In this June 8, 2014 file photo, Kenny Leon accepts the award for best direction in a play for "A Raisin in the Sun" at the 68th annual Tony Awards in New York. (Photo by Evan Agostini/Invision/AP, File)
By Mark Kennedy, Drama Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --
NBC has tapped some deep Broadway talent for its live production of the stage musical "Hairspray."
Kenny Leon, who won a Tony for the recent revival of "A Raisin in the Sun," will direct the show from composer Marc Shaiman and his co-lyricist, Scott Wittman.
Jerry Mitchell, who won Tonys for choreographing "La Cage aux Folles" and "Kinky Boots," will choreograph. And Harvey Fierstein, who won a Tony playing "Hairspray" on Broadway, will write the teleplay.
The musical adaptation of John Waters' 1988 cult film will air Dec. 7.
NBC has made something of a cottage industry with live musicals, including "The Sound of Music," ''Peter Pan" and "The Wiz." Fox jumped in with its recent "Grease: Live!" and ABC plans a TV movie of the big-screen film "Dirty Dancing."
Television producer Mark Burnett, left, looks on as President Donald Trump arrives for the National Prayer Breakfast, Feb. 2, 2017, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci, File)
Mark Burnett, the power producer who helped reintroduce Donald Trump to a national television audience with "The Apprentice," is being tapped by the president-elect as special envoy to the United Kingdom in his upcoming administration.
"With a distinguished career in television production and business, Mark brings a unique blend of diplomatic acumen and international recognition to this important role," Trump announced Saturday.
Burnett, who was born in London, helped produce hits like "Survivor" and "The Voice," but is perhaps best known for teaming up with Trump for "The Apprentice," which first aired on NBC in 2004.
Trump had been well-known in real estate and pop culture circles for decades. But the show helped again make him a household name — though Trump severed ties with NBC in 2015, the same year he launched his first White House run.
The selection of Burnett continues Trump's trend of filling out his incoming administration with people who have high-profile backgrounds in television or politics, or both — including his choice to be defense secretary, Pete Hegseth, a former co-host of "Fox & Friends Weekend," and ex-television doctor and unsuccessful Senate candidate in Pennsylvania, Mehmet Oz.
Trump's first campaign in 2016 was rocked by allegations about his conduct on "The Apprentice" and other appearances during his association with NBC, notably in footage in which he said he could sexually assault women and get away with it because he was a "star."
Almost a decade after he left his reality TV role, Trump's television career remains central to his biography and political rise. The show presented Trump Tower to tens of millions of people as a symbol of power and success before Trump launched his first... Read More
