts at ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX and ABC Family. Prior to ABC Studios, Frankel was at Grammnet Productions, where she served as manager of development and current, where she developed both comedy and drama pitches which sold to CBS, Comedy Central and CW. Frankel graduated with a BS from Syracuse University.

As part of the network's expansion into comedy, USA greenlit two pilots - THE UNTITLED Douglas McGrath PROJECT and PAGING DR. FREED. Nathan Lane, Cheyenne Jackson, Ken Jenkins and Caroline Rhea will star in THE UNTITLED Douglas McGrath PROJECT, a half-hour single camera comedy about an unlucky actor forced to move back home to take care of his dad. Lane and Douglas McGrath will executive produce the pilot from Universal Cable Productions, with a script from McGrath. In PAGING DR. FREED two brothers take over the reins of their father's medical practice after his untimely death. The half-hour comedy, from Fox 21, is written and executive produced by Michael Feldman. Katy McCaffrey and Brad Johnson will serve as producers.

USA Network is the #1 network in all of basic cable and is seen in over 102 million U.S. homes. A division of NBC Universal, USA is the cable television leader in original series and home to the best in blockbuster theatrical films, acquired television series and entertainment events. The award-winning USA website is located at www.usanetwork.com. Characters Welcome.

USA Network is a program service of NBC Universal Cable a division of NBC Universal, one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience.

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