Dick Clark Productions is an American television production company founded by entertainer Dick Clark. The studio primarily produces award shows and other music entertainment programs, including the Academy of Country Music Awards, the DCP-created American Music Awards, the Billboard Music Awards, Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve, the Golden Globe Awards, and So You Think You Can Dance?. Some of its earlier productions, such as American Bandstand, New Year's Rockin' Eve and Bloopers, were hosted by Clark himself. The company was sold to a group led by Daniel Snyder in 2007 for $150 million. Clark died on April 18, 2012 and in September of that year, his studio was sold again to Guggenheim Partners, Mandalay Entertainment and Mosaic Media Investment Partners for $350 million. Guggenheim's stake was later spun out to former president Todd Boehly. In 2016, Chinese conglomerate Wanda Group announced its intent to acquire DCP, but the deal was thrown out in early 2017 due to regulatory issues. The company has since become a part of Valence Media, which merged Boehly's entertainment and media assets with the film studio Media Rights Capital.
History
The Dick Clark radio show began syndication in the late 1950s as part of MARS Broadcasting. The name and lower-case stylization of Dick Clark Productions dates back to, at latest, 1964, when Dick Clark's public relations manager, Henry Rogers of Rogers & Cowan, suggested naming his production company after himself, so he could be more visible following American Bandstands move to Hollywood. Later, Clark rented a building on the Sunset Strip, in an area among visible, legendary clubs and landmarks. As Clark recounted in his 1976 book, Rock, Roll and Remember: "I hung up a very modest sign in lowercase print — dick clark productions — and started producing." Dick Clark Productions went public on NASDAQ in 1986. It was taken private in 2002 by an investment group that included Mosaic Media Group and Caisse de dépôt et placement du Québec. Mandalay Entertainment bought CDP's stake in 2004. On June 19, 2007, Dick Clark Productions was sold to Daniel Snyder, Washington Redskins owner and former chairman of Six Flags, for $175 million. After founder Dick Clark's death on April 18, 2012, Snyder commented that he was proud when he purchased Dick Clark Productions, adding that Clark was "in every sense of the word, a giant." Until 2012, Dick Clark Productions was majority owned by Red Zone Capital Management, a Daniel Snyder-controlled private equity firm, with a 40 percent stake held by Six Flags. The week of June 13, 2012, Red Zone confirmed a possible sale of the company, and that investment bank Raine Group had been tapped to determine possible suitors. Rumored suitors included CORE Media Group, whose 19 Entertainment produced So You Think You Can Dance with DCP, and Ryan Seacrest Productions, whose namesake founder worked with and was mentored by Dick Clark. On September 4, 2012, Red Zone Capital Management reached an agreement to sell Dick Clark Productions to a group partnership headed by Guggenheim Partners, Mandalay Entertainment, and Mosaic Media Investment Partners for approximately $350 million. In December 2012, reports by several baseball insiders indicated that the Los Angeles Dodgers were in talks with Dick Clark Productions to potentially form a regional sports network for the team once its contract with Fox Sports West concluded. The Dodgers instead partnered with Time Warner Cable to launch Time Warner Cable SportsNet LA. In 2014, DCP took over production of the Billboard Music Awards, an awards show presented by Guggengeim-owned Billboard magazine. In July 2014, DCP settled a lawsuit with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association over its contracts with NBC to broadcast the Golden Globe Awards. On December 17, 2015, in response to losses across Guggenheim Partners, the company announced that it would spin out its media properties, including Dick Clark Productions, to a group led by its former president Todd Boehly. Variety reported that CEO Allen Shapiro was "likely to be a key player in the spinoff, given his experience in running entertainment firms". Boehly's stake is represented by Eldridge Industries. In September 2016, it was reported that the Chinese conglomerate Wanda Group was in talks to acquire Dick Clark Productions. This was confirmed on November 4, 2016, when Wanda Group announced the purchase for $1 billion. On February 20, 2017, Bloomberg News reported that the sale was facing regulatory issues in China. On March 10, 2017, an Eldridge Industries spokesperson stated that the sale had been scrapped. DCP received $50 million from Wanda Group in breakup and extension fees. The studio later sold Chinese rights to the Golden Globes and New Year's Rockin' Eve to STX Entertainment. On February 1, 2018, DCP merged with Billboard-Hollywood Reporter Media Group and Media Rights Capital to form Valence Media. Mike Mahan was appointed CEO of DCP. In November 2019, the company's COO and CFO Amy Thurlow became president of Dick Clark Productions, with Mike Mahan expected to become a vice chairman in 2020.
