BRAVO LAUNCHES "HIDDEN HOWIE: THE PRIVATE LIFE OF A PUBLIC NUISANCE" - A NEW GENRE OF UNSCRIPTED REALITY BASED ON THE LIFE OF COMEDIAN HOWIE MANDEL

BRAVO LAUNCHES "HIDDEN HOWIE: THE PRIVATE LIFE OF A PUBLIC NUISANCE" - A NEW GENRE OF UNSCRIPTED REALITY BASED ON THE LIFE OF COMEDIAN HOWIE MANDEL

THE HALF-HOUR HYBRID SERIES PREMIERES ON THURSDAY, AUGUST 18

NEW YORK - June 13, 2005 - "Hidden Howie: The Private Life of a Public Nuisance" is the first series juxtaposing "hidden-camera" reality with unscripted, improvisational comedy. The six episode half-hour series is based on the life of comedian Howie Mandel. "Hidden Howie: The Private Life of a Public Nuisance" takes a look inside the comic mind as it shows Howie acting out hilarious scenes inspired by his real life and how his daily interactions drive the creative process behind his hidden camera segments. "Hidden Howie: The Private Life of a Public Nuisance" premieres on Thursday, August 18 at 11 p.m., ET/PT.

"As the ninth and final original series launch of the summer, 'Hidden Howie: The Private Life of Public Nuisance' is a perfect companion to our hit series 'Celebrity Poker Showdown,' and supports our commitment to original programming during the eleven o'clock hour -- a timeslot which has quickly become part of cable's primetime," said Lauren Zalaznick, President, Bravo. "Bravo continues to put forward new and unexpected series for our viewers, in this case the network's first ever comedy/reality hybrid."

For the past fifteen years, Howie has spent his professional life touring the country doing standup comedy and creating comedic hidden camera videos in his suburban LA neighborhood. Many of these pieces end up on "The Tonight Show," in his standup tour at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas, on "Live with Regis and Kelly," or entertaining people in the privacy of his own home. The series intermingles these comical hidden camera pieces starring real life unsuspecting people who have no idea they are part of a half-hour comedy with an unscripted depiction of Howie's actual life. Actors who play some of the characters in Howie's world include Julie Warner as his wife and Estelle Harris as Nana. Howie's real life son, Alex Mandel, plays himself. "Hidden Howie: The Private Life of a Public Nuisance" deals with the veracity of Howie's family life as husband, father and grandson, coping with everyday relationships and his own personal quirks, including his intense fear of germs. Throughout the series, various guest stars including Jay Leno, Marlee Matlin, Jillian Barberie and John Mendoza will appear.

In "Hidden Howie: The Private Life of a Public Nuisance" viewers will see scenes inspired by Howie's own life.

They include:

- Howie's obsession with hidden camera pieces gets his son into serious trouble at school as he imitates his dad and creates a hidden camera piece of his own;

- Howie's wife Julie is concerned with his health and forces Howie to go to the gym where he's more interested in getting hidden camera segments than exercising;

- Howie's life as an obsessive-compulsive germaphobe, who is afraid to touch pretty much anything;

- Howie's wife chokes on a fish bone after he plays a practical joke on her and they must rush her to the hospital.

"Hidden Howie: The Private Life of a Public Nuisance" is produced for Bravo by 3 Arts Entertainment. Michael Rotenberg and Howie Mandel are co-executive producers.

Bravo is the cable network that plugs people into arts, culture and pop culture with original programming, movies and by showing a whole different side of celebrities. Currently available in more than 79 million homes, Bravo is known for breaking exciting new personalities, shaking up the way we look at style, media, fame and Hollywood, pulling back the curtain on the creative process and making influential and inventive original programming. Its critically acclaimed and award-winning original programming includes "Inside the Actors Studio," "Celebrity Poker Showdown," "Project Greenlight," as well as the 2004 Emmy winner for Outstanding Reality Program, "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy." The network's other hits include "Project Runway," "Blow Out" and "Sports Kids Moms & Dads.

Bravo is a program service of NBC Universal Cable Entertainment, a division of NBC Universal one of the world's leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production, and marketing of entertainment, news, and information to a global audience. Bravo has been a NBC Cable Network since December 2002 and was the first television service dedicated to film and the performing arts when it launched in December 1980.For more information visit www.bravotv.com.