Gregg Willinger, President and CEO of Willinger Talent Agency, Inc. (“WTA”), founded the company in November 2000 after a highly successful 8½-year run at The Conrad Shadlen Corporation, a New York City based television news talent agency. He started with Shadlen in 1992 as an agent and within three short years, he was a Vice President and a member of the Board of Directors; one year later he was an equity partner in the company. In February 2001, WTA purchased substantially all of the assets of The Conrad Shadlen Corporation.
Known for his keen eye for talent, hard work ethic and superb negotiating skills, Willinger discovered a young woman in Green Bay, Wisconsin (70th market) and catapulted her into an anchor job at an O&O in New York. A few weeks later, he found a local news anchor in Manchester, New Hampshire and made a deal for her to become a CBS News correspondent. Shortly thereafter, he discovered a young man who had just finished college and put him into Raleigh and then to C/NET in San Francisco, where he hosted a nationally-syndicated technology news program for several seasons. That same young man, who has been a client of Gregg's for over 12 years, is currently an ABC News correspondent. He also found a local news anchor at a cable station on Long Island and moved her to anchor at MSNBC, then to anchor at Fox News. Willinger did these deals, plus many more, in his first six months of becoming an agent. In time, he also discovered sports reporters Trey Wingo and John Anderson in St. Louis and Tulsa, respectively. Both are now high-profile anchors at ESPN. Willinger also discovered Julie Banderas in 2000 reporting in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. He moved her to the Fox O&O in New York, then to Fox News, where she is currently the weekend host of “Big Story.”

Willinger has also helped his clients transition from news to sports, as he did for Lisa Salters. He discovered Lisa over 12 years ago as a local news reporter in Baltimore and moved her to ABC News as a correspondent. She now works as an ESPN correspondent and a sideline reporter for ABC Sports. When Gregg discovered George Smith in 1995, he was a news reporter at WNYW in New York. He has since worked as sports anchor and reporter at WHDH in Boston and is currently a correspondent for ESPN.

He has also moved his clients from local news to national hosting jobs as he did for Cathy Ballou, a weather anchor Willinger discovered in Dayton, Ohio, whom he ultimately moved to The Food Network, where she hosted a weekly prime time show for several seasons. He also did the deal for Trish Bergin, a morning anchor at a cable station on Long Island, to become the weekend co-host of Inside Edition, the nationally-syndicated newsmagazine produced by King World.

Willinger bases his success, in part, on lessons learned when he was a young lawyer practicing in New York City. “One of the canon of ethics for lawyers is to always put the clients’ interests ahead of your own. I have followed this rule as an agent. I work for my clients, not the other way around. I think some people mistakenly think the reverse is true.” Willinger has garnered a reputation as being one of the most selective agents in the country. “My standards are very high for myself, and I carry that over to the clients whom I represent. If I don’t feel passionate and enthusiastic about someone, I don’t think it would be fair to represent them.”

Born and raised in New Rochelle, New York, an honors graduate of the State University of New York at Binghamton with a B.A. in Political Science, he went on to acquire a Juris Doctor degree from the Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law in New York City, where he served on the Moot Court Board and was Captain of the basketball team. In his third year of law school he worked full time in the Agent Training Program at the William Morris Agency in New York City. It was there that he decided to pursue a career as a talent agent.

A member of the New York and Connecticut Bars, Willinger had been a litigation and entertainment lawyer in New York City for five years before becoming a talent agent. He conducted many bench and jury trials and appeared before several appellate courts. He has been much sought after to serve on panels for the NABJ, AAJA and NAHJ organizations involving topics such as contract negotiations, the role of an agent in television news and how to create an effective resume tape. Willinger has volunteered his time at these conventions to conduct one-on-one critiques of students’ and broadcast journalists’ resume tapes. He has also been an invited lecturer at prestigious universities such as NYU and Columbia University. Willinger also has the distinction of being the only agent in the country to play in the annual 3-on-3-basketball tournament sponsored by the NABJ every year since its inception in 1995. His team won the tournament in 1997!

Gregg lives on the North Shore of Long Island with his wife Jill and their three sons. He has served on the Advisory Board of the Make-a-Wish Foundation of Metro New York since 2005.

You can e-mail Gregg at gregg@willingertalent.com




Traci Wilkes, Esq. is an attorney/agent at WTA. Traci represents her clients with passion, intensity, and confidence and operates under the premise that her clients always come first. Born in New York and raised in New Jersey, Traci obtained her B.A. in Political Science from Rutgers University and her Juris Doctorate from Rutgers School of Law. During law school she was a production editor for the Women’s Rights Law Journal. As a member of the New York and New Jersey Bars, Traci began her legal career at the prestigious law firm of Arent Fox, LLC in New York, where she handled complex legal matters concerning labor law and workers compensation. She subsequently clerked for the Honorable John A. McLaughlin of the New Jersey Superior Court where she became a certified mediator.
With Traci's strong academic background and her rock solid experience as an attorney, the role as a TV news agent was a natural fit. "I love my job, and I love this industry. I believe that my passion gives my clients an extra advantage." Traci works hard in spotting young talent in small markets and moving them to larger markets. She manages talent in news and sports and negotiates television contracts in top 30 markets and networks. In her spare time, Traci enjoys tennis and travels to Martha's Vineyard with her husband Charles and their family and friends.

You can e-mail Traci at traci@willingertalent.com
875 Avenue of the Americas, Suite 1909 New York, New York 10001
Phone: 212.695.1950 Fax: 212.695.1855
info@willingertalent.com

©2006 Willinger Talent Agency, Inc.