After a protracted fight with cancer, Peter Caranicas, a 16-year Variety editor renowned for his production and technological know-how, passed away in Los Angeles on Sunday. He was eighty.
Throughout his lengthy career as a writer and editor at Variety and other entertainment trade journals, Caranicas covered a wide range of topics, including the creation of cable and satellite TV, film and TV production, and much more. Caranicas oversaw Variety’s year-end Dealmakers issue and its annual Legal Impact Report for many years.
Colleagues recalled the kind and composed editor for his extensive understanding of technology and how it affects the entertainment industry. Having lived and worked in Europe, Asia, and Latin America, he was a well-traveled and cosmopolitan man. He held degrees from the London School of Economics and Yale University.
Steven Gaydos, senior VP of global content at Variety, said, “Peter Caranicas was the epitome of professionalism. He was an entertainment business journalist who passionately cared about the industry he covered and who was endlessly fascinated by the bold, dynamic characters he so perceptively chronicled.” More than that, he was a really adored person by everyone who knew him; he was a gentleman at heart as well as a dynamic thinker with a moral compass. All of his Variety colleagues will miss him because he is genuinely irreplaceable.
2019 saw Caranicas receive the Hollywood Professional Association’s Legacy Award during the organization’s gala held at Los Angeles’ Skirball Cultural Centre.
Despite being unable to attend, he wrote to those in attendance, stating, “When I began writing about the business back in the 1970s in New York, things were different.” We had three networks to choose from on TV in addition to PBS. I’ll cry now since such stations could be obtained by cable for roughly $5 a month for people who live in towers or in the sticks. RCA and Ampex, two enormous, long-gone broadcasting companies, served as the backbone of the NAB show. Fox, CNN, MTV, and the internet were nonexistent.
And now, here we are, ready for yet another shift in the organisation. For everyone of us in this room, the Chinese saying “May you live in interesting times” is a blessing because of the always expanding commercial and creative chances that the rapidly developing technology affords us, according to Caranicas.
In his LinkedIn page, he expressed a similar sentiment: “I adore this industry and the intelligent individuals who work there.” We operate in the world’s most powerful industry, which, in the proper hands, has the power to speak the truth and promote constructive social change. Both fun and responsibility go into it.
At the HPA event, Carolyn Giardina, senior entertainment technology and crafts editor at Variety, who collaborated closely with Caranicas, gave an homage to her mentor. “I’m sure Peter has had an impact on your career, even if you haven’t met him. She stated, “He has contributed his knowledge and perspectives to prestigious trade journals covering a wide range of topics for 40 years, from the inception of satellite television and cable to the development of the internet. “His work has a huge impact because he discerns trends well and explains their implications for individuals who commit their careers to this field.”
Caranicas was born in war-torn Athens on August 26, 1943. His family moved to Washington, D.C., in 1947, where his father worked for the International Monetary Fund and Greece’s diplomatic service. Caranicas went to Yale and the London School of Economics after attending French Lycée institutions in Washington and New York.
Caranicas launched Videography magazine in 1976. From 1982 to 1986, he was editor of Millimetre magazine. He went on to become publisher of Film & Video and editor at World Screen and Shoot. He also worked for View, BME, TVB, Video Publisher, and Below the Line, among other media. In 2008, he became a managing editor of features at Variety.
His wife, Manny Zhang; son, Kendrick Caranicas; daughter, Devon Caranicas; granddaughter, Philippa Nelly Young; brother, Paul Caranicas; and his ex-wife, Colby Kelly, are among those who survive.
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This article from Daily Variety’s June 1, 2010 issue features Peter Caranicas at his best, outlining how developments in production technology are revolutionising the film and television industries.
