Lisa Donovan

{{Infobox person

| name = Lisa Donovan

| image = Lisa Donovan by Pippa Lamb.jpg

| alt = Lisa Donovan photographed by Pippa Lamb in London, 2021.

| caption = Donovan in 2021

| image_size =

| birth_name =

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1980|6|11}}

| birth_place = New York City, U.S.

| other_names = LisaNova (on YouTube)

| occupation = Entrepreneur, actress, YouTuber

| spouse =

| relations =

| years_active = 2006–present

| notable_works =

| known_for = The Pattern, Maker Studios

| website = {{URL|https://thepattern.com/}}

}}

Lisa Donovan (born June 11, 1980) is an American former YouTuber. She is a founder of Zappin Productions,{{cite news | title = Lisa Nova On The Spot | url = http://www.adweek.com/aw/magazine/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003526215 | publisher = Adweek | first = Brian | last = Morrissey | date = January 1, 2007 | access-date = January 4, 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070930155649/http://www.adweek.com/aw/magazine/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003526215 |archive-date = September 30, 2007}} a production company that specialized in viral videos, as well as the founder and CEO of The Pattern, an astrology-based personality app.

Donovan began her career as one of YouTube's earliest content creators and was subsequently one of the co-founders of Maker Studios, a YouTube video network which was purchased in 2015 by The Walt Disney Company for $675M.{{cite news| url=https://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/268936/disney-paid-675m-for-maker-its-10q-discloses.html | work=Media Post| title=Disney Paid $675M For Maker, Its 10Q Discloses | date=February 12, 2016}} The network was absorbed by Disney in 2017 to become Disney Digital Network.

Early life

Donovan grew up in Scarsdale, New York.15 Minutes of Fame: Becoming a Star in the YouTube Revolution by Frederick Levy, P. 75 She was a student at the University of Colorado at Boulder before moving to Los Angeles, California.{{cite web|url=http://www.movieweb.com/tv/news/84/17384.php |title=Lisa Donovan Joins the Cast of MADtv |access-date=July 11, 2007 |date=January 31, 2007 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070714000738/http://www.movieweb.com/tv/news/84/17384.php |archive-date=July 14, 2007 }}

Career

= YouTube =

Donovan made her first YouTube channel in September 2005{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/user/lisa/about|title=lisa's channel – YouTube|work=YouTube|access-date=December 5, 2016}} and uploaded her first video, "Introducing LisaNova," a reel of facial clips in black-and-white accompanied by the Charles Aznavour song Non, je n'ai rien oublié, to YouTube on June 7, 2006.{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgMZpHF64K8 |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211213/JgMZpHF64K8 |archive-date=2021-12-13 |url-status=live|title=Introducing LisaNova – YouTube|work=YouTube|date=June 7, 2006|access-date=July 16, 2007}}{{cbignore}} She has parodied a number of celebrities and public figures; her impersonation of Sarah Palin was praised in Wired as "ruthlessly hilarious", and in 2008 Ralph Nader made a guest appearance in one of the skits.{{cite magazine| url=https://www.wired.com/underwire/2008/09/lisanova/ | magazine=Wired | first=Jenna | last=Wortham | title=YouTube Comedian LisaNova Packs Heat for Sarah Palin Spoof | date=September 2, 2008}} In a Forbes magazine article, YouTube founder Chad Hurley highlighted Donovan's success as an example of the changing paradigm of entertainment.{{cite news| url=https://www.forbes.com/forbes/2007/0507/068.html | work=Forbes | title=YouToo | date=May 7, 2007}} Donovan is also a co-creator of the popular YouTube channel 'The Game Station', which led to her co-founding the YouTube network Maker Studios.

= Acting =

Donovan was one of the first YouTube content creators to cross over to mainstream Hollywood when she was cast on MADtv in 2006.{{cite news| url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lisa-nova | work=Huffington Post | first=Lisa | last=Nova | title=Lisa Nova}} She debuted in a spoof of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, where she played Salma Hayek, the producer of the ABC comedy Ugly Betty, and Rosie O'Donnell.{{cite news |first=Andrew |last=Wallenstein |title=How YouTube Helped LisaNova Start Her Career |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/04/29/arts/television/29wall.html?ex=1183953600&en=96039ab2953175b5&ei=5070 |work=The New York Times |date = April 29, 2007 |access-date = July 7, 2007}} The episode aired on February 17, 2007. After signing a contract and only appearing in four episodes of MADtv, she left the following season.

In 2015, she played the role of the flight attendant in Jeremy Garelick's The Wedding Ringer.{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0884732/fullcredits/|title=The Wedding Ringer|website=IMDb }}

= Maker Studios =

Donovan co-founded and served as a board member for Maker Studios, a multi-channel network. Maker Studios was sold to The Walt Disney Company in 2014.{{cite web|url=https://techcrunch.com/2014/03/24/disney-maker-studios/|title=It's Official: Disney Acquires Maker Studios For At Least $500M |date=March 24, 2014 }}

= The Pattern =

Donovan is the founder and CEO of The Pattern, an astrology-based personality app.{{cite magazine| url=https://www.vanityfair.com/style/2021/05/the-pattern-lisa-donovan | magazine=Vanity Fair | title=The Pattern, Known for Its "Scarily Accurate" Approach to Astrology, Has Its Sights on Dating | date=May 19, 2021}} In 2021, Donovan announced that The Pattern intends to launch a dating product called Connect.{{cite news| url=https://www.wmagazine.com/culture/the-pattern-founder-lisa-donovan-connect-dating-app-summer-romance-astrology-reading | work=W Magazine | title=The founder of The Pattern and its new dating feature, Connect, decodes what's in store for a season of transformation | date=June 10, 2021}}