TCA17: HBO Sets Documentary Lineup

Pasadena -- HBO will rollout a lineup of diverse documentaries during the first six months of 2017, including a profile of billionaire philanthropist Warren Buffett.

Becoming Warren Buffett will debut Jan. 30 and portrays the improbable story of an ambitious, numbers-obsessed boy from Nebraska who became one of the richest, most respected men in the world, according to the network.

Other documentaries scheduled for the first half of 2017 include Unlocking The Cage (Feb. 20), which explores animal rights lawyer Steven Wise’s unprecedented challenge to break down the legal wall that separates animals from humans; Solidarity: Inside Red Onion State Prison (Feb. 6), an exploration of the lives of inmates and corrections officers in one of America's most notorious “supermax” prisons; Cries From Syria (March 13), a searing look at the five-year conflict in Syria; Beware The Slenderman (Jan. 23), which explores how the dark corners of the Internet can influence society’s most impressionable young consumers of the media; and Mommy Dead And Dearest,  which profiles the story of Dee Dee Blanchard and Gypsy Rose Blanchard, touching on child abuse, mental illness and forbidden love.

On Feb. 13, Eagles of Death Metal: Nos Amis (Our Friends) will spotlight the American rock band as they recount their experiences before and after the Nov. 2015 terrorist attack in Paris that claimed 89 lives at their Bataclan Theatre concert; and, on Feb. 27, Tickled follows journalist David Farrier, who stumbles upon a bizarre “competitive endurance tickling” video online, wherein young men are paid to be tied up and tickled.

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.