Doug Herzog and Patrick Vien Named Board Members of Comic Relief Giana LevyDecember 4, 2025 at 1:30 AM 0 Courtesy of Comic Relief Comic Relief, the nonprofit organization dedicated to helping children and youth overcome poverty, has added TV industry veterans Doug Herzog and Patrick Vien to its board of directors. The pair will help oversee Comic Relief's strategy, finances and approve grants that the organization makes to its charity partners.
- - Doug Herzog and Patrick Vien Named Board Members of Comic Relief
Giana LevyDecember 4, 2025 at 1:30 AM
0
Courtesy of Comic Relief
Comic Relief, the nonprofit organization dedicated to helping children and youth overcome poverty, has added TV industry veterans Doug Herzog and Patrick Vien to its board of directors.
The pair will help oversee Comic Relief's strategy, finances and approve grants that the organization makes to its charity partners.
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Comic Relief has its origins in the mid-1980s in a nonprofit founded by director Richard Curtis in the U.K. A U.S. iteration was established soon after by Billy Crystal, Whoopi Goldberg and Robin Williams. In the 1980s and '90s the organization focused on homelessness. It became well known through a series of fundraising specials hosted by Crystal, Goldberg and Williams that ran on HBO on and off from 1986 through 2006. The last "Comic Relief" special aired on HBO and TBS in 2006 and focused on support for victims of Hurricane Katrina, which devastated New Orleans and the Gulf of Mexico region the year before.
Comic Relief has stepped up its activity in recent years. Michele Ganeless, former president of Comedy Central, was named CEO of Comic Relief U.S. in January 2025.
Herzog had a long run as a senior executive at Viacom and MTV Networks during its heyday in the 1980s and '90s. He also led entertainment at Fox Broadcasting Co. and USA Network, and has helped shepherd such notable series as "The Daily Show with Jon Stewart," "The Colbert Report," "South Park," "The Real World" and "Unplugged."
"I'm honored to join Michele and the board to help channel that creative power toward this most critical cause," Herzog said. "The time to act is now to ensure no child is trapped by the cycle of poverty."
Vien currently serves as group managing director of the international division at A+E Global Media. He manages the company's channel partnerships and international content sales business, scales its international scripted and unscripted co-production units and develops new businesses.
"I'm joining the board to help Comic Relief find new, creative ways to share their incredible work, open people's eyes and turn that awareness into the immediate action all children deserve," Vien said.
To support the organization's ambitious agenda, A Comic Relief Live fundraiser is set to be held at Carnegie Hall on Dec. 10.
Headlined by John Oliver, the benefit will honor comedian Trevor Noah and Kristin Lemkau, CEO of J.P. Morgan Wealth Management. The event will also feature a performance from Gregory Porter and appearances by Michael Che, Ilana Glazer, Mike Birbiglia, Lupita Nyong'o and more.
(Pictured: Doug Herzog and Patrick Vien)
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Source: "AOL Entertainment"
Source: Entertainment
Published: December 03, 2025 at 07:45PM on Source: RED MAG
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