Gordon T. Hughes II
Former President & CEO
American Business Media
Partner/Producer
Direct from Broadway
DFB Productions, LLC
Gordon T. Hughes II joined DFB Productions, LLC as partner and producer in July 2010. Founded the same year, DFB manages DFB Partners 1 LP, a private partnership organized to invest in theatrical productions on Broadway, in London’s West End, and other venues throughout the United States and internationally.
DFB’s management team - including Emmy-winner Hughes, international theater producer Richard Levi who began his career as a professional dancer and choreographer, director Frank “Bud” Martin, with such credits as direct-from-Broadway’s The Story of My Life and On Golden Pond, and former U.S. Senate staffer David Nichols - is comprised of successful executives with extensive business and theatrical backgrounds. Combined, this team has produced such hits as Dirty Dancing, Legally Blonde, and Burn the Floor.
Current DFB projects include the Tony-Award-nominated play, Time Stands Still, starring Laura Linney and Christina Ricci and the dazzling satirical comedy, La Bęte, starring Tony- and Emmy-Award-winning David Hyde Pierce and directed by Tony-Award-winning Matthew Warchus.
Prior to joining DFB, Hughes was president and CEO of American Business Media, which he joined in July 1994. During his tenure at ABM, Hughes leveraged his 25 years of advertising experience and business acumen to reposition the association from a traditional publishing group to a global organization of business information providers.
Hughes recharged the business media industry's influence in Washington, D.C. and under his leadership, American Business Media has won major victories before the Postal Rate Commission. Prior to leaving American Business Media, he positioned the association's presence in Washington to address key issues affecting magazine publishers, including potential online privacy legislation.
In addition, Hughes developed a number of initiatives to raise the visibility and stature of business media. These include the prestigious Creative Excellence in Business Advertising (CEBA) Awards, the Timothy White Award for editorial courage and integrity and the Gertrude R. Crain Award for women in business media.
Prior to joining ABM, served as vice president of marketing for CBS Stations Division. While at CBS, he won two Emmy Awards as a producer of major sports and entertainment events, as well as the Alfred I. DuPont-Columbia Broadcast News Award. Earlier in his career, Hughes was vice president and station manager at WCAU-TV in Philadelphia, and director of sales at KCBS-TV in Los Angeles.