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Ben Mankiewicz
Mankiewicz in 2012
Born
Benjamin Frederick Mankiewicz

(1967-03-25) March 25, 1967 (age 56)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
EducationTufts University (BA)
Columbia University (MS)
Occupation(s)Analyst, critic, journalist
Political partyDemocratic[1]
MovementProgressive
Spouses
Contessa Kellogg
​
​
(m. 2005⁠–⁠2009)​
Lee Russo
​
(m. 2013)​
Parent(s)Frank Mankiewicz
Holly Mankiewicz
FamilyMankiewicz

Benjamin Frederick Mankiewicz[2] (born March 25, 1967) is an American television personality, progressive political commentator, and film critic. He is a host on Turner Classic Movies[3] and has been a commentator on The Young Turks and What the Flick?!

Early life

Mankiewicz was born in Washington, D.C., to press secretary Frank Mankiewicz and Holly Mankiewicz (née Jolley)[4] of German–Jewish descent.[5] He is the cousin of screenwriter Tom Mankiewicz and filmmaker/television producer Nick Davis,[6] the grandson of screenwriter Herman J. Mankiewicz, the grand-nephew of screenwriter, producer, and director Joseph L. Mankiewicz,[6][7] and the brother of NBC News reporter Josh Mankiewicz.

He attended Georgetown Day School for his primary and secondary education and received his undergraduate degree from Tufts University. In 1992, he received a Master of Science degree from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism with an emphasis in broadcast journalism.[8]

Career

Mankiewicz began his career as a reporter and an anchor for WCSC-TV (a CBS affiliate) in Charleston, South Carolina. He joined WAMI in Miami, Florida, in 1998, where he served as anchor of The Times, a daily news magazine show and the station's highlight program.[9]

Since 2003, Mankiewicz has been a host of Turner Classic Movies. When he made his debut[3] on TCM, he became the second host hired in the network's history (Robert Osborne being the first). As a film critic, Mankiewicz co-hosted the nationally syndicated television series At the Movies from 2008 to 2009 and co-hosted the online film review show What the Flick?! on The Young Turks Network.[10] He launched TCM original podcast (April 2020), "The Plot Thickens" in which he interviews renowned director Peter Bogdanovich (The Last Picture Show, Paper Moon) who chronicles his life in and out of film. The podcast is scheduled to have others connected to film interviewed in subsequent podcasts.

Mankiewicz has made cameo appearances in the Lifetime television movie The Bling Ring (2011) and the action film White House Down (2013). Mankiewicz also appears regularly on other shows as a political and media commentator, including The Michael Brooks Show in 2017,[11] and hosts a segment on the CBS Sunday morning show called Screen Time. He was among the people interviewed for the documentary film Memory: The Origins of Alien (2019).

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Notes
2011 The Bling Ring Host TV movie
2012 Ten Years of the Young Turks Himself
2013 White House Down Reporter
The Screenwriters: The Stars Behind the Camera Himself
2014 TCM: Twenty Classic Moments Host TV movie
Mad as Hell Himself
I Am Steve McQueen Film critic
Hannibal: This Is My Design Himself
2015 Robert Osborne's 20th Anniversary Tribute Himself
2017 Faye Dunaway: Live from the TCM Classic Film Festival Host
2018 Michael Douglas: Live from the TCM Classic Film Festival Host
The Great Buster Himself
The Producers: Q&A with Mel Brooks from the TCM Classic Film Festival Moderator/Interviewer
2019 Memory: The Origins of Alien Host, Turner Classic Movies
2020 Mank Broadcaster, Academy Awards Voice role
Stuntwoman: The Untold Hollywood Story Himself
2021 I Am Alfred Hitchcock Himself Voice role
Film, the Living Record of our Memory Himself
TBA Untitled Mad As Hell Anthology Film Himself Post-production

Television

Year Title Role Notes
2003 The Practice News Anchor Episode: "Les Is More"
Summer Under the Stars Host
2004 Cartoon Alley Host
2006-2020 The Young Turks Host/Himself/Guest 18 episodes
2007-2008 TMZ on TV Himself 3 episodes
2007 Big Love News presenter Episode: "Good Guys and Bad Guys"
2008-2009 At the Movies Co-Host 25 episodes
2009 Who Wants to Be a Millionaire Guest Expert 3 episodes
The Bonnie Hunt Show Himself 1 episode
2010-2015 TYT Sports Host/Anchor 21 episodes
2010-2017 What the Flick?! Host 154 episodes
2010 Party Down Sportscaster Episode: "Cole Landry's Draft Day Party"
The Rotten Tomatoes Show Himself 4 episodes
2011; 2014 The Point Himself 2 episodes
2012 TYT Arm Wrestling Tournament Competitor Episode: "Michael vs. Ben"
AM Northwest Himself Episode: "Ernest Borgnine"
Hot Set Host Episode: "Alien Queen"
SAG Foundation Conversations Host Episode: "Illeana Douglas"
2013 The War Room with Michael Shure Guest 1 episode
2014-2019 Jeopardy! Clue Giver/Video Clue Presenter 4 episodes
2015 Mad as Hell: The Series Himself 4 episodes
AFI Life Achievement Award Himself Episode: "AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to Steve Martin"
2016-2019 TCM Guest Programmer 21 episodes
2016 The Cowboy Himself 2 episodes
2017 TCM Spotlight: 50 Years of Hitchcock Host 10 episodes
TCM Co-Host Himself Episode: "George Pal Tribute"
The Michael Brooks Show Himself 1 episode
2018 Good Day L.A. Himself 1 episode
2019-2020 The Very Very Best of the 70s Himself/Commentator 2 episodes
2019-2022 CBS News Sunday Morning Himself/CBS News Correspondent 17 episodes
2019 Private Screenings Host Episode: "The Best of Private Screenings"
TCM Presents: Never Surrender - WWII in the Movies Host 27 episodes
TCM Presents: Out of This World Host 3 episodes
The Movies TCM Host 6 episodes
TCM Spotlight: Gridiron Glory - College Football in the Movies Host 13 episodes
TCM Spotlight: Pets on Sets Host 12 episodes
2020-2022 The Plot Thickens Host 36 episodes
2020 The Simpsons Himself Episode: "Treehouse of Horror XXXI"[12]
Now Showing Host 48 episodes
AFI Movie Club Himself Episode: "Ben Mankiewicz announces Ben Hur"
Well, This Isn't Normal Himself Episode: "Ben Mankiwicz Has a Voice for Storytelling"
The Essentials Host 20 episodes
2021 Cartoon Network's Cartoonito Himself
2022 The Big Lie Narrator Podcast series
2023 AEW Dynamite Presenter Introduced 'Timeless' Toni Storm to the ring in a pre-taped video

References

  1. ^ "How the Mankiewicz Family Got Their Hollywood Ending".
  2. ^ Broadcasting – Google Books. 1957. Retrieved July 11, 2013 – via Google Books.
  3. ^ a b "Ben Mankiewicz Biography". Turner Classic Movies. Retrieved September 30, 2016.
  4. ^ "What Mom taught me... – Inside Dateline". Insidedateline.msnbc.msn.com. Archived from the original on April 1, 2012. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  5. ^ Friedman, Gabe (December 4, 2020). "The real story behind 'Mank,' the new movie about the Jewish screenwriter who brought us 'Citizen Kane'". Jewish Telegraphic Agency. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  6. ^ a b Bonnett, Margie. "Frank Mankiewicz". People.com. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  7. ^ "Ben's Top Pick for October 2015". Turner Classic Movies. Archived from the original on September 15, 2012. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  8. ^ "Ben Mankiewicz". The Huffington Post. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  9. ^ TV.com. "Ben Mankiewicz profile". Tv.com. Archived from the original on September 17, 2011. Retrieved July 11, 2013.
  10. ^ "Home Page - TYT Network". TYT Network. Retrieved September 30, 2016.
  11. ^ The Majority Report with Sam Seder (November 14, 2017), TMBS - Ep. 15 – Why Evangelicals Can't Quit Roy Moore ft. Ben Mankiewicz & Sarah Jones, archived from the original on December 19, 2021, retrieved January 9, 2018
  12. ^ "(SI-3117) "Treehouse of Horror XXXI"". The Futon Critic. October 20, 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2022.

External links

The Young Turks
Authority control databases: Artists
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