By Demian Russian
Alan Ball
Sirius XM Radio (NASDAQ:SIRI) announced today that Academy and Emmy-Award winning writer/producer/director Alan Ball will be the featured subject on the next installment of its Iconography series on Sirius XM’s 24/7 LGBT channel OutQ. Sirius XM’s Iconography series honors the life, career, and impact of iconic personalities.
Alan Ball has redefined storytelling, peeling back the layers of dysfunctional families and their secrets, creating characters and storylines that leave an indelible impression on audiences around the world. His seminal film and television works include American Beauty, Six Feet Under and True Blood.
Sirius XM’s OutQ will be airing vignettes featuring Alan Ball throughout July. Iconography: Alan Ball culminates with a one-hour in-depth interview conducted by OutQ hosts Derek Hartley and Romaine Patterson. Iconography: Alan Ball premiers July 23rd at 1:00 pm ET on SiriusXM OutQ (Sirius and XM channel 108). Encore presentations will air on OutQ on July 23rd at 7:00 pm , July 24th at 12:00 pm and 7:00 pm, July 30th at 1:00 pm and 7:00 pm and July 31st at 12:00 pm and 7:00 pm (all times ET).
Iconography: Alan Ball will also feature interviews with True Blood’s Oscar-winning lead actress Anna Paquin (Sookie Stackhouse), actor Stephen Moyer (Bill Compton), Tony Award-winning actor Denis O’Hare (Russell Edington), Bruce Cohen and Dan Jinx — the Academy Award-winning producers of American Beauty, HBO Entertainment President Sue Naegle — Ball’s former writing agent, and Charlaine Harris.
Ball’s revealing and compelling Iconography interview features insight, perspective and reflections in his own words about his personal and professional life, his family and childhood growing up in the South, the close relationship he has had with his sister, the tragic story of her death and the affect it had on his family and their lives. Ball also discusses discovering and experimenting with his own sexual identity, if he considers himself a gay icon today and the contributions he hopes he is making to the community through the characters portrayed in his work. Ball recounts his experiences working on Grace Under Fire and Cybill — which ultimately fueled him to write American Beauty, winner of five Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay honors for Ball — followed by the groundbreaking HBO drama Six Feet Under, his feature film directorial debut Towelhead and his life today as creator and executive producer of True Blood, the award-winning HBO series based on New York Times bestselling author Charlaine Harris’ Southern Vampire series of books.
SiriusXM OutQ will also premiere The True Story of True Blood, a companion special to Iconography: Alan Ball, on July 23rd at 2:00 pm ET, immediately following the debut of the Iconography interview. Encore presentations will air immediately following every airing of Iconography: Alan Ball, on July 23rd at 8:00 pm, July 24th at 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm, July 30th at 2:00 pm and 8:00 pm and July 31st at 1:00 pm and 8:00 pm (all times ET). The True Story of True Blood transports listeners deep into the world and behind-the-scenes of the hit show, offering unmatched access to the cast and crew. The True Story of True Blood will also feature new interviews with Alan Ball, Sue Naegle, writer/producer Alex Woo, Stephen Moyer, Anna Paquin and Denis O’Hare, as well as archival interviews with Charlaine Harris and actress Rutina Wesley (Tara Thorton).
Iconography: Alan Ball and The True Story of True Blood will be hosted by OutQ’s Derek Hartley and Romaine Patterson, the GLAAD-award winning OutQ hosts of The Laramie Project Ten Years Later — The Lasting Legacy of Matthew Shepard ; I Want My Gay TV: The LGBT History Of Television and OutQ’s nightly Derek & Romaine show.
Sirius XM Radio’s OutQ channel offers groundbreaking coverage of social and political issues, as well as music and entertainment programming, produced by and for the LGBT community. More information about Siirius XM’s OutQ channel can be found at www.siriusxm.com/outq.
Disclosure: Long SIRI
Contact the author: DemianRussian@SatelliteRadioPlayground.com
