John Kluge, Metromedia founder, dies

John Kluge, who once ran the biggest independent TV empire in the United States, has died. An obit can be found in Newsday, and a brief perspective here. Kluge - a few weeks shy of his 96th birthday - was a giant in this business, albeit a somewhat reluctant one who had minimal interest in programming but maximal interest in making money, of which he was the unparalleled master. He established the old successor to DuMont - which was the original fabled "fourth network" - and tried over the years fitfully to establish another fourth network, with WNEW/5, now WNYW/5, as the network flagship. He never could get it off the ground, and there were many reasons.

But here's the kicker: He shocked the TV world by selling his group of "indies" to Rupert Murdoch, who eventually hired industry legend (and onetime Paramount chief and ABC long-form exec, among many other roles) Barry Diller to launch the fourth network. Of course, Murdoch and Diller succeeded where Kluge had failed - and succeeded wildly.

Kluge ran Channel 5 and his other stations with a ruthless dedication to the bottom line, which is a nice way of saying he didn't spend a dime where he had to. For years, Channel 5 had the sad rundown look of a charnel house even though it was among the most profitable media enterprises on the planet. That said ... Channel 5 was a wonderful old place, full of superb TV street reporters, a truly excellent news operation, and some wonderful local productions that are now part of New York culture and history (Soupy Sales! Martin Abend! Sydney Offit! -- the latter two part of a classic point-counterpoint program that was parodied so famously by "SNL"). It was also a funky, odd, unique place; Kluge, per my recollection, kept a spectacular apartment duplex that adjoined the 67th Street station, and legend had it there were secret passageways from his office to the apartment. Kluge, in other words, literally lived in the station he owned. 

It was always said that Kluge didn't care much about news (never gave interviews) or programming or quality. But for someone who didn't "care," Channel 5 sure seemed to confound that over the years.

When he sold to Murdoch in 1986, he never looked back. I often wondered whether he ever even looked at a TV again.