Smithsonian Channel

Last week I sat down with Charles Poe, Vice President of Production for Smithsonian Channel. Check out our Q&A to learn more about him and his adventures before joining Smithsonian Channel- you may learn a thing or two. I mean, who would have thought he ascended the summit of lava-spewing Mount Etna in Sicily with a German volcanologist !? Or that he has his own crystal skull on his desk!?

Over the next few months Charles will be writing as a featured blogger, so check back soon to read his lastest posts.

Interview from August 6, 2008

AM: “How did you get to work for Smithsonian Channel? What did you do before joining this team?”

CP: “I worked at National Geographic Television and Film for six years where I was executive producer of the Explorer series and launched two earlier series, Taboo and Reptile Wild. I was also the producer working with Peter Arnett in Baghdad during the start of the second Gulf War. For many years before that I’d been a freelance producer and shooter making documentaries for ABC, TLC and Discovery Channel as well as National Geographic. When my former boss at National Geographic, David Royle, took charge of programming for this channel, he offered me the chance to come aboard.”

AM: “What do you think is the hardest part of this job here at Smithsonian Channel?”

CP: “Sitting in a chair all day. I miss the adventure of the field!”

AM: “I see here you have three boys, that must be an adventure for you! How do you balance life as a working father?”

CP: “It’s not about balance, it’s about efficiency. When I’m at work my head is down and I get stuff done. That way I can get home at a reasonable time.”

AM: “I take it through all of your jobs you must travel quite a bit. What’s your favorite travel destination?”

CP: “Poland.”

AM: “You must have known I have Polish heritage! Why Poland?”

CP: “It’s a second home, I lived there for six years after college.”

AM: “Sounds like you have done some exciting things with your career. Can you tell me about some of the best ones?”

CP: “Well it’s hard to choose just one, since I’ve had some pretty amazing opportunities. But riding the waves of ‘Shock and Awe’ from the 16th floor of the Palestine Hotel in Baghdad, while broadcasting live on NBC as Saddam Hussein’s palace went up in flames, was an awesome experience. One of my other greatest life experiences was when I paddled a kayak near Glacier Bay, Alaska, completely alone — no other human for miles— and a massive humpback whale surfaced not 20 feet away from me and gently swam by.”

AM: “And you mentioned Mount Etna too…”

CP: “Yes, I ascended to the summit of lava-spewing Mount Etna in Sicily with a German volcanologist.”

AM: “Ok now some fun questions. What is currently on your iPod?”

CP: “Back Door Slam, Lyle Lovett, the White Stripes and Smithsonian Folkways’ Ayombe CD of Colombian vallenato music.”

AM: “If they made a movie about your life, who would you want to play you?”

CP: “Cate Blanchett in drag, just like she did for Bob Dylan.”

AM: “Finish the following statement: I really crack up when…”

CP: “I watch my boys watching the burping snowmen on YouTube!”

AM: “What makes you come to work everyday?”

CP: “I’ve created television series before, but I’ve never had a chance to help create an entire channel. It almost never happens in this business.  Since we are a TV channel and pretty much everyone has a TV, we can really do a lot to help implement the mission of the Smithsonian Institution — the increase and diffusion of knowledge - something  I wholeheartedly support.”

Look for Charles’ debut post on the National Museum of American History Treasures, coming soon!