Episode 44: Arthur Smith

“The more you try, the luckier you get...”

Words to live by, from podcast guest Arthur Smith, the pioneering television producer behind some of the longest-running unscripted series in history, and author of the just-published motivational memoir Reach: Hard Lessons and Learned Truths from a Lifetime in Television. Arthur’s long-running hit “Hell’s Kitchen,” with Gordon Ramsey, helped to forge the modern food competition reality genre, while his Emmy-nominated “American Ninja Warrior” has spawned a cultural movement and inspired millions to push themselves to next-level successes in their own lives and careers.

As the founder and chairman of A. Smith & Co. Productions, Arthur has produced over 200 shows, for virtually every network and streaming platform, including “The Titan Games,” “Mental Samurai,” “Kitchen Nightmares,” “The Swan” and “Paradise Hotel.” Prior to launching his own production company, he served as the youngest Head of Sports in the history of the Canada’s CBC television network, and as Executive Vice President of Programming, Production and News for FOX Sports. He also served for four years as Senior Vice President of Dick Clark Productions, producing a wide variety of award shows, special events and non-fiction programming.

In Reach, written in collaboration with podcast host Daniel Paisner, Arthur reflects on his remarkable career and shares some of the lessons he’s learned while pushing himself beyond what he ever thought possible.

“In the nonfiction genre people get tired of the same thing,” he recently told a reporter from the Jewish Journal. “The biggest hits in reality/nonfiction television come from originality. So we have to keep reinventing. We have to keep freshening up ideas. We have to keep reaching.”

To learn more about Arthur Smith:

• A. Smith & Co. website
• A. Smith & Co. Facebook
• A. Smith & Co Twitter
• Reach: Hard Lessons and Learned Truths from A Lifetime in Television

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