Eugene Harold "Gene" Corman (September 24, 1927 – September 28, 2020) was an American film producer and agent. He was the younger brother of Roger Corman with whom he collaborated on several occasions.
68-422: Corman attended Beverly Hills High School and Standford University. He graduated in 1948 and went to work in the mailroom at MCA, enterting the film industry before his brother. Corman became an agent and vice president of MCA , representing such clients as Joan Crawford , Fred MacMurray , Richard Conte , Harry Belafonte , and Ray Milland . Corman also represented his brother negotiating the distribution deal for
136-634: A merger that April. Decca at the time owned Coral Records and Brunswick Records , and an 89% stake in Universal Pictures Company, Inc. On July 13, 1962, the United States Department of Justice filed suit against MCA, charging that its acquisition of Decca's controlling interest in Universal violated antitrust laws. To retain Universal, MCA would have to close its talent agency, which represented most of
204-411: A 2003 lawsuit representing former attendees of Beverly Hills High School, approximately 280 of which having suffered from cancers allegedly tied to the drilling operations. The oil site on the high school grounds is in the process of being shut down. According to the city's 2015 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the top employers in the city were: Beverly Hills is a general law city governed by
272-541: A TV station in New York City, WWOR-TV (renamed from WOR-TV), in 1987, from RKO General subsidiary of GenCorp , which was in the midst of a licensing scandal. In 1982, MCA decided to start out its video game unit, MCA Video Games, led by technicians of the MCA DiscoVision unit. In 1983, MCA Videogames, the video game division of MCA itself and video game developer/publisher Atari Inc. entered into
340-739: A behind-the-scenes glimpse of film and television production at Universal Studios. This established a footprint of what is now known as Universal Studios Hollywood theme park . Over the next few decades, similar parks were built and expanded under MCA for Universal Orlando Resort in Orlando, Florida and Universal Studios Japan in Osaka . In 1966, MCA formed Uni Records in Hollywood , California, and in 1967, MCA bought New York–based Kapp Records . That same year MCA also acquired guitar maker Danelectro and mall retailer Spencer Gifts . In 1967,
408-470: A female householder with no husband present, and 45.0% were non-families. 38.2% of all households were made up of individuals, and 11.3% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.24 and the average family size was 3.02. In the city, the population was spread out, with 20.0% under the age of 18, 6.3% from 18 to 24, 29.3% from 25 to 44, 26.8% from 45 to 64, and 17.6% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age
476-582: A fine career of his own." MCA Inc. MCA Inc. (originally an initialism for Music Corporation of America ) was an American media conglomerate founded in 1924. Originally a talent agency with artists in the music business as clients, the company became a major force in the film industry, and later expanded into television production. MCA published music, booked acts, ran the MCA Records music label, represented film, television and radio stars, and eventually produced and sold television programs to
544-458: A five-member city council , including the mayor and vice mayor. The city council hires a city manager to carry out policies and serve as executive officer. Until 2017, every odd-numbered year, either two or three members were elected for four-year terms. However, in 2017, the council changed its cycle to conform with statewide elections; the first such election was held in March 2020. Each April,
612-589: A movie division. The company began to acquire talent agencies, representing established actors such as James Stewart , Henry Fonda , Bette Davis , Jane Wyman and Ronald Reagan , whom Wasserman became very close with personally. In later decades, Wasserman became a guiding force in Reagan's political ambition by helping Reagan to win the presidency of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), then election as Governor of California in 1966, and finally President of
680-538: A number of businesses including Univision from 1992 to 2007. Perenchio was well known for his version of the Rules (up to twenty rules), which varied from year to year and had some internal contradictions (In 2006, Perenchio pointed out that while there was a "no nepotism" rule, he was aware his son was on the company's board of directors at the time). In 1939, based on Wasserman's recommendation, MCA's headquarters moved from Chicago to Beverly Hills, California , creating
748-655: A partnership to start out Studio Games, a joint venture that would develop video games based on MCA's film and television properties, most notably from then-sister Universal Pictures, and decided that they would give them access to all motion picture and television properties coming from the unit. In 1990, MCA hired Hanna-Barbera executive Jeff Segal to start out its MCA Family Entertainment arm (aka Universal Family Entertainment) and had Universal Cartoon Studios as its subsidiary. On November 26, 1990, Japanese multinational conglomerate Matsushita Electric Industrial Co., Ltd. agreed to acquire MCA for US$ 6.59 billion. MCA
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#1732787289273816-489: A population of 34,109. The population density was 5,973.1 inhabitants per square mile (2,306.2/km ). The racial makeup of Beverly Hills was 28,112 (82.4%) White (78.6% Non-Hispanic White), 746 (2.2%) African American , 48 (0.1%) Native American , 3,032 (8.9%) Asian , 12 (0.0%) Pacific Islander , 485 (1.4%) from other races , and 1,674 (4.9%) from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1,941 persons (5.7%). The Census reported that 33,988 people (99.6% of
884-543: A retail and dining hub attracting locals, and in some sections attracting visitors from across the region and the world. South Beverly Drive, i.e. south of Wilshire Blvd., is another dining and shopping hub. Houses south of Wilshire Boulevard have more urban square and rectangular lots, in general smaller than those to the north. There are also more apartment buildings south of Wilshire Boulevard than anywhere else in Beverly Hills. Beverly Hills Post Office (BHPO)
952-443: Is a designated historical landmark. In the early 1930s, Santa Monica Park was renamed Beverly Gardens and was extended to span the entire two-mile (3-kilometer) length of Santa Monica Boulevard through the city. The Electric Fountain marks the corner of Santa Monica Blvd. and Wilshire Blvd. with a small sculpture at the top of a Tongva kneeling in prayer. In April 1931, the new Italian Renaissance -style Beverly Hills City Hall
1020-616: Is still in operation. MCA's classical music catalog is managed by Deutsche Grammophon . Beverly Hills, California Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California , United States. A notable and historic suburb of Los Angeles , it is located just southwest of the Hollywood Hills , approximately 12.2 miles (19.6 km) northwest of downtown Los Angeles . Beverly Hills' land area totals 5.71 square miles (14.8 km ) and (together with
1088-1056: Is the name given to a section directly north of the Beverly Hills city limits that lies within the 90210 ZIP code, assigned to the Beverly Hills Post Office, but is part of the City of Los Angeles. Along with the Los Angeles communities of Bel-Air and Brentwood , Beverly Hills is one of the "Three Bs", a wealthy area in the Los Angeles Westside . Beverly Hills has a warm Mediterranean climate and receives an average 15 inches (380 mm) of rain per year. Summers are marked by warm to hot temperatures with very little wind, while winters are mild to moderate, with occasional rain alternating with periods of Santa Ana winds . Measurable snowfall has been recorded only in 1882, 1922, 1932, 1949 and 1958. The 2010 United States Census reported that Beverly Hills had
1156-563: The Beverly Wilshire Apartment Hotel (now the Beverly Wilshire Hotel) opened on Wilshire Boulevard between El Camino and Rodeo drives, part of the old Beverly Hills Speedway . That same year, oilman Edward L. Doheny finished construction of Greystone Mansion , a 55-room mansion meant as a wedding present for his son Edward L. Doheny Jr. The house is now owned by the city of Beverly Hills and
1224-598: The MCA Records label was established outside the United States and Canada to issue releases by the MCA group of labels. Decca, Kapp, and Uni were merged into MCA Records at Universal City, California in 1971; the three labels maintained their identities for a short time but were soon retired in favor of the MCA label. The first MCA Records release in the US was former Uni artist Elton John 's " Crocodile Rock " in 1972. In 1973,
1292-508: The New York Stock Exchange and was incorporated as MCA Inc. on November 10, 1958. A couple of years later, Alfred Hitchcock gave MCA his rights to Psycho and his television anthology in exchange for 150,000 shares, making him the third largest investor in MCA, and his own boss at Universal. On June 18, 1962, Decca Records shareholders agreed to MCA's buyout offer after the record label had entered into talks about
1360-568: The poverty line , including 9.5% of those under the age of 18 and 7.9% ages 65 or older. Beverly Hills is home to one Fortune 500 company, Live Nation Entertainment . Since August 22, 2011, the headquarters of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer has been located in Beverly Hills after a significant film history established close by on the main original studio lots in Culver City. The talent agencies United Talent Agency , William Morris Endeavor , Paradigm Talent Agency , The Gersh Agency , and Agency for
1428-533: The "flats" of Beverly Hills, which is a relatively flat area that slopes away from the hills, and includes all of Beverly Hills south of Sunset Boulevard and north of Santa Monica Boulevard . This area includes Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts . In a triangle between Santa Monica Bl., Wilshire Bl. and Crescent Drive is Downtown Beverly Hills also known as the Golden Triangle ,
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#17327872892731496-685: The Amalgamated Oil Company, bought the Hammel and Denker ranch, and began looking for oil. They did not find enough to exploit commercially by the standards of the time, though. In 1906, therefore, they reorganized as the Rodeo Land and Water Company, renamed the property "Beverly Hills", subdivided it, and began selling lots. The development was named "Beverly Hills" after Beverly Farms in Beverly, Massachusetts , and because of
1564-553: The City of Beverly Hills received the Livability Award from the United States Conference of Mayors for its Ambassador Program, which takes care of the city's homeless population. The Beverly Hills Community Dog Park was dedicated on September 6, 2016. Beverly Hills and the neighboring city of West Hollywood are together entirely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles. Beverly Hills is bordered on
1632-422: The Performing Arts are based in Beverly Hills. Hilton Hotels Corporation formerly had its corporate headquarters in Beverly Hills. The original headquarters of GeoCities (at first Beverly Hills Internet) was at 9401 Wilshire Boulevard in Beverly Hills. The large Beverly Hills Oil Field has four urban drilling islands, which drill diagonally into the earth underneath the city. One drilling island occasioned
1700-443: The United States in 1980. By the end of the 1930s, MCA had become the largest talent agency in the world, with over 700 clients, including movie stars, recording artists, Broadway actors, radio stars, and directors. The company's aggressive acquisition of clientele in all entertainment sectors earned MCA the nickname of "The Octopus". The company's activities led U.S. Department of Justice agents to investigate not only whether MCA
1768-432: The age of 23 and rose through the ranks of MCA for more than four decades, with Sonny Werblin as his right-hand man. Wasserman helped create MCA's radio show, Kay Kyser's Kollege of Musical Knowledge , which debuted on NBC Radio that same year. Following that success, Stein installed Wasserman in New York City in 1937, but Wasserman convinced him that Hollywood was the best place for the company's growth. The company
1836-604: The area. The city is well known for its Rodeo Drive shopping district that includes many designer brands. Throughout its history, the city has been home to many celebrities . It is noted for numerous hotels and resorts , including the Beverly Hilton and the Beverly Hills Hotel . The city has been featured in many movies, television series , music , and media , in the United States and internationally. After its initial settlement in 1828, Beverly Hills
1904-402: The city was 85.06% White , 1.77% African American , 0.13% Native American , 7.05% Asian , 0.03% Pacific Islander , 1.50% from other races , and 4.46% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 4.63% of the population. There were 15,035 households, out of which 24.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 43.8% were married couples living together, 8.1% had
1972-466: The company entered the book publishing business with the acquisition of G. P. Putnam's Sons . In 1979, it acquired ABC Records along with its subsidiaries Paramount Records , Impulse! Records , and Dot Records . ABC had acquired the Paramount and Dot labels when it purchased Gulf+Western 's record labels in 1974, then the parent company of Paramount Pictures . From 1983 to 1989, Irving Azoff
2040-583: The company he founded and Wasserman took over as chairman and chief executive officer, while Sidney Sheinberg was appointed president and chief operating officer of MCA. Other executives within MCA were Lawrence R. Barnett, who ran the agency's live acts division during its glory agency years in the 1950s and 1960s, and Ned Tanen , head of Universal Pictures . Tanen was behind Universal hits such as Animal House , and John Hughes 's Sixteen Candles and The Breakfast Club . MCA issued soundtrack albums for most films released by Universal Pictures. In 1975,
2108-436: The deal, MCA leased the studios back to Universal for $ 2 million a year, plus unlimited access to MCA's clients such as Jimmy Stewart, Rock Hudson , Doris Day and Alfred Hitchcock to make films for Universal. Stein, who by this time was the sole owner of MCA, decided to take the company public by giving 51% of his ownership of MCA to his employees, which included a 20% stake for Wasserman . The company went public on
Gene Corman - Misplaced Pages Continue
2176-410: The early 1970s, Gene Corman had his own producing unit at MGM . He later became vice-president of 20th Century Fox Television. According to Filmink "One of the side effects of Roger Corman’s fame was the relegation of his producer brother Gene, to the shadows of film history. This was both unfair and unfortunate since Gene not only played a crucial, often overlooked part in his brother’s story, he had
2244-498: The end of 1962, MCA assumed full ownership of Universal. In 1964, MCA entered the music publishing business when it acquired Lou Levy 's Leeds Music, and formed Universal City Studios the same year in effort to merge under one umbrella both Universal Pictures and its Revue Studios division, which was later reincorporated as Universal Television in 1966. On July 15, 1964, MCA established the Studio Tour , which provided guests
2312-627: The final Decca pop label release, " Drift Away ", a No. 5 pop hit by Dobie Gray , was issued. MCA had two failed mergers in 1969. Initially, it planned a merger with Westinghouse Electric Corporation but that collapsed in April, and in July, they announced a proposed merger with the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company , but this too was called off in September. In 1973, Stein stepped down from
2380-655: The grounds of the Doheny Ranch and developed it into the Trousdale Estates , convincing the city of Beverly Hills to annex it. The neighborhood has been home to Elvis Presley , Frank Sinatra , Dean Martin , Tony Curtis , Ray Charles , President Richard Nixon , as well as, in later years, Jennifer Aniston , David Spade , Vera Wang and John Rich . Following the 1979 Islamic Revolution in Iran , many Persian Jews settled in Beverly Hills. In
2448-554: The hills in the area. The Los Angeles Times reported on September 2, 1906: Percy H. Clark Company are managing the development of the foothill portion of the Hammel & Denker ranch for the Rodeo Land and Water Company (the Canfield-Huntington-Kerckhoff syndicate), to be known as Beverly Hills. No expense is being spared to make this a fine suburban district. . . . The property has been laid out on beautiful curved lines. The first house in
2516-614: The industry's biggest names (a select few handled by Wasserman personally). In reality, MCA's talent agency arm became defunct the day the DOJ filed the suit; dissolving it that October was a mere formality. MCA's now-former agents quickly formed new agencies, many of which are woven into the corporate fabric of today's talent management; Jerry Perenchio 's Chartwell Artists represented Elizabeth Taylor and Muhammad Ali . Former MCA agents Freddie Fields and David Begelman formed Creative Management Associates , another important new agency. By
2584-615: The late 1990s, the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (LACMTA) proposed to build an extension of the Metro D Line along Wilshire Boulevard and into Downtown Beverly Hills, but the city had opposed it. The D Line Extension will ultimately be completed by 2027 and will include a station at Wilshire Blvd and Rodeo Drive . In 2001, LACMTA then proposed a bus rapid transit route down Santa Monica Blvd., but this
2652-542: The latter's first film Monster from the Ocean Floor . Corman moved into producing in the late 1950s, making a number of movies with Bernard L. Kowalski and Robert L. Lippert as well as his brother, Roger . The Corman brothers set up Filmgroup Productions in 1959. Through the 1960s Gene Corman produced several films that his brother directed, including Tower of London , The Premature Burial , The Secret Invasion , Target Harry and Von Richthofen and Brown . In
2720-731: The midst of the 2015 drought , Beverly Hills was found to be one of the largest water consumers in California. As a result, it was asked by the state to reduce consumption by 36%, prompting many residents to replace their lawns with native plants . Meanwhile, the city government replaced the grass in front of the City Hall with Mexican sage . In September 2015, the City of Beverly Hills signed an agreement with Israel to work together on water use as well as "cybersecurity, public health, emergency services, disaster preparedness, public safety, counterterrorism and art and culture". In July 2016,
2788-477: The music industry. It became a shareholder in USA Network in 1981, eventually owning 50% of the network (the other half was owned by Paramount). In 1982, its publishing division, G. P. Putnam's Sons, bought Grosset & Dunlap from Filmways . In 1984, MCA bought Walter Lantz Productions and its characters, including Woody Woodpecker . In 1985, MCA bought toy and video game company LJN . It also bought
Gene Corman - Misplaced Pages Continue
2856-508: The neighboring smaller city of West Hollywood to the east) is entirely surrounded by the city of Los Angeles . According to the 2020 census , the city has a population of 32,701, marking a decrease of 1,408 from the 2010 census count of 34,109. In American popular culture , Beverly Hills has been known primarily as an affluent location within Greater Los Angeles, which corresponds to higher property values and taxes in
2924-610: The new owners dropped the MCA name; the company became Universal Studios, Inc. MCA's music division, MCA Music Entertainment Group, was renamed Universal Music Group . MCA Records continued to live on as a label within the Universal Music Group. The following year, G. P. Putnam's Sons was sold to the Penguin Group subsidiary of Pearson PLC . In the spring of 2003, MCA Records was folded into Geffen Records . Its country music label, MCA Nashville Records ,
2992-806: The northwest by the Los Angeles neighborhood of Bel-Air and the Santa Monica Mountains , on the east by West Hollywood, the Carthay neighborhood of Los Angeles, and the Fairfax District of Los Angeles, and on the south by the Beverlywood neighborhood of Los Angeles. The area's " Platinum Triangle " is formed by the city of Beverly Hills and the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Bel Air and Holmby Hills . The ZIP codes for Beverly Hills are 90209 (P.O. boxes only), 90210, 90211, 90212, and 90213 (P.O. boxes only). Most residents live in
3060-502: The old Republic Pictures studio lot in Studio City, California . In February 1958, MCA acquired Paramount Pictures ' pre-1950 sound feature film library for $ 10 million, through a newly created MCA subsidiary, EMKA, Ltd. In December 1958, MCA bought the 423-acre (1.71 km ) Universal Studios lot from Universal Pictures for $ 11,250,000 and renamed it, as well as the actual television unit, Revue Studios . As part of
3128-644: The population) lived in households, 121 (0.4%) lived in non-institutionalized group quarters, and 0 (0%) were institutionalized. There were 14,869 households, out of which 3,759 (25.3%) had children under the age of 18 living in them, 6,613 (44.5%) were opposite-sex married couples living together, 1,354 (9.1%) had a female householder with no husband present, 494 (3.3%) had a male householder with no wife present. There were 460 (3.1%) unmarried opposite-sex partnerships , and 131 (0.9%) same-sex married couples or partnerships . 5,400 households (36.3%) were made up of individuals, and 1,834 (12.3%) had someone living alone who
3196-553: The population) lived in owner-occupied housing units and 16,248 people (47.6%) lived in rental housing units. During 2009–2013, Beverly Hills had a median household income of $ 86,141, with 8.8% of the population living below the federal poverty line. As of the census of 2000, there were 33,784 people, 15,035 households, and 8,269 families residing in the city. The population density was 5,954.0 inhabitants per square mile (2,298.9/km ). There were 15,856 housing units at an average density of 2,794.4/mi (1,079.7/km ). The racial makeup of
3264-551: The present-day route of Wilshire Boulevard . The area was settled by Californio ranchera María Rita Quinteros de Valdez and her husband in 1828. They called their 4,500 acres (18 km ) of property the Rancho Rodeo de las Aguas . In 1854, she sold the ranch to Benjamin Davis Wilson (1811–1878) and Henry Hancock (1822–1883). By the 1880s, the ranch had been subdivided into parcels of 75 acres (0.30 km ) and
3332-474: The subdivision was built in 1907, but sales remained slow. Beverly Hills was one of many all-white planned communities started in the Los Angeles area around this time. Restrictive covenants prohibited non-whites from owning or renting property, unless they were employed as servants by white residents. It was also forbidden to sell or rent property to Jews in Beverly Hills. Burton Green began construction on The Beverly Hills Hotel in 1911. The hotel
3400-801: The three major television networks, especially NBC . MCA was the legal predecessor of Vivendi Universal and thereby NBCUniversal . Its other legal successor is Universal Music Group Holding Corp, a holding company owned by Universal Music Group (which has absorbed PolyGram ). MCA was formed in 1924 by Jules Stein and William R. Goodheart, Jr., as Music Corporation of America , a music booking agency based in Chicago, Illinois. MCA helped pioneer modern practices of touring bands and name acts. Early on, MCA booked such prominent artists as King Oliver and Jelly Roll Morton for clubs and speakeasies run by legendary notorious Chicago mobsters such as Al Capone and others. Lew Wasserman joined MCA in 1936 at
3468-454: The utilities-related assets from the Rodeo Land and Water Company. In 1919, Douglas Fairbanks and Mary Pickford bought land on Summit Drive and built a mansion, finished in 1921 and nicknamed " Pickfair " by the press. The glamour associated with Fairbanks and Pickford as well as other movie stars who built mansions in the city contributed to its growing appeal. By the early 1920s, the population of Beverly Hills had grown enough to make
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#17327872892733536-431: The water supply a political issue. In 1923, the usual solution, annexation to the city of Los Angeles, was proposed. There was considerable opposition to annexation among such famous residents as Pickford, Fairbanks, Will Rogers and Rudolph Valentino . The Beverly Hills Utility Commission, opposed to annexation as well, managed to force the city into a special election and the plan was defeated 337 to 507. In 1928,
3604-670: Was Harold Lloyd , the silent film star. The NAACP participated in the defense, which was successful. In his decision, federal judge Thurmond Clarke said that it was time that "members of the Negro race are accorded, without reservations or evasions, the full rights guaranteed to them under the 14th amendment." The United States Supreme Court declared restrictive covenants unenforceable in 1948 in Shelley v. Kraemer . A group of Jewish residents of Beverly Hills filed an amicus brief in this case. In 1956, Paul Trousdale (1915–1990) purchased
3672-407: Was 41 years. For every 100 females, there were 83.5 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 79.4 males. The median income for a household in the city was $ 70,945, and the median income for a family was $ 102,611. Males had a median income of $ 72,004 versus $ 46,217 for females. The per capita income for the city was $ 65,507. About 7.9% of families and 9.1% of the population were below
3740-421: Was 43.6 years. For every 100 females, there were 84.3 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 80.3 males. There were 16,394 housing units at an average density of 2,870.9 units per square mile (1,108.5 units/km ), of which 6,561 (44.1%) were owner-occupied, and 8,308 (55.9%) were occupied by renters. The homeowner vacancy rate was 2.2%; the rental vacancy rate was 8.0%. 17,740 people (52.0% of
3808-417: Was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.29. There were 8,461 families (56.9% of all households); the average family size was 3.05. The population was spread out, with 6,623 people (19.4%) under the age of 18, 2,526 people (7.4%) aged 18 to 24, 8,540 people (25.0%) aged 25 to 44, 9,904 people (29.0%) aged 45 to 64, and 6,516 people (19.1%) who were 65 years of age or older. The median age
3876-513: Was a monopoly breaking antitrust laws, but also its suspected connections to underworld criminal activities. This investigation continued for the next few decades. In 1948, Jules Stein moved up as MCA's first chairman, giving Lew Wasserman charge of day-to-day operations of the company as president. That year, Stein and Wasserman decided to get into a new medium that would soon change the entertainment industry: television. Although many motion picture studios would not touch this new medium, thinking it
3944-488: Was also opposed by the city and never built. This stretch of road is served by less efficient Metro Rapid buses using pre-existing roadways. By 2010, traffic in Beverly Hills and surrounding areas had deteriorated enough that the city's habitual opposition had largely turned to support for subways within the city limits. As part of the D Line Extension project, the D Line of the Los Angeles Metro Rail
4012-564: Was being rapidly bought up by Anglos from Los Angeles and the East coast. Henry Hammel and Andrew H. Denker acquired most of it and used it for farming lima beans. At this point, the area was known as the Hammel and Denker Ranch. By 1888, they were planning to build a town called Morocco on their holdings. In 1900, Burton E. Green , Charles A. Canfield , Max Whittier , Frank H. Buck , Henry E. Huntington , William G. Kerckhoff , William F. Herrin , W.S. Porter, and Frank H. Balch formed
4080-509: Was chairman of MCA Records and is credited for turning around the fortunes of the label. The Chess Records catalog was acquired from the remnants of Sugarhill in 1985. Motown Records was bought in 1988 (and sold to PolyGram in 1993). GRP Records (which became for some years MCA's jazz music label and thus began managing the company's jazz catalogue) and Geffen Records (which served as another mainstream music subsidiary) were acquired in 1990. MCA also acquired other assets outside of
4148-442: Was finished in 1912. The visitors drawn by the hotel were inclined to purchase land in Beverly Hills, and by 1914 the population had grown enough to qualify for incorporation as an independent city. That same year, the Rodeo Land and Water Company decided to separate its water business from its real estate business. The Beverly Hills Utility Commission was split off from the land company and incorporated in September 1914, buying all of
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#17327872892734216-555: Was forced to sell WWOR-TV in 1991 to Pinelands, Inc. because of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules that foreign companies could not own over 25% of a U.S. TV station. In 1995, Seagram acquired 80% of MCA from Matsushita. On November 26, 1996, MCA announced that it would acquire television syndication company Multimedia Entertainment from Gannett , who acquired its parent company in 1995, for $ 40 million. On December 9, 1996,
4284-647: Was granted, the company formed MCA Television Limited for syndication . In 1950, Revue Productions , once a live concert promotion division that produced "Stage Door Canteen" live events for the USO during World War II, was re-launched as MCA's television production subsidiary. By 1956, Revue became the top supplier of television for all broadcast networks, spanning three decades of television programs such as Armour Theater , General Electric Theater , The Jane Wyman Show , Leave It to Beaver , Wagon Train , and many others. Prior to 1958, all Revue's shows were filmed at
4352-512: Was guided by a codification of Stein's pet policies known as "The Rules of The Road". The Rules were passed down from the Prohibition era, Chicago–area MCA (referenced in books like Citizen Cohn and The King and Queen of Hollywood ) to the 1940s Los Angeles–area firm, which focused on representing movie actors. The Rules were next passed to the 1950s generation of MCA talent agents, including Jerry Perenchio , who later owned and headed
4420-409: Was intended in 2013 to be extended through Beverly Hills, adding two underground stations at Wilshire/La Cienega and Wilshire/Rodeo by the 2020s. The city of Beverly Hills widely opposed Proposition 8 , the 2008 ballot measure which repealed legal recognition of same-sex marriages. The proposition narrowly passed statewide, but in Beverly Hills, only 34% voted in favor, and 66% voted against it. In
4488-402: Was just a fad and would fade away, MCA decided to embrace it. First, however, the company needed to get a waiver from the Screen Actors Guild , which ruled at the time that talent agencies such as MCA were prohibited from producing TV shows or films. Thanks to the newly elected SAG president, Ronald Reagan (an MCA client), MCA was granted a waiver to start producing TV shows. After the waiver
4556-412: Was opened. In the early 1940s, black actors and businessmen had begun to move into Beverly Hills, despite the covenants allowing only whites to live in the city. A neighborhood improvement association attempted to enforce the covenant in court. The defendants included prominent artists Hattie McDaniel , Louise Beavers , and Ethel Waters . Among the white residents supporting the lawsuit against blacks
4624-464: Was originally a primarily agricultural community centered around Rancho Rodeo de las Aguas , a Mexican era rancho grant . Beverly Hills was first incorporated as a city in September 1914 by a group of investors who had failed to find oil but found water instead and eventually decided to develop it into a town. Gaspar de Portolá arrived in the area that would later become Beverly Hills on August 3, 1769, traveling along native trails which followed
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