Showtime Drums Up August Premiere Date for Motown Documentary

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Showtime has set an Aug. 24 premiere date for its music-themed documentary Hitsville: The Making Of Motown, the network announced Thursday.

The documentary, directed by Benjamin and Gabe Turner (Class of 92, I Am Bolt, One Direction: This Is Us), focuses on the period beginning with the birth of the R&B music company in Detroit in 1958 until its relocation to Los Angeles in the early 1970s, according to Showtime. 

Hitsville: The Making of Motown is the first documentary about the iconic label with the Motown founder Berry Gordy’s participation, and will feature interviews with many of the label's superstar artists and creative figures, along with rare performances and behind-the-scenes footage unearthed from Motown’s vaults and Gordy’s personal archives, said the network. 

R. Thomas Umstead
R. Thomas Umstead

R. Thomas Umstead serves as senior content producer, programming for Multichannel News, Broadcasting + Cable and Next TV. During his more than 30-year career as a print and online journalist, Umstead has written articles on a variety of subjects ranging from TV technology, marketing and sports production to content distribution and development. He has provided expert commentary on television issues and trends for such TV, print, radio and streaming outlets as Fox News, CNBC, the Today show, USA Today, The New York Times and National Public Radio. Umstead has also filmed, produced and edited more than 100 original video interviews, profiles and news reports featuring key cable television executives as well as entertainers and celebrity personalities.