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Some Lesser Known Facts About Les Moonves

During the first year of his college years, Moonves opted for premedical studies; however, later, he did not find the course to be fulfilling and decided to shift to a Spanish Language major.

After graduation, he moved to Manhattan, New York, in 1971 to pursue acting full-time. While in New York, he graduated from Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre.

After graduating from the Neighborhood Playhouse School of the Theatre, he played numerous roles in various American television series including Cannon (1971) and The Six Million Dollar Man (1973).

In the late 1970s, he worked as an assistant casting director to Canadian-American actress and casting director Caro Jones.

Later, Moonves decided to change his career and began working for an American television production 20th Century Fox Television. At the 20th Century Fox Television, he was in charge of the first-run syndication and pay/cable programming.

Moonves also served as the vice president of movies and mini-series, Vice President of Development at Saul Ilson Productions, and Development Executive for Catalina Productions.

In 1985, Les began working for the American production company Lorimar Television. At the Lorimar Television, the executive in charge of its movies and mini-series.

In 1988, he became the head of creative affairs and from 1990 to 1993, he served as the president of the Lorimar Television.
Leslie Moonves (left) at a promotional event with American comedian Bill Cosby

In July 1993, after the merger of Warner Bros. and Lorimar Television, he was appointed as the president/CEO of Warner Bros. Television.

During his time as the president of Warner Bros., he gave major breaks to many famous Hollywood actors including Jennifer Aniston for FRIENDS (1994), George Clooney for ER (1994), and Teri Hatcher for Lois & Clark(1993) for which he was given featured on the cover of a New York-based magazine.
Leslie Moonves (second from left) along with various actors on the cover of the New York magazine

In 1995, Leslie Moonves quit Warner Bros. and joined CBS as the President of CBS Entertainment. He remained the president and chief executive officer at CBS from 1998 to 2003.
Moonves (centre) with Ray Romano and Phil Rosenthal at the taping of the Everybody Loves Raymond’s final episode

On April 7, 2003, he appeared in an episode of the American sitcom The Practice. In the show, he portrayed himself.

In 2003, he was promoted to chairman and CEO of CBS in 2003. During his time as the CEO of the CEO, CBS had six of the ten most-watched primetime shows in 2005 including Without a Trace, CSI: Miami, and Survivor: Guatemala.

In 2005, Leslie cancelled the American science fiction television series Star Trek: Enterprise (2001-2005) after the show’s license fee was cut down by Paramount.

In 2006, he was responsible for the merger of the United Paramount Network (UPN) with The WB Television Network to form The CW Television Network.

According to various reports, Leslie Moonves was the second most highly-paid executive in 2012 and 2013. He received $58.8 million and $65.4 million respectively and in 2017, he was paid $68.4 million as the CEO of the CBS.
Leslie Moonves (extreme right) with American film directors Romany Malco and Jon Turteltaub at a promotional event for the Hollywood film Last Vegas (2013)

In March 2015, he appeared in the premiere episode of The Late Late Show with James Corden. In the episode, he appeared as the head of CBS who grants a golden ticket to get the chance to host The Late Late Show.

In September 2015, he appeared in the premiere of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
Les Moonves in a still from The Late Show with Stephen Colbert (2015)

Moonves along with Julie Chen donated a big amount to the University of Southern California. Later, because of the donation, USC named a centre Julie Chen/Leslie Moonves and CBS Media Center.

In 2016, he was appointed as the chairman of CBS. During the 2016 Republican presidential campaign, when asked about his opinion on the money being spent by Donald Trump on advertisements, he claimed that it was a good thing as it only meant more profit and earnings for CBS. He said,

It may not be good for America, but it’s damn good for CBS … Man, who would have expected the ride we’re all having right now? … The money’s rolling in and this is fun … I’ve never seen anything like this, and this [is] going to be a very good year for us.”

Moonves has also served as the board member of ZeniMax Media from 1999 until its acquisition in 2021.

In February 2019, after being fired from CBS over sexual harassment charges, Moonves started his own company in West Hollywood, California named Moon Rise.

He has appeared several times on the American late-night talk show Late Show with David Letterman.

Leslie Moonves owns houses in various cities in the USA including Malibu, California, and New York City.

According to Moonves, he practices Transcendental Meditation to help his anxiety.

Leslie has also served as a board of councillors member for USC School of Cinematic Arts and University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism.

Moonves was removed from the USC School of Cinematic Arts’ board of councillors in August 2018 due to the ongoing sexual harassment allegations. At the same time, CBS announced that CBS and Moonves together would be donating $20 million to various organisations supporting the #MeToo movement.