Co-founder of PatMa Productions, PatMa Productions
mPower Moments: On Making Room for the Next Generation with Nina Tassler
When an opportunity knocks, answer the door.” In this mPower Moments episode, mPower Founder Marcia M. Davies sits down ...
About Nina Tassler
Nina Tassler, co-founder of PatMa Productions, has been active in discussions about gender equality in media and community service. In a December 2024 conversation with Geena Davis, Tassler described the approach of the Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media as a partnership that presented data and research to networks, calling it a "business opportunity" that "can create revenue" and "new buyers." She attributed the resulting "systemic change" to "collaboration and coalition building." Tassler also spoke about her own career path, noting that she "came from the theater," worked as a receptionist at a talent agency, and later rose to become chairman of CBS Entertainment. Tassler has also been involved with Jewish Family Service LA, receiving the Susie Forer-Dehrey Spirit of Humanity Award in December 2023. She said she was "drawn to the organization because it is a large social safety net organization that helps people who are going through all sorts of challenges in life." In a separate 2023 interview, Tassler discussed her book "What I Told My Daughter," explaining that she wrote it after realizing a book of real experiences for mothers did not exist. She described the book as a compilation of "personal narratives rather than platitudes or a how-to."
Transcript (12 segments)
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Interviewer0:00
Of sitting down with entertainment industry icon Nina Tassler, who has not only risen to the top of CBS but also started her own production company, PatMa, and written the best-selling book 'What I Told My Daughter.' Nina, welcome.
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Nina Tassler0:41
I think my path was kind of unplanned for a while. It was full of surprises. I came from the theater, worked Off Broadway in New York at the Roundabout Theatre Company. It was the best learning experience of my life. I loved it. I moved to California and saw a side of the business I had never seen before. The very first job I got in Los Angeles was as a receptionist in a very small talent agency. I was the receptionist, an assistant to a literary agent, and an assistant to a talent agent. That was where I started. Then I went to Warner Brothers and ultimately CBS. My husband used to say, 'When an opportunity knocks, answer the door.' I had some opportunities and I took advantage of them. I really evaluated what I wanted to do long-term in my career. I went from working in the theater to working in the agency business to the studio to the network, working my way up to chairperson of CBS Entertainment.
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Interviewer2:07
You're at the top, this big job. You had been there for 14 years or so, then you decided to leave. How did you leave such a high-powered job after all those years?
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Nina Tassler2:26
The decision to leave was not easy. I thought about it long and hard, consulted my husband and my family. I took inventory and looked back at the things I was fortunate to be a part of—the decisions I was able to make, the impact I had, the people I got to work with. Then I looked at the overall picture. When I first came to the network, we were in fourth place. When I left, we were in first place. We made some very big changes not only to the primetime schedule but to daytime and summer programming. The last piece of the puzzle was the change in late night. Once I had done that, I stepped back and said, 'It's time to step aside and let somebody younger come in and take the reins.'
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Interviewer3:33
You made room for the next generation. Yes, and that is so important. We talk about that a lot—how do we lift women up and support them to make room for the next generation. You wrote a book, 'What I Told My Daughter.' It's a compilation of essays from a wide range of impressive people, from Ruth Bader Ginsburg to Whoopi Goldberg. What inspired the book, and do you have a favorite story?
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Nina Tassler4:15
It was personal. I have a daughter, now 25, but she was 13 when I came up with the idea. Serendipity: I was at a volleyball tournament with her. My daughter is barely five feet tall, so her volleyball career didn't last long. At the end of a grueling tournament, her team lost most of their games, but on her final play, she had this miracle hit. She turned and looked at me, expecting me to say something. I panicked. But I said, 'Your teammates really depended on you. You were there for your team.' Her face lit up, and I realized I said the right thing. I thought, if only I had someone else's experience to learn from—what to say in that moment. I went to the store to buy a book, but such a book didn't exist. I didn't want a how-to or platitudes. I wanted to glean my own narrative. That was the birth of the idea. I was at CBS and went to Simon & Schuster, who decided to publish the book. I reached out to accomplished mothers from different walks of life to share their personal stories about their daughters. One of my favorite essays is Ruth Bader Ginsburg's, about her relationship with her husband and his partnership in raising their kids. She says, 'Women can have it all, just not at the same time.' Those are words to live by.
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Interviewer7:40
We live it every day. One final question: You left CBS but didn't rest on your laurels. You have a new production company. One of the missions, correct me if I'm wrong, is to share stories from diverse perspectives, first voices. Tell us about it and what you hope to accomplish.
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Nina Tassler8:09
Two things: One, we focus on female-centric, diverse stories about women as complicated characters. We're used to wearing many hats, so making sure those characters are multifaceted. One project, ironically about Ruth Bader Ginsburg, is called 'Sisters-in-Law' about the relationship between Sandra Day O'Connor and Ruth Bader Ginsburg, with Michelle Pfeiffer attached to play O'Connor. We're also doing the biography of Golda Meir, with Shira Haas playing young Golda. We're working with Stacey Abrams, an accomplished author. It's about amplifying those stories. Equally important is that the young women who work for us get nurturing, support, and encouragement to grow their careers. It's both the stories we develop and the work environment we create. Creating space and opportunity is at the heart of the production company and everything I've tried to accomplish.
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Interviewer10:08
I know where to find your book—bookstores, Amazon. When these stories come to life, where can I find them? Will they be on a network, streamed?
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Nina Tassler10:23
We're across the board. It'll be at the network, Showtime, Paramount Plus, Netflix, HBO Max. The beauty is there are many places for content, though it makes branding challenging. We're all in a consumer business. You have to create a reason for someone to watch you. You can't be passive in your viewing choices. As we talked earlier, you're watching shows on a different platform than where they originally aired. It's incumbent on all of us as producers and storytellers to create a sense of urgency for the audience to seek out your show.
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Interviewer11:48
You're doing a great job. I want to see what you talked about. Thank you for spending time with us. Next time, I want to talk about your best friend, Geena Davis. There are so many stories. Thank you.
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Nina Tassler12:04
Thank you.