The Hofstra Entertainment Access Television Network series, “Thursday Nite Live,” won its first College Television Academy Award on Saturday, May 30.
The award for best variety series was presented to “Thursday Nite Live” by Jimmy Fallon in a virtual ceremony. “Thursday Nite Live,” which is modeled after the hit NBC series “Saturday Night Live,” competed against television shows from Columbia University and Emerson College.
“We have won several other awards over the years we have been in production, but this is a game-changer,” said Peter Gershon, the faculty advisor for “Thursday Nite Live.” “We are now, and forever will be, the Emmy Award-winning ‘Thursday Nite Live.’”
For many, the award highlighted the professionalism and dedication of students in the Lawrence Herbert School of Communication (LHSC).
“Students and parents pay attention to this,” said Mark Lukasiewicz, dean of the LHSC. “When [programs] win awards, it tells them these students are serious about their pursuits; they work hard and they get great recognition.”
Lukasiewicz’s office looks out into Studio A, where “Thursday Nite Live” takes place. He said the camaraderie and collaboration he sees on a regular basis is what makes “Thursday Nite Live” a strong program.
“It’s the student producers, directors and crew,” Lukasiewicz said. “It is completely student-run.”
Jack Dalrymple, a senior film studies major and package producer for “Thursday Night Live,” described the dedication of the show’s team. “Going into every episode, we have to have already crossed our t’s and dotted our i’s,” he said. “This is what people in the real world of television relate to. It’s nerve-wracking and we sweat bullets, but that’s why we do it.”
“I think what makes ‘Thursday Nite Live’ so special and gives it that collaborative edge, is the collaboration it takes to do,” said Brittany McGowan, a recent Hofstra graduate who worked as a co-producer on “Thursday Nite Live” for the past two years. “It’s taken every single person in the history of the show to get here and receive this award and we couldn’t have done it without any of them.”
Brittany McGowan accepted TNL’s award via a livestream.
McGowan added that it takes over 100 people to produce a single episode, and the typical show cycle is three to four weeks, giving them just enough time to prepare for and execute an episode.
The producers of “Thursday Nite Live” continued to find ways to bring high-quality programming to their viewers during the Spring 2020 semester, even though the coronavirus pandemic shut down Studio A. In order to properly bid farewell to their senior cast and crew members this year, the team produced a socially distanced episode cleverly titled “Thursday Not Live.”
“I often liken [‘Thursday Nite Live’] to Triple-A baseball, which is the highest-ranking minor league where players are sent up to the majors,” Gershon said. “That’s us – damn good baseball, and professionally produced.”
