Jac Venza, a former public television executive for the WNET Group in New York who founded the performing arts series Great Performances in 1972, died Tuesday at his home in Old Lyme, Conn. He was 97.
A cause of death was not disclosed.
In 1972, Venza founded the precursor to Great Performances, New York Playhouse. In 1976, Great Performances became the umbrella title for series including Music in America, Dance in America, Theater in America and Live From Lincoln Center.
During his tenure, Venza worked with Martha Graham, George Balanchine, Leonard Bernstein and Tennessee Williams, among others. In 1995, The New York Times said Venza “is probably the person most responsible for the performing arts’ being on American television.”
Apart from Great Performances, Venza was also involved in creating NET Playhouse and the American drama anthology series American Playhouse. In 1997, the WNET Group named Venza director of cultural and arts programs, overseeing programs including EGG, the Arts Show.
Some of Venza’s success could be attributed to his respect for artists. In an interview with Current in 1997, he said that one of the most important things his team did, “which was never allowed in commercial television, was that the choreographer would be a key artist in creating the program and should have an equal voice in deciding the form of the translation.”
He went on to explain that his team prepared for productions by spending a week’s rehearsal with dancers, “using little nonprofessional cameras to see what the alternatives would be, working with the choreographers to decide whether they should change the choreography or we should move the cameras. So when we finally taped the dance, we weren’t exhausting the dancers, having them do things over and over again that they usually do just once in an evening. We would show those little rough tapes to the cameramen so they could plan how to frame their shots.”
In 1982, Venza told The New York Times that his job was to keep “his eye on the horizon.” “I like to make sure the things are set up in a way that is going to work,” he said. “Then I let people go. I don’t look over their shoulder while they are shooting.”
The Times noted that Venza’s estimated salary at the time of $70,000 was below what he could have earned in commercial television, but Venza said he wasn’t concerned with the gap.
“I will come away from the system without a large bank account or a swimming pool, or owning one of those programs I produced,” he said, but added, “What I will have 20 years from now, a lot of people in television won’t have. Our programs won’t spoil. They will be in schools and in videodisk collections. What we have won’t diminish with age.”
In 1997, Venza received CPB’s Ralph Lowell Award for outstanding achievements in public media. He also won a Peabody Award in 1998, and during his tenure he won 10 Primetime Emmys and two additional Emmys for lifetime achievement. Until 2010, he held the record for the most Emmy nominations — 57 — for an individual, according to WNET. He retired in 2004.
“Jac was a true pioneer,” said WNET CEO Neal Shapiro in a news release. “Whenever I spoke with him, he was both proud of what WNET accomplished when he was here and also proud of all the great work that followed.”
Venza was born Dec. 23, 1926, in Chicago to Rosario and Frances Venza. His father, Rosario, was a shoe repairman and immigrant from Sicily, and his mother Frances (Roppolo), oversaw the house, according to the New York Times. The family lived behind the shoe shop. Venza shined shoes as a child.
Considering himself a “dreadful” actor, Venza eventually moved to New York in the 1940s to study with set designers, which is also where he designed window displays. His enjoyment of musical theater was bolstered after he saw Kiss Me, Kate, his first Broadway musical.
Venza became a set designer for CBS in 1950 before joining National Education Television in 1964, the precursor to the WNET Group.
While working for NET and the WNET Group, Venza developed a reputation for being involved in the rise of upcoming artists. Dustin Hoffman appeared in his first starring role on television in a 1966 production of The Journey of the Fifth Horse on NET, according to The Hollywood Reporter. He also led Great Performances when Meryl Streep received her first on-screen job for a production of Secret Service in 1977.
In addition, the Mark Morris Dance Group had its first national television exposure in 1986 on Dance in America, and Wendy Wasserstein, a playwright, said at the 1994 PBS Annual Meeting that she owed the launch of her career to Venza because he featured her first play, Uncommon Women and Others, on Great Performances.
“Besides all the accolades from a long and distinguished career, most importantly Jac had a keen eye for finding and developing young producing talent,” said David Horn, current EP of Great Performances, in the WNET release. “From the moment I first worked for Jac in 1979, he was not only an incredible mentor to me, but I saw firsthand the many creative talents he brought to Great Performances in all aspects of creating cultural film and television. I will truly miss his sage advice.”
Venza is survived by his spouse, Daniel D. Routhier, as well as nieces and nephews.