By David Kennard
The MORNING NEWS
dkennard@cableone.net
PARIS, France — As a kid growing up in Blackfoot, Paul Zilk had dreams like every other child.
He played in the high school band and was a varsity tennis player at Blackfoot High School. He even worked on the school newspaper for a time.
But on Sunday, the 1975 BHS student class president will stand on a podium before some of the world’s most notable entertainment industry leaders and be awarded one of the most prestigious honors bestowed by the French government.
The Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (Order of Arts and Literature) is given to individuals who have demonstrated significant contributions to the world of arts and literature.
France, considered by many as the center of world culture, presents the award to only a limited number of individuals every year.
And when the French Minister of Culture Christine Albanel pins the medal on the Zilk’s lapel Sunday he will join an exclusive group of entertainment and cultural leaders that include Martin Scorcese, Clint Eastwood, Bob Dylan, George Clooney, Bruce Willis, Leonardo DiCaprio, and many others both in and out of the spotlight.
“This is one of the most important honors of my life,” Zilk said from his office in Paris.
Zilk, the CEO of Reed MIDEM, one of the world’s leading tradeshow and events companies, is based in Paris. The company is responsible for three major shows devoted to television and music businesses.
Similar to the annual film festival in Cannes, France, which honors filmmakers and actors, Reed MIDEM focuses on the business side of entertainment and culture at events in Cannes and other locations throughout the world.
Zilk, who has lived in Europe for the last 21 years, the last five in France, said the honor he will receive on Sunday is made more special because of his early years growing up in Blackfoot.
He said a few key events took him from his small eastern Idaho roots to a life in international business. And, he said, he doesn’t mind standing as an example to young people who have a desire to persue similar dreams.
“We’re a humble town,” Zilk said of Blackfoot. “And maybe there is a kid out there who wants to do something more.”
During his senior year at Blackfoot High School, Zilk met up with a college student who he learned was going to Princeton University. Through a conversation Zilk learned that “for someone with good grades, there is another world out there.”
He spoke to his school counselors and decided he wanted to attend an ivy league school, he said. He chose Harvard.
When he entered college he said he wanted to enter politics, having always considered U.S. Sen. Frank Church (D-Idaho) one of his idols.
He worked as a college intern for Gov. Cecil Andrus in Boise, but eventually changed tracks and entered Harvard Business School.
After graduating with an MBA degree, he worked in various marketing positions for several notable companies in the U.S.
From 1992 to 2000, Zilk headed the international business of the National Basketball Association (NBA), where he established and managed NBA offices throughout Europe, Asia, Latin America, the Middle East and Australia, according to his public biography.
“When I talk to kids that’s what they like the most,” he said.
He has worked in his most recent position with Reed MINEM for the last seven-plus years in France, where he has raised his family.
“My wife is French, my kids are French, but I never forgot what happened to me,” Zilk said.
He said he has fond memories of growing up in Idaho, where he attended Jason Lee Memorial Methodist Church with his family. “We still consider that our church.”
He said the high honor by the French government is exciting for him, not so much because of the prestige, but more because he remembers how a chance encounter sparked an interest that lead him to a life he never dreamed of as kid growing up in Blackfoot.
