Billie Rae Bates

A journalist of both print and broadcast as well as a longtime author, Billie Rae Bates' career has taken her on many winding paths. After earning a bachelor's degree from Michigan State University's School of Journalism, she spent a decade in the daily newspaper industry, first at the Wausau (Wis.) Daily Herald, then to The Saginaw (Mich.) News and The Detroit News. She managed publications at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan in downtown Detroit, then served as the director of communication at a northern Michigan health system. She worked ministry in the South as the communications manager of a high-profile church, then moved into the federal government space to manage websites. All the while she has kept up her writing projects. She indulges her love of classic television through the BRBTV series of fact books and reports, covering all aspects of greats such as "Dallas," "Dynasty," "The Dukes of Hazzard," "Wonder Woman" and "The Green Hornet," with interviews, episode guides and fun facts. Since 2006, she has fed the BRBTV News Blog focusing on classic TV shows, and she's also blogged for other outlets. She has reviewed books for Foreword Reviews, and she's the creator, writer and photographer of two yearlong photo essays, the much-discussed "My Mother's Clothing" and "The Inexplicable Lives of Dolls." She has written four novels: two set in Detroit, another set in the South, and a fourth that is science fiction and geared toward younger readers. She also writes in the true crime genre, covering Detroit cases. BRB's on-screen journalism has included years of hosting and correspondent work for TV shows in Detroit and Washington, D.C., interviewing pros and covering events in the comic book and pop culture industries. In 2013, she launched the highly geeky collectibles series "Terrific TV Toys" on YouTube, then the spinoff series "Terrific non-TV Toys" in 2018. She's done a touch of acting, as well. A Michigan native, BRB has also lived in Atlanta and Washington, D.C., but will always dearly love Detroit. Learn more at BillieRae.com and BRBTV.com.