Tim Kaiser serves as a board member for Pittsburgh’s Roberto Clemente Museum explaining to Jim Cunningham why you should visit and talking about his Father Lloyd Kaiser who served as President and CEO of WQED Pittsburgh from 1971 to 1993. Tim credits his Dad for helping him stay grounded in the high energy world of Hollywood and recalls his Father’s pride in building a new tower for WQED to hold the antenna for WQED-FM in 1973 after successfully winning the license for Pittsburgh against the plan to build a state wide network of noncommercial stations that would have been controlled elsewhere. Lloyd brought his son to the studio to meet Fred Rogers who had Tim sit in the control room and peek in the camera viewfinder. After graduating from Oakmont’s Riverview High School then Westminster College and starring on the football team Tim went on to work for Kentucky public television and then took a chance on a new show to be created for NBC by Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David. Tim produced nearly 200 episodes winning two Emmys, a Golden Globe Award and a People’s Choice Award. Seinfeld joined the distinguished company of I Love Lucy and The Andy Griffith Show for ending its run at number one in the ratings. The “show about nothing” changed everything about comedy on American television. Tim Kaiser then produced Will and Grace and 2 broke Girls winning more acclaim. Megan Mulally gave a shout out to Tim from the stage when she won her Emmy for Will and Grace. Tim remembers the “no soup for you!” Soup Nazi and Elaine’s dating The Maestro, the sad clown opera references in the show and many more Seinfeld details. Tim did it all while commuting from his home in Hampton for over 14 years in one of the longest commutes to work in Western Pennsylvania history. His home in LA has usually been on standby while Tim made it home for his three kids Adam, Joshua and Michael plus wife and high school sweetheart Kristin. Not that there’s anything wrong with that!
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