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Welcome to Thoughtnami, a strange blend of commentary and instantaneous dialogue written by Jeff Harris, webmaster of The X Bridge
Posts tagged Warner Bros.
Memo to self: Forward this trade ad from 1957 to the powers-that-be at Cartoon Network and Warner Bros. Still relevant in 2012 as it was 55 years ago. (Via Don M. Yowp)

Memo to self: Forward this trade ad from 1957 to the powers-that-be at Cartoon Network and Warner Bros. Still relevant in 2012 as it was 55 years ago.

(Via Don M. Yowp)

Tagged: Bugs Bunny, Cartoon Network, Warner Bros, .
tralfaz.blogspot.com   17 ♥ 11.01.12
fredwich replied to your post: Maybe It’s Time For Warner Bros To Make Their Own Channels
On the other hand, I think Warner might up the ante in its collaboration with CBS. I think those two are meant for each other.

You’d think. They do tend to work together more often than most. The CW is a joint venture between Warner Bros. and CBS, and CBS and Turner share some sports rights, particularly the NCAA Basketball package, plus the biggest scripted shows on broadcast TV are Warner Bros-made shows for CBS. 

I think if CBS really did go independent from National Amusements, Warner Bros would, no doubt, go after them. I still believe that if Ted Turner could have bought the network back in the 1980s, he would have. That’s how close he was. Imagine how that would have turned out.

Tagged: CBS, Warner Bros, Turner, .
10.19.12

Maybe It’s Time For Warner Bros To Make Their Own Channels

Speculation time.

I think in about seven, maybe eight years, Warner Bros Entertainment is going to reexamine television and launch three general entertainment channels that they’ll operate independently. 

One will be a basic general entertainment channel like USA, the other will be a basic cable movie channel/drama outlet ala AMC, and the other will be a kid-friendly/family cable network.

The reason I’m speculating this is because there is a HUGE disconnect between Warner Bros. and Turner. 

Let me explain.

Turner has TBS, TNT, and Cartoon Network. They are a part of the monolithic Time Warner empire as is Warner Bros. Entertainment. One would think the Turner outlets would be mostly filled with programming from their sibling company, right? Well, not really. 

Warner Bros’ live-action programming and films are mostly on ABC Family (Disney) and Nickelodeon (Viacom). Warner Bros’ library of classic holiday specials are an annual staple of ABC Family’s 25 Days of Christmas as are the Harry Potter movies which tend to come on every other weekend. The Hub has more modern-era (post 1990) Warner Bros-produced animation than Cartoon Network, especially now that CN cut half of the modern WB-made shows from the lineup putting three of them on hiatus for some reason.  

And while online programming will continue to grow more and more each year, Warner Bros (and every media company out there) will realize there’s still a place for television, and right now, the television side of Time Warner, namely Turner, isn’t seeing eye-to-eye with Warner Bros. It’s been that way since the AOL merger mostly because that toxic union created a schism that has not been repaired by any stretch. Most of the Turner hierarchy were given the boot (including Ted Turner himself) and replaced by AOL execs for the most part. The AOL side took over much of what was going on and ended up damaging the company.

And while the AOL side has been purged for the most part and the companies do tend to work together on occasion, the scabs are still fresh, and every now and then, someone picks at them causing a bigger sore in the end.

Right now, the Turner side is picking at the scabs, and what’s left behind is really, really ugly.

So, maybe it is time for Warner Bros. to create their own TV outlets in the US outside of Turner and for both parties to be on their own for the most part.

If not, maybe Time Warner could go the way of Viacom and CBS and become separate companies again. 

Tagged: television, media, Time Warner, Turner, Warner Bros, .
3 ♥ 10.19.12

So, we’re going with the 1923 date as the year you guys started instead of 1916 or 1905? Okay, I’ll roll with it.

Warner Bros is celebrating their 90th anniversary next year with a whole heap of events and whatnot. 

Ah, yes, Warner Bros, a third of your legacy was actually brought in by your 1995 purchase of Turner Entertainment. A good portion of the celebration will come from the Turner side of the company, including releasing The Wizard of Oz in 3D next year.

That’s one of the MGM titles now, apparently, Warner Bros, like Tom and Jerry and countless others. 

Here’s the press release:

Burbank, Calif., October 3, 2012 — One of the most respected, diversified and successful motion picture studios in the world, Warner Bros. began when the eponymous brothers

– Harry, Albert, Sam, and Jack — incorporated on April 4, 1923. Four years later, the release of The Jazz Singer, the world’s first “talkie,” set a tone of innovation and influence that would forever become synonymous with the Warner Bros. brand. Soon to be 90, Warner Bros. continues to entertain the world with films passionately produced, selectively acquired, carefully preserved and impeccably curated for both the casual and ultimate movie lover to enjoy forever.

As a result of all the films the studio has produced, co-produced (with numerous partners), acquired and distributed, Warner Bros. now boasts the largest film library in the world – 6,800 feature films, with 2,000 films currently available on DVD and Blu-ray™. The library includes 22 Academy Award®*-winning Best Pictures (the most in Oscar®history), and leading franchises such as Harry Potter™, Batman™, Lord of the Rings™,The Matrix and Superman™.

Beginning in January, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Group (WBHEG) will launch a major Anniversary initiative that will continue through year-end 2013. This includes the release of seven new collections, including two limited and numbered anniversary collections — 100 films on DVD and 50 films on Blu-ray™, both the largest collections ever released, to date, in their respective formats. The year-long celebration will also include several stand-alone releases of new-to-format classics on Blu-ray™ for the first time, including The Jazz Singer,  all three James Dean films (East of Eden, Rebel Without a Cause, Giant), Cabaret, and Academy Award®Best Picture Winners Grand Hotel (1932),Mrs. Miniver (1943),and Driving Miss Daisy (1990).

 

The Collections

The Best of Warner Bros. 100 Film DVD Collection*: 100 movies including all 22 of Warner Bros. library’s Best Picture ™ Winners and two new documentaries (details below) on 55 discs presented in book style premium packaging.

The Best of Warner Bros. 50 Film Blu-ray™ Collection* includes 50 movies and the two new documentaries on 52 discs, also presented in book style premium packaging. It will introduce several new-to-Blu-ray film titles, including Grand Hotel, Mrs. Miniver, and Driving Miss Daisy.

Both of the above are limited and numbered collections and each includes a collectible poster and series of art cards featuring movie poster designs created by legendary American graphic designer Bill Gold.

Gold, who worked with Hollywood’s greatest filmmakers, including Clint Eastwood, Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick, Elia Kazan, and Ridley Scott, had this to say:

“My 65-year career began with Yankee Doodle Dandy and Casablanca and continued on to every Clint Eastwood picture from Dirty Harry to Mystic River (and I came out of retirement to design the poster for J. Edgar). In my wildest dreams I could not have foreseen the world I would inhabit and the joy it would bring me over the years. Every poster I worked on had a story to tell, and I’m delighted to be able to share a sampling of some of them in these collections.”

The Best of Warner Bros. 20 Film DVD Collections will be released throughout the year in five separate sets. Each features a gem-packed collection of 20 essential movie classics in five major genres: Best Pictures (January), Musicals (February), Romance (April), Comedy (July) and Thrillers (September).

The Best of Warner Bros. Animation Collections will be released throughout the year in three separate animation sets.  Each features animation at its best in three key brands Hanna-Barbera  (May), Looney Tunes (June) and DC Comics (August).

The Best of Warner Bros. Superman Collection (May) features 9 essential Superman live action television and animated television shows in one collection.

Two New Documentaries to Celebrate Warner Bros. 90th Anniversary

Created specially for this anniversary, Tales from the Warner Bros. Lot isa full-length documentary that features some of Warner Bros.’ top talent and executives giving an inside look at the history of the studio. In on-the-lot interviews, stars including Clint Eastwood, Steve Carell, Morgan Freeman, Martin Sheen, along with current and former studio toppers Barry Meyer, Alan Horn, Bob Daly, and Terry Semel, and others, recount personal reflections and anecdotes about their experiences at the studio. Tales from the Warner Bros. Lot was produced by documentarian Gary Khammar (It’s So Audrey! A Style Icon) and producer Bill Gerber (Gran Torino).

Now, for the first time, home viewers can take the hugely popular Warner Bros Studio VIP Tour in this new documentary produced exclusively for the 90th Anniversary collections. In The Warner Bros. Lot Tour,an official WB Lot Tour Guide gives guests a “virtual” tram ride (of what some 200,000 annual visitors experience) — an extraordinary opportunity to see first-hand where movie magic happens at the world’s busiest motion picture and television studio. Unlike a theme park, the Tour represents a rare and intimate “behind-the-scenes” look at real Hollywood, winding through back lot streets, sound stages, sets and craft shops.

Okay, even though I have Superman 1 and 2 in a great collection, I want that Superman set as well as those animated sets, but it does seem that the MGM animated shorts get snubbed yet again. One of these days, I’d love to see Tex Avery shorts  that aren’t Droopy in a digital medium in my lifetime. 

That DC Comics collection intrigues me a little, but that Hanna-Barbera set coming in May? Curious about that one. Just hoping it showcases more HB characters. You know, the ones who that aren’t Tom and Jerry, The Flintstones, and Scooby-Doo. 

Have fun next year, Warner Bros. 

Tagged: Warner Bros, .
5 ♥ 10.03.12