Diversity Rules Magazine

4 Diversity Rules Magazine October 2016 In 2013, Tony Sawicki and Clo- ver Welsh, aka Clover Honey, created and launched a totally new and completely different magazine format series. e two envisioned a show focusing on pets and animals, a subject which both shared a passion for. e primary mission of Urban Animals is to educate people about animals and to encourage conservation, rescue, adoption, and responsible pet ownership. In addition to mingling with other animal lovers, meeting some interesting furred and feathered crea- tures, and enjoying music, drinks and wine, partygo- ers were also videotaped for a television segment on the show, giving attendees and their pets a chance for national TV exposure. Urban Animals will be made available to all 350 PBS affiliate member television stations across the United States this fall. If Urban Animals is not available in your area. Reach out to your local PBS station and request it.. JRK: Can you give Diversity Rules readers an idea of backgrounds of team members, where you are from and all that other good stuff? UA: Tony Sawicki is from Northern New Jersey and is the producer/director/writer/editor of Urban Animals. Before Urban Animals, Sawicki produced and directed a long running PBS television series called Under the Pink Carpet, an entertainment and nightlife news- magazine format show that aired for over ten years on PBS affiliated stations in the US, as well as in Canada and the Benelux territories of Europe. Sawicki holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from Fair- leigh Dickinson University and a Master's degree from Rutgers. He is the co-author of Danny Smashed, an intrigue novel about the crash, burn and subsequent re-invention of a tabloid celebrity heartthrob. Danny Smashed will be widely available on E-readers this De- cember. Clover Welsh lives in Jersey City, New Jersey and is the co-producer of Urban Animals. Clover was the Associate Producer and Drag Correspondent for the LGBT television news-magazine series Under the Pink Carpet. Historically, Clover is credited with being the very first transgender reporter on television. Clover has also appeared on TV on Discovery Network's Here at the Movies, on Here! Network's Here at the Movies, and on MNN/Time Warner's Gender Talk. His film credits include roles in My Dead Boyfriend, Shore ing, An Englishman in New York, Farm Girl in New York, and Between Love and Goodbye. Clo- ver also had a starring role in the off-Broadway play, When Joey Met Bobby. An avowed animal lover and bird-keeper, Clover was once employed as a Veterinary Technician and is currently a regular contributor to Urban Animals' online magazine. Robbyne Kaamil is from Brooklyn, NY and is the Executive Producer of Urban Animals. Before join- ing the show, Robbyne served as executive producer on an impressive roster of independent films and off- Broadway productions, and has also discovered and executed strategic media partnerships for clients across the globe. Enlisted by Ingrid Newkirk, the co-founder of PETA, Robbyne has written award winning pub- Urban Animals Coming This Fall to a PBS Staion Near YOU! By Jim Koury, Editor/Publisher Clockwise - Clover Welsh, Tony Sawicki, Dana Bryan, Hugo Lopez, Robbyne Kaamil Photo Credit: Phil Scaringi

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