Has anyone ever heard of this show or guy?

August 5, 2007 9:41 PM

I am considering taking my invention (patent pending) to a show called "The big idea with Donny Deutsch" which also has a show on television in the US on CNBC. Has anyone ever heard of this show or Donny Deutsch? The show is holding a road show in San Francisco for inventors in October and I would like to know if anyone has any feed back regarding this company.
posted by Little to media & arts (15 comments total)

donny deutsch is the son of the founder of the advertising agency deutsch. he ran the place for a while and now mainly represents the company. stories from ex employees suggest he's a major douche.

I don't think 'the big idea' is very popular. it's a show on late-night cable where he tends to invite pectorally enhanced women to chat a bit.
posted by krautland at 9:44 PM on August 5, 2007

ah yeah, another funny link regarding the speedo-saga. do read the comments.
posted by krautland at 9:46 PM on August 5, 2007

CNBC is a well watched and fairly well respected cable channel. i work in finance, and i have it on pretty much all day long. howver, i think their viewership drops pretty dramatically after the stock market closes. donny's show is on (i think) at 10pm in New York.

i've seen the show, its probably the furthest thing from 'financial' news that they have on that channel. its generally entertainment value, not business value. from what i've seen (when i am stuck in the office and the remote is lost on my desk), the inventor segments that they have are generally pretty decent inventions. i don't think the segment is for laughs or to mock the inventors/inventions (like 'American Inventor').

editorial: CNBC loses me right after Closing Bell, i can't get the remote in my hands fast enough to turn off that jackass Larry Kudlow.
posted by uaudio at 10:01 PM on August 5, 2007

So is this guy a fraud, therefore submit my invention elsewhere? Has anyone heard of any problems in this situation?
posted by Little at 10:02 PM on August 5, 2007

I wouldn't call him a fraud but certainly a blowhard. I'd suggest you're wasting your time.
posted by krautland at 10:37 PM on August 5, 2007

I dunno, I thought his interview with Bill Gates was pretty good. And his chat with Denis Leary was hilarious.

He's hardly a fraud, just not hugely popular. It's late-nite TV, but it's TV.

If I were an inventor I'd absolutely love to get on his show. He's probably not going to dig up dirt on you or mock you, so it's an easy bit of exposure. More importantly, saying you've been on "The Big Idea" with your invention would be a great foot in the door to get on a bigger show.
posted by mmoncur at 10:52 PM on August 5, 2007

This search for "The Big Idea" on youtube has plenty of representative clips.

He was on "The Apprentice" once, as a close personal friend of Trump. I am not sure if that is a plus or a minus.
posted by IvyMike at 11:26 PM on August 5, 2007

Um, a friend of mine works in the ad field. He is a fairly big deal. Deutsch is a very legit company and has clients who make probably any name-brand painkiller you have in your medicine cabinet and much else besides.

In no sense is Donny Deutsch a fraud; he may be a good or bad guy, but the company that bears his name is very well respected.

I think you should go ahead and try to get on the show. It can't hurt (no such thing as bad publicity) and it's not like you're marrying the guy.
posted by lackutrol at 11:56 PM on August 5, 2007

Donny Deutsch is a show that has a lot of potential, but it's kind of home-spun. I mean that he gets a lot of repeat interviews and many people who would make the usual rounds on cable news television. I would gamble that the appearance would pay off, but remember that the audience after Keith Olbermann's show falls quite precipitously. Also, make sure to wear something that contrasts with the host, as his studio is bathed in this somewhat disorienting blue pall, which is probably a chroma-key effect.

You'll have your hands full before the day of the interview mainly interacting with the show producers and your own publicist (and I hope, at this point, that you have one). They should have DD well prepared for the interview. I think he is a very attentive interviewer. I know nothing of his character, but there are worse hosts on cable news, and he really does seem to do his job (which must be difficult when ratings are so draining) pretty well.

Will you be bringing the invention with you? That's a very important question. Because if you are asked (and you will be) to give a demonstration then you need to be prepared that it works. The show is taped, but producers won't have a lot of mercy with a guest - especially with a patent-pending idea and especially if it's not one that will change the world - who can't do the job on the air. There are lots of inventors who would kill to be in your shoes, and the credibility you could build is something that will carry you far. Maybe even to Good Morning America or Squawk Box.
posted by parmanparman at 12:09 AM on August 6, 2007

Wouldn't you be required to sign some sort of contract giving "The Big Idea with Donny Deuche" exclusive rights that would stop you from using your invention on a more popular show?
posted by substrate at 5:16 AM on August 6, 2007

Check out what they make you sign, like substrate said. The Big Idea airs at 10pm ET on CNBC. It's not-too-popular show on a popular channel. It could mean to bigger things, maybe being featured on a more popular business show or one of NBC's other shows.

but remember that the audience after Keith Olbermann's show falls quite precipitously

Keith is on MSNBC. CNBC's primetime's most famous show is Mad Money with a screaming Jim Cramer, or perhaps reruns of Deal or No Deal.
posted by ALongDecember at 6:37 AM on August 6, 2007

You should mostly certainly go if there will not be a huge out of pocket expense. You will learn a lot. Otherwise I would recommend saving your money for the INPEX show June of 08.
posted by bkeene12 at 6:40 AM on August 6, 2007

The Big Idea with Donny Deutsch is not a good show. Actually, I have only seen it in bits - something about that guy, even when the information about the episode piques my curiousity, I still can't seem to watch the show. Something about that guy, I just can't take him for very long.
posted by Flood at 7:56 AM on August 6, 2007

I actually used to work for that show a few years ago. While there is most likely a new staff there since my day here I what I know about how they operate: It will seem like a big important deal at the time of filming, and even leading up to it. But once it is taped, if it isn't deemed a great show for them it will either not air, or it may air and there will be no follow through (regarding the inventions). If you are serious about your invention I would say take what ever experience you have with them with a shaker of salt. They are only looking for a ratings break, not to help out inventors. And of DD doesn't care for you personally, or if you don't have a great dynamic onscreen personality, don't expect to make it to air. I'm not saying any of this to sound nasty, just giving you a realistic background of how it will most likely go down.
posted by MayNicholas at 9:59 AM on August 6, 2007

The highest rated show on CNBC is reruns of 'Deal or No Deal'. (Yes, seriously)
posted by Steve_at_Linnwood at 7:43 PM on August 6, 2007