Fates & Fortunes

John Howell III, VP/GM, WPXI(TV) Pittsburgh/WJAC-TV Johnstown, Pa./ WTOV-TV Steubenville, Ohio, will retire at year-end.

Steve Sabato, station manager, WFSB(TV) Hartford, Conn., named VP/GM, WNEM-TV Bay City, Mich.

Shaun McDonald, general sales manager, WDCA(TV) Washington, joins WNAB(TV) Nashville, Tenn., as VP/GM.

Anita Helt, manager, marketing and promotion, KPNX(TV) Mesa, Ariz., promoted to VP.

Ann Madeo, account executive, WYJB(FM) Albany, N.Y., joins WEWB(TV) Albany as regional sales manager.

Jon Myers, account executive, WBNS-TV Columbus, Ohio, promoted to local sales manager.

Art Moran, local sales manager, KVUE0-TV Austin, Texas, joins WSVN(TV) Miami in the same capacity.

Stephen Castrianni, senior promotion producer, WPHL-TV Philadelphia, named promotion manager.

Promotions at Time Warner Cable, New York: Mark Troller, senior project manager, Doubleclick Inc., New York, joins as VP, systems operations, information, technology; Davis Ho, director, systems operations, E-Commerce & Trade Services Ltd., New York joins as director, business technology; Nancy Mazzei, senior art director, Showtime Networks, New York, joins as creative director, creative services; Larry Dixon, supervisor, Brooklyn/Queens division, promoted to manager.

Ken Berry, program director, KGO(AM) San Francisco, joins KIRO(AM)/KNWX(AM) Seattle as station manager.

Jack White, anchor, KGTV(TV) San Diego, also becomes host, Sunday Brunch With Jack White, KCBQ(AM) San Diego.

Enrique R. Martinez, senior VP/GM, Discovery Communications, Latin America/ Iberia, promoted to executive VP/managing director.

Appointments at USA Cable, New York: Scott Silverstein, senior VP/general sales manager, advertising sales, Sci Fi Channel, promoted to USA Network in the same capacity; David Safran, senior VP, advertising sales, Burly Bear Network, New York, joins as senior VP/general sales manager, advertising sales, Sci Fi Channel; Robert Kaminsky, VP, business development, Arkwright, Fiskeville, R.I., joins as senior VP, advertising sales.

Frank Sgrizzi, sales manager, Turner Entertainment Sales, New York, promoted to VP/New York sales manager.

Appointments at MGM Worldwide Television Distribution, Santa Monica, Calif.: Jeff Brooks, VP, business development, Mondo Media, San Francisco, joins as VP, basic cable distribution; Kim Sterton, director, sales, promoted to VP, Western region, syndication sales.

Jeff Grant, research director, sales and marketing, Cartoon Network, New York, promoted to VP.

Promotions at Fox Sports, Los Angeles:Steve Simpson, local sales manager, Fox Sports Net, Fox Sports Net 2, to VP/GM; Andrea Berry, VP, field operations, Fox Sports Net, to senior VP, field operations, Fox Sports Television Group.

Nancy Bauer Gonzales, news director, KNBC(TV) Los Angeles, named VP/news director, KCAL(TV) Los Angeles.

Renay San Miguel, reporter, CBS MarketWatch and CBS News, New York, named technology specialty anchor/ reporter, CNN Newsgroup/Headline News, Atlanta.

Sue Mason, news anchor, WDAF-TV Kansas City, Mo., leaves her post on Nov. 28.

Molly Hughes, primary anchor, WDTN(TV) Dayton, Ohio, named morning anchor, KCNC-TV Denver.

Laura Evans, reporter, WTTG(TV) Washington, promoted to weekend anchor.

Judy Alley, weekend reporter, WAGT-TV Augusta, Ga., joins KPNX-TV Mesa, Ariz., as weekend morning anchor/reporter.

Karen Carlson, weekend anchor/reporter, WREG-TV Memphis, Tenn., joins WWL-TV Orlando, Fla., in the same capacity.

M.J. Rifkin, an award-winning television producer, died Sept. 4 at 88.

Maurice Rifkin began syndicating radio programs in the 1930s, then moved to television, where he worked on such series as The Cisco Kid and Sea Hunt. He was involved in production of The Undersea World of Jacques Cousteau and National Geographic specials. He won an Emmy for A Storm in Summer on The Hallmark Hall of Fame in 1970. He was received multiple Peabody Awards for service to the broadcasting industry.

He is survived by his wife, Tedde, and daughters Joan Sellers and Barbara Alter.—Beatrice Williams-Rude