President, Original Programming and Development
Veteran programmer Lauren Corrao is president, original programming and development for COMEDY CENTRAL. Based in the network's offices in Los Angeles, Corrao reports to Doug Herzog, president, MTV Networks Entertainment Group.
In this position, Corrao is responsible for the development and supervision of all original programming on COMEDY CENTRAL, known for some of the most successful series on television and for its industry-leading development of original content created specifically for digital platforms, overseeing the development teams in both Los Angeles and New York. She also manages the network's talent and events staff, who are responsible for identifying and developing the next generation of comedy stars and producing the channel's special event programming such as the Emmy®-nominated "COMEDY CENTRAL Roast" franchise, the star-studded "Night of Too Many Stars" autism benefit and the network's one-hour stand-up specials. Additionally, Corrao supervises the network's Grammy® Award-winning record label, COMEDY CENTRAL Records.
Corrao joined COMEDY CENTRAL in 2002 as senior vice president, original programming and head of development. Since then, the network has seen the highest ratings in its history and ratings-winners like "The Sarah Silverman Program," "RENO 911!," "Important Things with Demetri Martin," "Mind of Mencia," "Drawn Together" and "Chappelle's Show" have made Corrao a key player in COMEDY CENTRAL's phenomenal growth. She was promoted to executive vice president, original programming and development in 2005 and was named president, original programming and development in 2007.
During her tenure, Corrao has attracted A-list talent to the network, providing a platform for them to expand and grow and offering them creative freedom, highly valued in the community. On her watch, deals have been signed with top names such as Sarah Silverman, Demetri Martin, Lewis Black, Denis Leary and Jeff Dunham, among others.
Prior to coming to COMEDY CENTRAL in July 2002, Corrao and her partner Peter Tolan secured a production deal at Touchstone Television where she served as executive producer on several projects, including the critically acclaimed series "The Job" starring Denis Leary.
Previously, Corrao spent an illustrious four years at Fox Broadcasting Co. serving as vice president of comedy development and vice president of alternative and late night development, where she established such hits as "That 70s Show," "MAD TV" and "King of the Hill."
Corrao began her television career at MTV where she rose to the rank of vice president and executive producer and began the network's first non-music program development department. She oversaw the development and production of such shows as the groundbreaking reality series "The Real World," "The State," "The Ben Stiller Show" and "The Jon Stewart Show."
Corrao holds a B.A. in Semiotics from Brown University.