While VICE is running a four-part series on Who killed WCW, the man who truly pulled the plug and effectively put the promotion to bed, Jamie Kellner, passed away at age 77 according to Variety.
Kellner, who replaced Ted Turner at the helm of Turner Broadcasting, was the person who made the decision to cancel WCW programming from TNT and TBS, and in process, ending Fusient Media’s hopes of buying WCW from AOL Time Warner. WWE then came in and picked up the deal for a reported $4 million at the time. The Fusient’s deal was only going to work if they still had a time slot on TNT and TBS and would fall without one.
Kellner is best known as the only executive to create two broadcast networks who were profitable under his watch – FOX and The WB.
He is credited for programs such as The Simpsons, Dawson’s Creek, 7th Heaven, Cops, and many other hits who became all-time favorites along the years.
