Template:Realworld Mel Harris (ca. 1943–6 September 2008) was a television executive who, as part of Paramount Television, launched Star Trek: The Next Generation in 1987. During his 14-year tenure as a top executive at Paramount, Harris helped to popularize and modernize both the home video market and the first-run syndication business. He later headed the television division and home video operations at Sony Pictures Entertainment, eventually becoming the company's co-president and chief operating officer.
Harris was born in Arkansas City, Kansas, and received his doctorate in mass communications from Ohio University in 1971. He was awarded the Bronze Star for serving as the commander of a combat photography unit in the Army Signal Corps during Vietnam. He began his broadcasting career as a radio announcer, and after managing local television stations in Cleveland and Philadelphia, Harris joined Paramount in 1977.
In 1978, Harris was part of the team assigned to form a television network for Paramount. The centerpiece of this new network's line-up was to have been Star Trek: Phase II. Ultimately, however, the plans for both the Paramount network and Phase II were abandoned, with the pilot for the latter project becoming Star Trek: The Motion Picture.
Harris helped to create the home video sell-through market by convincing Paramount to sell low-priced videos directly to customers for purchase rather than just for renting. Harris later helped launch USA Networks and handled Paramount's launch of cable and satellite channels overseas. Harris resigned from Paramount in 1991 just as Brandon Tartikoff was named the studio's chairman.
In 1992, Harris joined Sony Pictures Entertainment, where he headed the studio's television division and later oversaw their home video operations. He took Son'ys Columbia TriStar Television into firstrun syndication before a power struggle forced him to leave in 1995. He returned to Sony in 1999 as co-president and chief operating officer, retiring in 2002.
Harris died of cancer at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles on 6 September 2008.