World of Wonder (company) explained

World of Wonder
Type:Private
Industry:Entertainment
Founder:
  • Randy Barbato
  • Fenton Bailey
Services:
Location City:Los Angeles, California
Location Country:United States

World of Wonder Productions is an American production company[1] founded in 1991 by filmmakers Randy Barbato and Fenton Bailey.[2] Based in Los Angeles, California, the company specializes in documentary television and film productions with a key focus on LGBTQ topics. Together, Barbato and Bailey have produced programming through World of Wonder for HBO, Bravo, HGTV,[3] Showtime, BBC,[4] Netflix,[5] MTV and VH1,[6] [7] with credits including the Million Dollar Listing docuseries, RuPaul's Drag Race,[2] and the documentary films The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2000)[8] and (2016).[9] [10] [11] [12]

World of Wonder is best known for its contributions towards LGBTQ programming, for which they won an Outfest Annual Achievement Award in 2011.[13] Their most well known production is RuPaul's Drag Race. They have managed the career of drag queen and titular host RuPaul since the early 1990s, eventually producing the television franchise alongside the majority of its live shows, podcasts, television specials, and conventions.[14]

History

World of Wonder was co-founded as a record label and management company by Barbato and Bailey in the mid-1980s after meeting in New York University's (NYU) graduate film program,[15] with the name coming from a British magazine Bailey used to read as a child.[16] The two formed Fabulous Pop Tarts, a disco-pop rock duo, and began performing regularly at Danceteria and other clubs in downtown New York City.[17] They produced two albums, Age of the Thing,[18] which included their hit single New York City Beat, and Gagging on the Lovely Extravaganza, which included guest appearances by Lady Miss Kier, RuPaul, Martyn Phillips, and Filthy the Dog.[19]

Barbato and Bailey moved on to begin organizing projects in television production and licensing, documentary filmmaking, and the career expansion of their friends and fellow artists, particularly RuPaul, whom they met in Atlanta in the 1980s.[20] They produced RuPaul's first album, RuPaul is: StarBooty!, in 1986, and became his manager shortly after launching World of Wonder in 1991. They have since produced all of his television shows, his DragCon bi-coastal conventions and music productions, and have earned multiple Emmy Awards.[20]

One of Barbato and Bailey's early television documentaries, Died on the 4th of July: Nelson Sullivan's World of Wonder, shares its name with the production company. The documentary, a one-hour portrait of Nelson Sullivan, was created from an archive of over 1,200 hours of video footage taken over the decade preceding Sullivan's death of a heart attack on July 4, 1989.[21] Died on the 4th of July aired on the UK's Channel 4, was included on the DVD release of ,[22] and contributed to Sullivan's posthumous rise in notoriety. The early focus on Sullivan solidified the company's interest in documentary filmmaking. In 2014, Barbato and Bailey were honored with the International Documentary Association's (IDA) Pioneer Award, "celebrating exceptional achievement, leadership, and vision in the nonfiction and documentary community."[23]

World of Wonder operates out of the Shane Building on Hollywood Boulevard. Designed by architects S. Tilden Norton and Fredrick H. Wallis and erected in 1930, the building served as the original home of the Directors Guild of America.[24] The World of Wonder Storefront Gallery now occupies the ground floor retail space, with production and management offices occupying the upper three stories. The basement, once home to the punk rock club The Masque, now houses the company's video archive and a soundstage.[25]

Television

World of Wonder primarily produces television content for networks in the US and UK, including BBC, Channel 4, FIVE, HBO, Cinemax, TLC, PBS, Showtime, A&E, MTV, VH1 and Bravo. Productions over the past three decades include RuPaul's Drag Race, Manhattan Cable with Laurie Pike,[26] [27] Takeover TV, The Adam and Joe Show,[28] , Good Work, Million Dollar Listing, Heli-Loggers, Pam: Girl on the Loose, , and Island Hunters. World of Wonder also produced the documentary series One Punk Under God, Sex Change Hospital, and TransGeneration, one of the first unscripted television shows to focus on the transgender community, which won the 2006 GLAAD Award for Outstanding Documentary.[29]

Another franchise by World of Wonder, Million Dollar Listing, debuted in Los Angeles in 2006, and has since expanded to include New York, San Francisco, and Miami series.[30] The spin-off, Sell It Like Serhant, featuring one of Million Dollar Listing New York's top brokers, Ryan Serhant, launched in 2018. In 2021, Barbato and Bailey produced and directed and for HBO.[31] [32] The company has received several Emmy Awards nominations for their documentary programming.

RuPaul's Drag Race

World of Wonder produced The RuPaul Show, hosted by RuPaul from 1996 until 1998. The company partnered with RuPaul to pitch the reality television show RuPaul's Drag Race to Logo TV, which was immediately picked up for a season and aired in February 2009.[33] The company also produced multiple spinoff series:

World of Wonder's work in television has been honored with over two dozen Emmy nominations, including multiple wins for RuPaul's Drag Race. The show has notably received awards for Outstanding Reality Competition Program and Outstanding Host for a Reality or Competition Program.[34]

Documentary films

World of Wonder has produced many feature-length documentary films, many focusing on provocative subjects, several of which have garnered industry awards and nominations. These include Inside Deep Throat, which premiered at Sundance Film Festival,[35] HBO biopic Wishful Drinking, starring Carrie Fisher, which received two Emmy nominations,[36] and Becoming Chaz, which premiered at Sundance as the Oprah Winfrey Network's (OWN) first ever documentary[37] and was nominated for three Emmy awards.[38]

World of Wonder has also produced feature films Party Monster, starring Macaulay Culkin and Seth Green, and , starring Courtney Love, Nico Totorella, Benito Martinez, and Myko Oliver.

Barbato and Bailey have produced a host of other original documentaries, including Party Monster: The Shockumentary, The Eyes of Tammy Faye, Monica in Black and White, Gender Revolution with Katie Couric,[39] and The Last Beekeeper. In 2017, Out of Iraq, a documentary chronicling the relationship between two soldiers serving in Iraq won a daytime Emmy for Logo TV.[40] In March 2018, the documentary When the Beat Drops, directed by Jamal Sims, premiered at the Miami International Film Festival, where it won the Knight Documentary Achievement Award.[41] [42] In 2018, World of Wonder produced and directed Liberty: Mother of Exiles, an HBO documentary examining the history of the Statue of Liberty.[43] The company was also commissioned by YouTube to create Stonewall Outloud, a documentary based on the Stonewall protests of 1969, using the audio recordings of StoryCorps founder, Dave Isay.[44]

Content

Over the years, World of Wonder has expanded its presence into new media types, including conventions, video-on-demand, social media, and blogging. The WOW Report, a blog providing daily coverage of the pop culture and nightlife sectors, was named Best Counter Culture Blog by LA Weekly in 2011.[45]

In 2015, World of Wonder added conventions to their portfolio with the launch of RuPaul's DragCon LA, located at the Los Angeles Convention Center.[46] The company is also responsible for RuPaul's DragCon NYC, launched in 2017 and hosted in Javits Convention Center. The New York City edition of the convention is largest collection of drag art and culture in the world, with over 50,000 attendees in the sell-out first year.[47] [48] DragCon and World of Wonder expanded to London in 2020 with RuPaul's DragCon UK.[49] [50] During the COVID-19 pandemic, DragCon LA was hosted online as Digital DragCon.[51]

In January 2020, the production company began their first Las Vegas Strip residency, RuPaul's Drag Race Live!, where former contestants from the Drag Race franchise perform at the Flamingo Las Vegas, directed by RuPaul and Jamal Sims.[52] World of Wonder also has a YouTube channel with the name WOWPresents, which features over 5,000 videos and has more than 1.9 million subscribers.[53]

WOWIE Awards

First introduced in 2013, the WOWIE Awards are World of Wonder’s tribute to the best in LGBTQIA+ entertainment, trailblazers, activism, artistry, and pop culture. The awards coincided with World of Wonder’s annual holiday party until 2022, when they included it as a closing event at DragCon LA.[54] Since 2020, the awards ceremony is streamed live on the WOWPresents YouTube channel.[55] Categories include Best Drag Queen Music Video, Best Red Carpet Look, Best Breakout Star, Best Blog or Website and Best LGBTQ Comedian.[56] [57]

WOW Presents Plus

See main article: WOW Presents Plus. In November 2017, World of Wonder launched the subscription streaming service WOW Presents Plus.[58] The service contains a multitude of original series and live events spanning the realm of pop culture and LGBTQ society.[59] Exclusive original series include: Sketchy Queens, UNHhhh, and Painted with Raven. The service is also the main international distributor in some regions for RuPaul's Drag Race and the international versions of the franchise. It also includes many web series found on WOWPresents' YouTube channel, such as Detox's Life Rehab and La Vida de Valentina.[60]

Awards and nominations

See also: List of awards and nominations received by RuPaul's Drag Race.

Further reading

Notes and References

  1. Web site: 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Producers Talk Staggering 14 Emmy Nominations, The Most In VH1 History. Ramos. Dino-Ray. 2019-07-16. Deadline. 2019-10-01.
  2. Web site: Robert Redford to Be Honored by International Documentary Association . Kilday . Gregg . October 2, 2014 . The Hollywood Reporter . January 31, 2017.
  3. Web site: Ritchie . Kevin . February 13, 2014 . Realscreen's Trailblazers 2014: Fenton Bailey, Randy Barbato . August 2, 2016 . Real Scren.
  4. Web site: Freakshow: World of Wonder is Hollywood's Nuttiest Production Company. 2013-02-18. www.out.com. 2019-10-01.
  5. Web site: TV Review: Netflix's 'Dancing Queen'. D'Addario. Daniel. 2018-09-28. Variety. 2019-10-01.
  6. Web site: How 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Sashayed Into a 10th Season. Turchiano. Danielle. 2018-03-16. Variety. 2019-10-01.
  7. Web site: World of Wonder [us] ]. August 2, 2016 . IMDb.
  8. Web site: October 2000 . The Eyes of Tammy Faye . 2019-10-01 . IMDb.
  9. Web site: Why We'll Never Forget Robert Mapplethorpe. Portwood. Jerry. April 5, 2016. August 2, 2016. Rolling Stone.
  10. Web site: Interview: The Directors Behind a Mapplethorpe Documentary. Barnes. Brooks. January 22, 2016. August 2, 2016. New York Times.
  11. Web site: How Robert Mapplethorpe went from America's pariah to America's sweetheart. Knight. Christopher. March 3, 2016. August 2, 2016. Los Angeles Times.
  12. Web site: Sundance Review – Mapplethorpe: Look at the pictures. Gleibermann. Owen. January 23, 2016. BBC. August 2, 2016.
  13. Web site: OUTFEST 2011 To Present 15th Annual Achievement Award. BroadwayWorld.com. 2019-10-01.
  14. Web site: How RuPaul Built a Mothertucking Empire Out of Nothing. November 17, 2018. E! Online. 2019-10-01.
  15. Web site: Nichols . JamesMichael . July 27, 2014 . After Dark: Randy Barbato & Fenton Bailey, AKA The Fabulous Pop Tarts . August 2, 2016 . Huffington Post.
  16. Web site: 21 September 2021 . The duo behind Drag Race: 'We saw RuPaul in a loincloth and went, "Oh my God!"' . TheGuardian.com.
  17. Pike, L (2006). "Channel XYZ: drag queens, club kids, and amateur erotic filmmakers make WOW TV the online outlet for artists on the edge", Los Angeles Magazine, as archived on gcnext.com, retrieved April 4, 2009.
  18. Web site: The Pop Tarts "Age of The Thing" record album played in its entirety . live . https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/gFF4zE2ntVI . 2021-12-15 . 2019-10-01 . YouTube. 3 August 2015 .
  19. Web site: 1992 . The Fabulous Pop Tarts* – Gagging On The Lovely Extravaganza . 2019-10-01 . Discogs . fr.
  20. Web site: 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Producers on Being the 'Voice of Resistance' and Turning That Empowerment Into a Historic Emmy Win. Schneider. Michael. 2018-08-22. IndieWire. 2019-10-01.
  21. Web site: Colucci . Emily . 2014-07-07 . Remembering New York's Downtown Documentarian Nelson Sullivan . 2019-10-01 . Vice.
  22. Web site: Knegt . Peter . 2011-06-01 . Outfest To Honor Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato . 2019-10-01 . IndieWire.
  23. Web site: Monica Lewinsky presents the IDA Pioneer Award to Fenton Bailey & Randy Barbato . live . https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211215/4AcTd4XHKO4 . 2021-12-15 . 2019-10-01 . YouTube. 16 March 2015 .
  24. Web site: How RuPaul's DragCon became big business for the beauty industry. 2019-05-16. Los Angeles Times. 2019-10-01.
  25. Web site: The Masque. Atlas Obscura. 2019-10-01.
  26. Web site: From the WOW Vault: Laurie Pike's 1991 Manhattan Cable Report on Plastic Surgery. October 5, 2017. The WOW Report.
  27. Web site: Laurie Pike vs. Katie Puckrick. www.ilxor.com.
  28. Web site: What Have I Done. ADAM BUXTON.
  29. Web site: GLAAD Media Awards (2006). IMDb. 2019-10-01.
  30. Web site: 2013-10-23 . Bravo Moves Into Miami With New 'Million Dollar Listing' Spinoff . 2019-10-01 . TheWrap . en-US.
  31. Web site: Petski . Denise . June 14, 2021 . HBO Greenlights 'Catch and Kill: The Podcast Tapes' Docuseries Based On Ronan Farrow's Interviews . August 2, 2021 . Deadline Hollywood.
  32. Web site: June 22, 2021 . HBO's SMALL TOWN NEWS: KPVM PAHRUMP, An Affectionate Portrait Of An Independent Local News Station, Debuts August 2 . August 2, 2021 . WarnerMedia.
  33. Web site: Diva Party : Paula's Party . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20131207232821/http://www.foodnetwork.com/paulas-party/diva-party/index.html . December 7, 2013 . December 3, 2013 . Food Network.
  34. https://www.emmys.com/shows/rupauls-drag-race "RuPaul's Drag Race"
  35. Web site: 'Deep Throat' documentary bares all at Sundance . 2019-10-01 . Pittsburgh Post-Gazette . en.
  36. Web site: Carrie Fisher In Wishful Drinking . 2019-10-01 . Television Academy . en.
  37. Web site: 24 January 2011 . SUNDANCE REVIEW: 'Becoming Chaz' Is a Powerful Study in Personal Courage . 2019-10-01 . The Hollywood Reporter . en.
  38. Web site: Becoming Chaz . 2019-10-01 . Television Academy . en.
  39. Web site: Gender Revolution: A journey with Katie Couric, National Geographic. Retrieved July 4 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20170115033934/http://channel.nationalgeographic.com/gender-revolution-a-journey-with-katie-couric/. dead. January 15, 2017.
  40. Web site: Logo Documentary "Out Of Iraq" Wins Daytime Emmy NewNowNext. Avery 5/1/2017. Dan. www.newnownext.com. 2019-10-01.
  41. http://swthemag.com/home/2018/03/20/argentina-takes-top-prizes-us-docs-spain-venezuela-make-strong-showings-at-35th-mdcs-miami-film-festival-awards/ "Argentina Takes Top Prizes; US Docs, Spain, Venezuela Make Strong Showings At 35th MDC's Miami Film Festival Awards"
  42. https://2018.miamifilmfestival.com/films/when-the-beat-drops/ “When the Beat Drops”
  43. Web site: Liberty: Mother of Exiles - About Liberty: Mother of Exiles Documentaries. HBO. 2019-10-01.
  44. Web site: World of Wonder Races Beyond RuPaul Into Retail, Live Events, SVOD And More. Bloom. David. Forbes. en. 2019-10-01.
  45. Web site: Best Counterculture Blog: the WOW Report. Ohanesian. Liz. June 9, 2011. LA Weekly. August 2, 2016.
  46. Web site: RuPaul's DragCon Draws Record Attendance, New York Convention Announced. May 2017. Lawrence Yee, Variety. Retrieved July 4, 2017
  47. Web site: Im . Jimmy . 2019-05-30 . How 'RuPaul's Drag Race' helped mainstream drag culture — and spawned a brand bringing in millions . 2019-10-01 . CNBC . en.
  48. https://www.vogue.com/projects/13536590/rupaul-dragcon-new-york/ "RuPaul Reigns Supreme at DragCon NYC"
  49. Web site: 8 September 2020 . RuPaul's DragCon UK Was Just Announced! . 24 August 2022 . What A Drag . en.
  50. Web site: Ramsden . Sam . 22 December 2019 . These Are The Queens Attending The First Ever RuPaul's DragCon UK . 24 August 2022 . Bustle . en.
  51. Web site: Cooper . Matt . May 2, 2020 . Sashay down to RuPaul's Digital DragCon: It's your weekend quarantine must-watch . May 3, 2020 . . en-US.
  52. Web site: Niemetz. Spencer. 2020-01-31. Jamal Sims Talks Bringing the Magic of Drag to Las Vegas in RuPaul's Drag Race Live. 2021-02-11. The WOW Report. en-US.
  53. Web site: WOWPresents - YouTube . January 16, 2024 . www.youtube.com.
  54. Samonte . Jujiin . May 5, 2023 . For the First Time Ever, Wowie Awards Gives Recognition To Homegrown Queer Artists . Mega Magazine . January 30, 2024.
  55. Web site: Damshenas . Sam . December 3, 2020 . All four Drag Race champions from 2020 to perform at WOWIE Awards . . January 30, 2024.
  56. Piedra . Xavier . December 7, 2018 . Trixie Mattel & Billboard Pride Among World of Wonder's 2018 WOWIE Award Winners . . December 5, 2020.
  57. Web site: Hartshorn . Tori . December 8, 2017 . World of Wonder Presents The 13th Annual WOWie Awards . . January 30, 2024.
  58. https://decider.com/2017/11/14/drag-race-producers-fenton-bailey-and-randy-barbato-on-wow-presents-plus-their-new-streaming-service-for-queer-programming/ "‘Drag Race’ Producers Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato on WOW Presents Plus, Their New Streaming Service for Queer Programming"
  59. Web site: Spangler . Todd . 2017-11-06 . 'RuPaul's Drag Race' Producers Launch Subscription-Video Service With LGBTQ Content and More . 2019-10-01 . Variety . en.
  60. Web site: Detox's Life Rehab - WOW Presents Plus . WOW Presents Plus . January 30, 2024.
  61. Web site: Sandberg . Bryn Elise . June 19, 2014 . Critics' Choice Television Awards 2014: Complete Winners List . Hollywood Insider.
  62. Web site: April 12, 2014 . 25th Annual GLAAD Media Awards Winners Announced . April 14, 2014 . Deadline.com.
  63. Web site: Townsend . Megan . May 3, 2014 . George Takei, "Orange is the New Black", "Concussion" among #GLAADAwards recipients in New York City . May 4, 2014 . GLAAD.
  64. October 15, 2015 . IDA Awards: Netflix's Ted Sarandos to Receive Special Honor (Exclusive) . August 2, 2016 . The Hollywood Reporter.
  65. Web site: 15 May 2014 . 2014 IDA Documentary Awards . August 2, 2016 . International Documentary Association.
  66. Web site: Nominees/Winners . 2019-10-01 . Television Academy . en.
  67. Web site: Complete list of 2016 Emmy Nominations . . July 14, 2016 . August 2, 2016 . Dave . Lewis.
  68. Web site: 2 June 2016 . Out of Iraq (2016) - IMDb . www.imdb.com.
  69. Web site: 29 April 2017 . Amazon & Netflix Lead Daytime Creative Arts Emmy Awards Winners . Nellie Andreeva, Deadline Hollywood. April 29, 2017. Retrieved June 27, 2017
  70. Web site: Logo Documentary "Out Of Iraq" Wins Daytime Emmy . Dan Avery, Logo. May 1, 2017. Retrieved June 27, 2017
  71. http://www.miaminewtimes.com/arts/miami-film-festival-2018-award-winners-10186145 "Miami Film Festival 2018 Awards: A Sort of Family, La Familia, and Others"
  72. Web site: 7 October 2018 . 7th Annual Nominees & Winners . 10 September 2020 . Streamy Awards.

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