Metromedia


Metromedia was an American media company that owned radio and television stations in the United States from 1956 to 1986 and controlled Orion Pictures from 1988 to 1997. Metromedia was established in 1956 after the DuMont Television Network ceased operations and its owned-and-operated stations were spun off into a separate company. Metromedia sold its television stations to News Corporation in 1985, and spun off its radio stations into a separate company in 1986. Metromedia then acquired ownership stakes in various film studios, including controlling ownership in Orion. In 1997, Metromedia closed down and sold its media assets to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.

History

Origins

The company arose from the ashes of the DuMont Television Network, the world's first commercial television network. DuMont had been in economic trouble throughout its existence, and seriously undermined when ABC accepted a buyout offer from United Paramount Theaters in 1953. The ABC-UPT deal gave ABC the resources to operate a national television service along the lines of CBS and NBC. DuMont officials quickly realized the ABC-UPT deal put their network on life support, and agreed in principle to merge with ABC. However, it was forced to back out of the deal when minority owner Paramount Pictures raised antitrust concerns. UPT had only spun off from Paramount four years earlier, and there were still doubts about whether the two companies were really separate.
By 1955, DuMont realized it could not compete against the other three networks and decided to wind down its operations. Soon after DuMont formally shut down network service in 1956, the parent firm DuMont Laboratories spun off the network's two remaining owned and operated stations, WABD in New York City and WTTG in Washington, D.C., to shareholders as the DuMont Broadcasting Corporation. The company's headquarters were co-located with WABD in the former DuMont Tele-Centre in New York.
In 1957, DuMont Broadcasting purchased two New York area radio stations, WNEW and WHFI, and later that year changed its name to the Metropolitan Broadcasting Corporation to distance itself from its former parent company. The following year, Paramount sold its shares in Metropolitan Broadcasting to Washington-based investor John Kluge, enough to give Kluge controlling interest. Kluge installed himself as chairman, and later increased his holdings to 75 percent. WABD's call letters were later changed to WNEW-TV to match its new radio sisters.

Expansion

Metromedia's first acquisitions included WHK-AM-FM in Cleveland ; the Foster & Kleiser outdoor advertising firm ; and KOVR in Stockton, California, Benedict Gimbel Jr.-owned WIP-AM-FM in Philadelphia, WTVH-TV in Peoria, Illinois, and WTVP television in Decatur, Illinois. In 1961 Metropolitan purchased KMBC-AM-TV in Kansas City, Missouri. Later that year the company's name was changed to Metromedia; the Metropolitan Broadcasting name was retained for its broadcasting division until 1967.
In separate 1963 deals the company expanded into Los Angeles, buying first KTTV and later KLAC and the original KLAC-FM. The company would later engineer a swap of FM facilities; the second KLAC-FM was established in 1965. Metromedia also entered the realm of live entertainment by purchasing the Ice Capades and the Harlem Globetrotters. Later in the decade Metromedia opened a television production center in Los Angeles, known as Metromedia Square, which served as the studio facility for numerous network programs. Metromedia also owned a TV production and distribution company called Metromedia Producers Corporation, established in 1968 from Wolper Productions. MPC produced and syndicated various programs and TV movies, most notably the game show Truth or Consequences and the 1972-86 version of The Merv Griffin Show. Metromedia spent the 1970s and the first half of the 1980s increasing its television and radio station portfolio, and continued to expand its syndication business.
Metromedia entered the record business in 1969 with the launch of the Metromedia Records label, whose biggest-selling artist was Bobby Sherman. The label was also notable as having issued the first two studio albums of Peter Allen, Peter Allen and Tenterfield Saddler. The label was closed as of 1974. Allen's Tenterfield Saddler, the title song of which has become an Australian standard, was acquired and reissued by A&M Records in 1978.
In 1976, similar to the more successful SFM Holiday Network of syndicated stations launched two years later, Metromedia teamed up with Ogilvy and Mather for a proposed linking of independent TV stations termed MetroNet. The proposed programming would consist of several Sunday night family dramas, on weeknights a half-hour serial and a gothic series similar to Dark Shadows, and on Saturdays a variety program hosted by Charo. The plans for MetroNet failed when advertisers balked at Metromedia's advertising rate, which was only slightly lower than the Big Three's and low national coverage, leaving for another similar operation, Operation Prime Time.
In 1982, Metromedia made its biggest broadcasting purchase when it acquired WCVB-TV in Boston for $220 million, which at the time was the largest amount ever spent on a single television station property. Two years later, John Kluge bought out Metromedia's shareholders and took the company private.

1985-86 divestitures

On May 4, 1985, Kluge announced the sale of Metromedia's television stations, and Metromedia Producers Corp., to News Corporation and 20th Century Fox Film Corporation for $3.5 billion. With the exception of WCVB-TV, all of the former Metromedia stations formed the nucleus of the Fox Broadcasting Company, while MPC was folded into 20th Century Fox Television. The transactions became official on March 6, 1986. Because of these transactions, and the fact that Metromedia was originally spun off from the DuMont Television Network, radio personality Clarke Ingram has suggested that the Fox network is a revival or at least a linear descendant of Dumont.
Kluge also sold Metromedia's outdoor advertising firm, the Harlem Globetrotters, and the Ice Capades in 1985, sold Metromedia Records to Tom Ficara and Combined Artists, and spun off the radio stations into a separate company

Legal battles

In retaliation for a lawsuit brought by Paul Winchell, who sought the rights to his children's television program Winchell-Mahoney Time, which was produced at KTTV in Los Angeles during the middle 1960s, it is believed that KTTV management destroyed the program's video tapes. In 1989 Winchell was awarded nearly $18 million as compensation for Metromedia's capricious behavior.
In 1983, Christine Craft, a former evening news co-anchor at KMBC-TV in Kansas City, sued Metromedia on claims of fraud and sexual discrimination. After spending eight months at KMBC-TV in 1981, she was demoted to reporting assignment after a focus group study claimed Craft was "too old, too unattractive and not deferential to men" in the eyes of viewers. Craft declined the reassignment and subsequently resigned from the station. Craft initially won her case, though she lost on appeal at the U.S. Supreme Court.

Ownership of Orion Pictures

On May 22, 1986, Metromedia acquired a 6.5% stake in Orion Pictures Corporation; a movie and television studio. By December, the stake in Orion's ownership was increased to 9.3% to 12.6% and on April 12, 1988, to 44.1% On May 20, 1988, Metromedia acquired Sumner Redstone's share for $78 million, holding a majority stake in Orion Pictures worth nearly 67%. In 1995, Kludge merged Orion, MCEG Sterling, the holding company Actava, and Metromedia into a new Metromedia. In 1996, Metromedia acquired Motion Picture Corporation of America and The Samuel Goldwyn Company. On April 11, 1997, Metromedia sold Orion/Goldwyn and MPCA to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer for $573 million and was closed on July 10 of the same year. In 1998, MPCA broke apart from MGM becoming independent again.

Typeface

Beginning in 1967, Metromedia's television stations began utilizing a sans-serif typeface for their on-air logo. The typeface was a proprietary one called Metromedia Television Alphabet, which was as distinctive as the typeface employed by Group W unit of Westinghouse Electric for its TV and radio stations beginning in 1963. Metromedia Television Alphabet was used for the channel numbers of its television stations until 1977, when another typeface modeled slightly after the Futura family was introduced.

Former Metromedia stations

Stations are listed alphabetically by state and city of license.
Notes:

Radio stations

City of License/MarketStationYears ownedCurrent ownership
Los AngelesKLAC 5701963–1984iHeartMedia
Los AngelesKLAC-FM 102.71963–1965KIIS-FM, iHeartMedia
Los AngelesKLAC-FM/KMET 94.71965–1986KTWV, Entercom
San Francisco - OaklandKNEW 9101966–1980KKSF, iHeartMedia
San Francisco - OaklandKSAN-FM 94.91966–1981KYLD, iHeartMedia
Denver - BoulderKHOW 6301981–1985iHeartMedia
Washington, D.C.WASH-FM 97.11968–1986iHeartMedia
Tampa - St. Petersburg - ClearwaterWWBA-FM 107.31981–1986WXGL, Cox Media Group
ChicagoWDHF/WMET-FM 95.51972–1983WEBG, iHeartMedia
BaltimoreWCBM 6801963–1986WCBM Maryland Inc.
BaltimoreWCBM-FM 106.51963–1968WWMX, Entercom
DetroitWOMC 104.31972–1986Entercom
Kansas City, MissouriKMBC–980 11961–1967KMBZ, Entercom
Kansas City, MissouriKMBC-FM/KMBR 99.7 **1962–1967KZPT, Entercom
New York CityWNEW 11301957–1986WBBR, Bloomberg L.P.
New York CityWNEW-FM 102.7 **1958–1986Entercom
PhiladelphiaWIP 6101959–1986WTEL, Beasley Broadcast Group
PhiladelphiaWIP-FM/WMMR 93.31959–1986Beasley Broadcast Group
ClevelandWHK 1420 21958–1972Salem Media Group
ClevelandWHK-FM/WMMS 100.7 21958–1972iHeartMedia
Dallas - Fort WorthKRLD 1080 31978–1986Entercom
Seattle - TacomaKJR 9501980–1984iHeartMedia

Other notes:
This is a list of television programs that were produced and/or syndicated by Metromedia Producers Corporation :