Graden out at MTV

Brian Graden, MTV’s president of entertainment for the past 13 years, is leaving the network, several outlets are reporting.

The New York Post looked to be first with the news, filing at 4:41 p.m. ET (1:41 p.m. PT). The Post says Graden has been talking about departing his job for the past six months, and that MTV is about to be reorganized. He’s not expected to be replaced, and at an annual salary of $7 million, Viacom probably won’t mind having him off the books.

Deadline Hollywood Daily’s Nikki Finke posted the same news on her site at 3:13 pm PT (6:13 pm ET), with EXCLUSIVE in all caps. I think the Post legitimately beat Ms. Finke on this one, however. Finke notes that Graden’s back-end payout could be as much as $15 million, making any parting that much more sweet than sorrowful.

Variety’s Mike Schneider wasn’t too far behind, posting at 3:23 pm PT (6:23 pm ET).

Graden will leave at the end of the year, and after that he’s looking at writing musicals and novels. He also may set up a production deal at MTV Networks.  

If anyone wants to pay me $15 million to quit something, let me know, I’m totally available.