Description

What happens when a Brooklyn kid with an economics degree, a love of cooking, and a knack for technology helps create one of the biggest entertainment networks in the world—and doesn’t stop there? In this globe-spanning episode of Intangify, host Matthew Asbell sits down with Larry Namer, co-founder of E! Entertainment Network and author of Off Script: Recipes for Success Never Follow the Crowd.

Larry shares the unexpected, often hilarious, and always enlightening chapters of his multi-decade career—from underground cable splicing in Manhattan to media reform in Russia and China. Along the way, he’s built global empires and sparked cross-cultural entertainment revolutions.

In this episode, you’ll hear:

• How Larry’s accidental start in cable TV led to co-founding E! with just $2.5 million and a team of interns
• Why thinking “off script” fueled his success from tech consulting to global TV expansion
• Wild tales of bringing Western pop culture to post-Soviet Russia, including dancing over the graves of czars with David Bowie
• The birth of a Chinese media company—and how cultural empathy (and killer egg rolls) opened doors where others failed
• A candid take on AI’s role in media today, and why Larry believes it’s a gift—not a threat—to creativity and storytelling
• What it means to pair life’s stories with the food that defines them—and why Off Script is equal parts memoir and cookbook

Larry’s approach is proof that legacy is about more than success—it's about reinvention, trust, humor, and saying yes to the unfamiliar.

🔗 Grab Larry’s book: Off Script: Recipes for Success Never Follow the Crowd on Amazon

🎥 Follow his latest ventures at https://www.fashnclub.com/

Listen to more episodes on Mission Matters:
https://missionmatters.com/author/matthew-asbell