| Central City Productions, Inc.
35-Year
History |
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About Central City Productions
For over three decades, Central City Productions
has specialized in the production, syndication, distribution and
advertising sales of Black entertainment television programs such
as: The Stellar Gospel Music Awards, the Minority Business Report,
and the Soul Train music Awards just to mention a few. CCP has
produced over 1,000 shows for Broadcast television. CCP is a recognized
giant in the industry for launching the first ever Black Nielsen
Household Ratings Survey from which all Black TV shows are measured
today by the advertising industry.
Talent/Industry Support
Major stars who have appeared in CCP productions
include Oprah Winfrey, Bill Cosby, Quincy Jones, Magic Johnson,
Arsenio Hall, Patti LaBelle, Steve Harvey, Eddie Murphy, Michael
Jackson, Stevie Wonder, Gladys Knight and Aretha Franklin. CCP
industry affiliations are with the following outlets that carry
CCP shows: ABC, NBC, FOX, CBS, WB, UPN and the Tribune Broadcasting
Company and independent stations worldwide.
Advertising Partners
Major Fortune 500 companies who have sponsored
CCP shows for the past 31 years include such national advertisers
as Coca-Cola, Quaker Oats, Johnson & Johnson, General Motors,
Kraft, K-Mart, Ford, Budweiser, Toyota, Diamler Chrysler, McDonalds,
Denny's Burger King, AT & T, Sears, Chevrolet, Southwest Airlines,
American Family, State Farm, and United Airlines.
Production Credits
As one of the leaders in Black targeted entertainment
television programs, CCP's production credits include: Celebrate
the Soul of American Music; Family Night; Living the Dream; the
NAACP ACT-SO Awards; the Know Your Heritage Game Show; Roads to
Success; the Minority Business Report; the Bud Billiken Back-to-School
Parade; Martin: The Emancipator; Taste of the Holidays; The Kwanzaa
Awards and Black History Makers. |
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Don Jackson - Founder, Chairman, and CEO, Central City Productions,
INC.
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Don Jackson is the founder, chairman, and CEO of 36
year-old Central City
Productions, Inc., a national television production, sales,
and syndication company based in Chicago, IL.
Mr. Jackson is a Chicago native who graduated from Marshall High
School, where he played on the school’s championship basketball
team. He attended Northwestern University on a basketball
scholarship and was captain of the University’s basketball team.
Mr. Jackson earned his B.S. in Radio, TV, and Film from Northwestern
in 1965. After graduating from Northwestern, Mr. Jackson worked in
the media and broadcast industries in sales at WBEE & WVON radio.
He became the youngest and first African American sales manager at
WVON, the top radio station in the Chicago market at the time. In
1970, Mr. Jackson founded
Central City Marketing, Inc. For over three decades the
company has specialized in marketing, promotion, sales, and the
production of media and television programs for Black Americans.
Today, Central City Productions, Inc., is the full-service company
that produces, syndicates, and manages advertising sales for all of
the company’s local and national television programs.
Under his guidance and vision, CCP has launched many new and unique
television programs to Black Americans nationwide. Many of these
programs have more than 25 years of consecutive airing over local
and national television, including:
The “Bud Billiken Back-to-School Parade” – Now in its 28th
consecutive year on television. This 77-year-old event is the first
and only Black parade on television.
“MBR: The Minority Business Report” – MBR aired for
18 consecutive years on television, “MBR” is the first
nationally syndicated business show geared to the minority business
community. This has now become the “Black Enterprise
Report.”
The “Black Enterprise Report” – Now in its 3rd
season, this is the first joint venture of an African
American magazine giant - Earl Graves Sr. and an television media
giant – Donald J. Jackson joining forces to demonstrate the
collective impact of positive African Americans in print and
television.
The “Stellar Gospel Music Awards” – In the year 2006,
this annual special celebrated its 21st consecutive year
of showcasing the greatest gospel music performers. This is the
premier Gospel Music Awards Show honoring the unique contribution of
African Americans to this music genre.
“Know Your Heritage”
– Now in its 27th year as the first and only African
American quiz show on television. The Know Your Heritage
game show series is designed to encourage an appreciation of
different cultures by presenting information in an entertaining game
show format. The game show format is intended to generate a high
level of excitement and enthusiasm by featuring high school
teenagers engaged in a spirit of healthy competition.
“Our World
with Black Enterprise”
– Debuting in October 2006, this second venture between Central
City Productions, Inc. and Black Enterprise Magazine, will be a
weekly topical and relevant news magazine show with Headline
Celebrity Interviews, Roundtable Forum Discussions, and Human
Interest Profiles on stories and issues affecting the African
American community.
Our World with
Black Enterprise
was formerly “America’s Black Forum.”
Mr. Jackson also gives back to the community as a member of several
organizations. He is chairman of the board of the DuSable Museum of
African American History and serves on the boards of Junior
Achievement of Chicago, Columbia College and the Gateway
Foundation. Don has also previously served on the Chicago Transit
Authority Board. He is also a member of Chicago United, Urban
League, Rainbow/P.U.S.H. Coalition, and “N” Men’s Club of
Northwestern University. In addition, Mr. Jackson is the
founder and a member of A.B.L.E. (Alliance of Business Leaders and
Entrepreneurs), which is the first business organization bringing
Black Leaders together in the business community to network, to
address business issues and to provide a legacy for future African
American entrepreneurs. He has received numerous awards for his
business accomplishments and community involvement.
Mr. Jackson is married to Rosemary Jackson. The couple has two
adult children and two grandsons, Donovan and Dain. Their daughter
Rhonda is a graduate of Syracuse University, and their son Baba Dane
graduated from the University of Minnesota. |
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Erma Gray Davis - President and COO, Central City Productions,
INC. |
Erma Davis is the new President and COO of Central City Productions,
a 32-year-old television production, sales, and syndication company
based in Chicago, Illinois. Ms. Davis joined Central City Productions
after an 11-year career in management at the McDonald’s
Corporation.
Her primary role at McDonald’s was International
Technology Strategist for Asia Pacific and Latin America. Erma
was also the International Year 2000 Strategist for all countries
except the United States. Her international strategies were adopted
by the McDonald's Corporation’s Auditors. While performing
the direct duties assigned to her, she also developed and implemented
a school-to-work program for an inner-city high school that was
designed to keep at-risk students in school. The McDonald's National
Youth Apprenticeship Program was modeled after this program.
The majority of Ms. Davis’ career has been
spent in the information technology field (I/T) working for well-known
companies such as Bell Laboratories, the Veterans Administration,
CNA Insurance, and McDonald’s Corporation. She has had broad
exposure to the major functional areas in the I/T organization
and has had direct responsibility for many of them.
Ms. Davis is a native of Chicago who graduated
from Marshall High School. She earned her bachelor’s degree
in Computer Science from Roosevelt University. She also earned
her master’s degree in Management from National College
of Education (now known as National-Louis University). Ms. Davis
was also a certified Diversity Facilitator for the McDonald’s
Corporation and has a certificate from the Center for Creative
Leadership.
Ms. Davis has been in “Who’s Who in
the World of Women,” “Who’s Who in American
Women,” and “Who’s Who in International Women.”
She is affiliated with Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Women in Management
(WIM), the American Management Association, the Society for Information
Management (SIM), Youth Motivation Programs, and Leadership Illinois.
Ms. Davis is married to Dan Davis, a Professor
at Malcolm X College. |
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