Rachel Lichtman (born December 1, 1973) is an American visual artist, comedy writer, and filmmaker, who created the independent, retro-futuristic channel Network 77 in 2017. Network 77 evolved into Programme 4, an audio/visual channel in the analog aesthetic of television and radio of the 60s and 70s, “broadcasting” from the fictional town of Golden Sands. Her work features a variety of comedy and music programming, and has been described as "funny as classic SCTV and as retro-accurate as Documentary Now!" Lichtman's style is defined by its deeply referenced pop culture humor and vintage design.
In addition to television “programming blocks” of the variety/sketch series, she created three episodes of the scripted comedy audio series Easy AM 66, a satirical beautiful music format radio broadcast also set in Golden Sands. The third installment, titled Easy AM 66 Promotional Album Vol. 3, was released on Bandcamp in 2024. She has produced, directed and edited full-length music programs such as Starpop, Musique, and Ted Leo Presents in a vintage Euro-television style. She has also designed title sequences for The Smothers Brothers and Hanging With Doctor Z.
Lichtman has directed music videos for Ted Leo, Juliana Hatfield, Buffalo Tom, Aimee Mann, Michael Penn, Local H, Laura Jane Grace, The Haden Triplets and others.
Lichtman is also the co-writer and director of Yesterday, Today and TAMAR an ongoing NYC cabaret show starring Tammy Faye Starlite as fictional Israeli sensation Tamar, a character Lichtman and Starlite developed through invented European television and commercial appearances.
In 2015, Lichtman and Sarah Thyre created the Something Cool podcast, covering underappreciated female artists and comedians. As an outgrowth of her work on that podcast, she co-produced a tribute concert called Ode to Bobbie Gentry: Celebrating a Living Legend in 2018 with Tara Murtha. She also directed the unreleased documentary The Guys Who Wrote 'Em, a look into Tommy Boyce & Bobby Hart, creators of the sound of The Monkees. Lichtman did the visual design for The Monkees' tours in 2011 and 2012 after contributing to the liner notes for the Head reissue in 2010.
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