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Steve Hirsch

Steve Hirsch

Age 17 (10/10/2007)

Biography

Vivid was founded in 1984 by Steven Hirsch , a creative visionary who saw the potential for a company to grow beyond the confines of the adult entertainment industry, and David James, an industry veteran with extensive international experience. They were later joined by a third co-chairman, Bill Asher, a Dartmouth College graduate with an MBA from USC, who has engineered the company's recent financial success through a series of dramatic transactions and alliances. The three are co-chairmen of the company.

Early on, Steve Hirsch differentiated Vivid in a crowded market by developing the “Vivid Girl ” concept, which revived the Hollywood studio system of signing the most beautiful and talented adult stars to exclusive contracts. He also created glamorous cover girl packaging for the video box covers, making them suitable for display in mass-market retail stores. He made the faces of Vivid Girls familiar through billboards in high traffic venues such as Sunset Boulevard and extended the brand name through advertising and product licensing.

Further image-building programs include a 13-episode half hour reality TV series that aired on stations internationally and on Playboy TV as “Vivid Valley”. In addition to the hardcover book publishing program with HarperCollins, other publishing ventures include a series of "Vivid Comix" and graphic novels with edgy Avatar Press, and a series of erotic novels from Thunder’s Mouth Press. Vivid has licensed its brand name for condoms, virility supplements, action figures, fine art, cigars, high performance wheels and many other products, all of which are cross-promoted with Vivid's DVDs, Internet sites and through other marketing programs.

Co-chairman Bill Asher developed the financial strategy to maximize these diverse revenue streams. Among his major achievements was creation of three powerful Vivid pay-per-view channels that reached more than 40 million households. He later negotiated their sale to Playboy Enterprises along with a long-term output deal assuring that Vivid films will be seen on Playboy TV for years to come. Vivid retains international rights and has negotiated deals with top broadcasters and distributors around the world.

www.vivid.com