Honoring Leo Chaloukian

Leo Chaloukian, now 87, retired from his sound-executive career only this past February, when he was a mere 86. “I’m bored stiff,” he said.

That’s hardly a surprise, given the life he’s led. Before starting his 60-year career in sound, beginning at Ryder Sound Services where he eventually bought the company, Chaloukian was a winning jockey as a teen. He also acted in a couple of films; a director remarked that he felt Chaloukian would be better working behind the scenes.

The director was right. Chaloukian joined Ryder in 1954, became owner in 1976 and sold the company to Soundelux in 1996; under his leadership, company projects won 42 Emmys and an Oscar for Platoon.

He served as president (the position now called chairman) of the Television Academy for four years beginning in 1989, after holding other executive positions, and spent 12 years spearheading the Academy’s building committee to create the current Academy headquarters in North Hollywood. He is now a board member of the Academy Foundation.

And, oh yes, he was also an FBI informant, working undercover for many years to help investigate the infiltration of the Mafia in the entertainment business. Why Leo? “I checked,” said the man who phoned to recruit him. “You know a lot of people within the industry.”

Indeed, he does. On December 4, a number of those people – friends, colleagues and former employees, as well as family members – gathered at Dolby Laboratories in Burbank to pay tribute to Chaloukian’s many contributions to the industry, at a festive cocktail party hosted by the Television Academy’s sound and sound editors peer groups.

About 95 people attended; for almost two hours, celebrants took to the open mic to laud Leo — real name, Levon, which kids in school couldn’t pronounce – for his mentorship, advice and unwavering support.

“This is not something the Academy usually does,” sound editors peer group governor Edward Fassl told the crowd at the beginning of the evening. “There are few people like Leo, who are cornerstones and founding fathers for what we are doing today.” Of Ryder’s Emmy record, Fassl noted, “That doesn’t come by luck. You have to have strong people at the top.”

When Fassl was working on the miniseries Amerika at Ryder, he recalled, “We were working around the clock. I first met Leo when he said, ‘Let’s order pizza.’ The owner of the company ordering pizza to help get these things done – that strikes you, as a young editor.”

Another former Ryder employee, independent sound mixer Gary Bourgeois, noted, “Not only did Leo hire me, he showed me the way. He mentored me. It means a lot. To this day, I’ve been known to go to his house to get his suggestions and support.”

A former protégé of a different sort recounted how he’d reached out to Chaloukian, who advised him on a project.

Haik Naltchayan had been an Academy student intern in sound, working at Ryder in 1991. In 2000, he was working, as he does now, as a producer for a media unit of the National Reconnaissance Office in Washington DC, and composed music for an event commemorating the office’s 40th anniversary. He asked and received Chaloukian’s counsel on sound effects.

In a separate interview, Naltchayan, who had traveled from Washington specifically for the cocktail party, said, “The neat thing is, Leo was so interested in my having a great experience [as an intern].

"He made sure I got hands-on experience, I was the second boom operator on a CBS Sunday Night movie directed by Bill Bixby. Leo called around to get me the job, as it was hard to get hands-on work because of the unions.”

Son Dale Chaloukian recounted how his father had gotten him his first job in sound – working for a competitor. The head of the other company didn’t believe in hiring family, and asked Leo about employing his son. “I’ll hire your son if you’ll hire my son,” Leo replied, and a handshake sealed the deal.

A former Paramount employee, Zhelbert Zohrabian, described the cold-call she made to Chaloukian because he was a prominent Armenian in entertainment, and she, as an Armenian, wanted his help in bolstering the position and presence of Armenians in the industry. He admired her spunk, and agreed.

“You became my industry dad,” Zohrabian said tearfully. “I was able to get three promotions at Paramount because of your guidance. Even after I left to raise my family, you’d still call to see how things were going. I appreciate that so much.”

Also a young studio employee – at Lorimar – when she met Chaloukian, Warner Bros. executive Geriann McIntosh recalled how he pressed her into service for the Television Academy. “You’ve encouraged so many people to get involved in the Academy,” she said. “You took the time to notice everything that needed to be done at the Academy. You are a statesman within our industry, a mentor and a friend.”

McIntosh later became a governor. Producer George Sunga was already a governor when he met Chaloukian, who observed him at a committee meeting and then told him, “I think there’s a lot of work you can do at the Academy.” The result? “Oh boy, did I!”

Deeply appreciative was former Academy chairman John Shaffner, a production designer who, after Chaloukian, was only the second below-the-line industry member to head the organization.

“Leo is the Television Academy’s best friend,” Shaffner said. “For so many years, I’ve served under you, alongside you and above you. When I was becoming chairman, Leo took the time to take me aside and give me some pointers. I cannot thank you enough.”

Having also served on the Motion Picture Academy board, Chaloukian, said Shaffner, “is a true ambassador between the two academies, and a great bringer-of-ideas to both. A heartfelt thank you for the time, talent, passion, caring and love you’ve given to the Television Academy.”

When it was the guest of honor’s turn at the mic, Chaloukian recalled his beginnings at Ryder – “I went to visit my cousin, who was a mixer at Ryder. I liked what I saw. I asked if it was possible to get a job there.”

He started at the Television Academy, he said, after he termed out on the Motion Picture Academy board. The Television Academy was regrouping after its break from the National Television Academy, and then-president Hank Rieger asked him to participate.

He became a sound governor and served in various other positions before becoming president. During his time in the top office, he instituted the peer group executive committees, so that not only the governors made decisions on membership.

After the event, Chaloukian said, “I was surprised as to the response of the speakers. I was touched, no question about it. It really humbled me. I’d never realized I’d contributed so much to these people.”

The peer group governors who conceived and organized the party – Fassl, sound editors governor Ruth Adelman and sound governors Ed Greene and Steven Venezia – certainly realized.

“When I was first starting out, Leo represented what the Television Academy was to me,” Adelman said. “I was a below-the-line person, and Leo was someone I understood.

“He’s influenced a whole bunch of people,” she added. “We’re encouraged to mentor, to help people in the business. Leo was about the giving-back part of the entertainment industry. Now seemed like the appropriate time to say thank you.”