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45-466: ELP Communications (formerly known as T.A.T. Communications Company , Embassy Television , Embassy Telecommunications , and Embassy Communications ) was an American television production company that originally began in 1974. ELP Communications was originally formed in 1974 as T.A.T. Communications Company when Norman Lear joined up with former talent agent Jerry Perenchio , a year before Bud Yorkin ended his partnership with Lear. "T.A.T." stood for

90-773: A "one time hit" or an ongoing "entertainment franchise " that can be continued, remade, rebooted , or expanded into other sister industries; such as the video game industry (see Star Wars , Star Trek ). Entertainment projects can be either an original or an adaptation from another industry. In rare occasional cases, a few troubled major studios would also shed their distribution and/or marketing staffs, mainly due to reduced resources, and resort to co-investing and/or co-distributing film projects with larger studios, operating as virtual, production-only movie studios. Notable examples include legendary studio Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer , which, after many years of box office flops (mostly with low budgets), bad management and distribution, and bankruptcy,

135-405: A contract) or as a subsidiary for an entertainment company, motion picture company, television network, or all, and are generally smaller than the company they are partnered with. A book to film unit is a unit of a book publishing company for the purposes of getting books that they published adapted into film . Films have been using books as a prime source for films for years. In 2012, six out of

180-614: A development and co-finance plan. Macmillan Films was launched by Thomas Dunne Books in October 2010 under the packaging model similar to Alloy while also moving to get film rights from Dunne's published author. Also that year, Random House changed their strategy to film development and packaging only. Condé Nast Entertainment was started by Magazine publisher Conde Nast in October 2012. In 2013, Macmillan Films became Macmillan Entertainment with an expansion to look at other divisions' book for possible films. A production company

225-685: A majority of the Embassy theatrical library, syndicated under the umbrella title Embassy Night at the Movies . Embassy Telecommunications was the television distribution arm of Embassy Television. They distributed off-net syndicated shows by Embassy Television and those by Tandem Productions and T.A.T. Communications. Tandem's PITS Films was folded into Embassy Telecommunications. Lear and Perenchio sold Embassy Communications (included Tandem Productions) to The Coca-Cola Company (then-current owners of Columbia Pictures ) for $ 485 million on June 18, 1985. After

270-465: A private corporate investment entity (see Legendary Pictures ). Their only source of profit comes from the productions they produce. Because entertainment and media are currently in "high demand", a production company can profit if its management is capable of using its resources to supply good quality products and services to the public. Many entertainment production companies brand their entertainment projects. An entertainment project can either become

315-451: A production. The entertainment industry is centered on funding (investments from studios, investment firms, or individuals either from earnings from previous productions or personal wealth), projects (scripts and entertainment franchises), and talent ( actors , directors, screenwriters , and crew). Production companies are judged and ranked based on the amount of funding it has, as well the productions it has completed or been involved with in

360-445: A self-publishing vanity press which are paid services. Both large and small production studios have an editorial board or editor-in-chief , along with other forms of a command hierarchy . Entertainment companies operate as mini conglomerate , operating many divisions or subsidiaries in many different industries. Warner Bros. Entertainment and Lionsgate Entertainment are two companies with this corporate structure. It allows for

405-426: A single company to maintain control over seemingly unrelated companies that fall within the ranges of entertainment, which increases and centralises the revenue into one company (example: a film production company, TV production company, video game company, and comic book company are all owned by a single entertainment company). A motion picture company, such as Paramount Pictures , specializing "only" in motion pictures

450-402: Is considered to be a small production company. These companies often work with up and coming talent. Small production companies will either grow to become a major production company, a subsidiary completely owned by another company, remain small, or fail. The success of an entertainment production company is centered on the projects it produces, the talent it can acquire, and the performance of

495-442: Is only connected with its other counterpart industries through its parent company. Instead of performing a corporate reorganization, many motion picture companies often have sister companies they collaborate with in other industries that are subsidiaries owned by their parent company and is often not involved in the making of products that are not motion picture related. A film production company can either operate as an affiliate (under

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540-410: Is owned by Paramount Global ). Alloy Entertainment while not a unit of a publisher started using a book packaging to film model of film and TV development by developing the property in-house, hire authors for the books and films, so as to own the property. Random House was the first big six book publisher to establish a book to film unit, Random House Films , in 2005 with a Focus Features deal under

585-448: Is usually run by a producer or director, but can also be run by a career executive. In entertainment, a production company relies highly on talent or a well known entertainment franchise to raise the value of an entertainment project and draw out larger audiences. This gives the entertainment industry a democratized power structure to ensure that both the companies and talent receive their fair share of pay and recognition for work done on

630-807: The Yiddish phrase "Tuchus Affen Tisch" (תּחת אויפֿן טיש), which meant "Putting one's ass on the table." The first sitcom to be produced by T.A.T. Communications was The Jeffersons , which was spun off from the sitcom All in the Family in 1975. The company made its syndicated project with Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman through Rhodes Productions (a division of Filmways ), only for the latter to withdraw support in order to get Norman Lear to launch its own syndicated unit. Television producer Norman Lear and his business partner Jerry Perenchio bought Avco Embassy Pictures Corporation in January 1982 and decided to drop

675-477: The concentration of media ownership , who act as the production company' s partner or parent company . This has become known as the "studio system". Independent studios usually prefer production house (see Lionsgate ), production studio (see Amazon Studios ), or production team (see Rooster Teeth ). In the case of television, a production company would serve under a television network . Production companies can work together in co-productions . In music,

720-608: The Columbia Pictures Television logo in January 1988 but would use the ELP copyright in the credits in February 1988. Embassy Night at the Movies was renamed as Columbia Night at the Movies . On November 8, 1989, Columbia Pictures Entertainment was sold to Sony and renamed as Sony Pictures Entertainment on August 7, 1991. The final long running show to be produced by Embassy Television, as ELP Communications,

765-595: The MGP name on March 30, 1964. In May 1965, his talk show The Merv Griffin Show returned to television. Griffin also created the game show Shopper's Bazaar , which changed its name to Wheel of Fortune on January 6, 1975, after Jeopardy! was canceled on January 3, 1975. Griffin revived Jeopardy! as The All-New Jeopardy! on October 2, 1978, though it was proven to be unsuccessful. Merv Griffin Productions also owned

810-455: The company's daily activities. In some cases, a production company can be run by only a handful of people. The company's funds are mainly committed towards employing talent, crew, and acquiring new updated production equipment on a regular basis. Many productions often require at least one to two cameras and lighting equipment for on location shooting. Production equipment is either leased or purchased from another production company or directly from

855-440: The exposure, when shooting in public locations, major productions often employ security to ensure the protection of the talent and crew working on a specific production. After filming is completed, the production enters into post production, which is handled by a post production company and overseen by the production company. The editing, musical score, visual effects, re-recording of the dialog, and sound effects are "mixed" to create

900-425: The final film, which is then screened at the final screening. Marketing is also launched during this phase, such as the release of trailers and posters. Once a final film has been approved, the film is taken over by the distributors, who then release the film. For legal reasons, it is common within the entertainment industry for production companies not to accept unsolicited materials from any other company, talent, or

945-508: The first two under the name: Square Pegs and Silver Spoons . The latter show ran five seasons, while the former ran one but developed a cult following. Who's the Boss? was piloted later in 1983 until airing in 1984. Embassy Television also produced Diff'rent Strokes ' s final season from Tandem Productions , which was eventually operated by Embassy. Embassy also held the TV rights to

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990-466: The first-run syndication business and focused them on first-run network and off-net syndication programming. This was also the formation of Coca-Cola Television when Coke regrouped Columbia Pictures Television, Embassy Communications, and Merv Griffin Enterprises . Married... with Children was the next—and as it would transpire, last—successful sitcom by Embassy Communications, debuting as part of

1035-597: The fledgling Fox Broadcasting Company 's first primetime lineup in 1987. On December 21, 1987, Coca-Cola sold its Columbia Pictures entertainment businesses to TriStar Pictures , Inc. and renamed the Tri-Star holding company as "Columbia Pictures Entertainment" for $ 3.1 billion. Columbia/Embassy Television then merged with TriStar Television to form a new version of Columbia Pictures Television. Embassy Communications then became ELP (Embassy Lear Pictures) Communications. Still-running and newer Embassy shows would begin to use

1080-509: The general public. It is also common for filmmakers or producers to become entrepreneurs and open their own production companies so that they can have more control over their careers and pay, while acting as an "in-house" creative and business driving force for their company but continuing to freelance as an artist for other companies, if desired. Merv Griffin Enterprises Merv Griffin Enterprises

1125-426: The guild. Productions with smaller budgets are allowed to use both guild talent and talent from the public. The majority of the talent and crew working in the entertainment industry are members of their professions guild. Most productions in the entertainment industry are guild productions. A production company is responsible for the development and filming of a specific production or media broadcast. In entertainment,

1170-584: The holding company. When ABC canceled Diff'rent Strokes , the brand name Tandem Productions became dormant but renamed active as an in-name-only division. On November 24, 1986, Coca-Cola fused Embassy's television operations including the movie packages ( Embassy Night at the Movies , Embassy II and Embassy III ) with Columbia Pictures Television ; the combined company became Columbia/Embassy Television, though Columbia and Embassy continued to produce and distribute programs under their separate names. During that formation, Coca-Cola took Columbia and Embassy out of

1215-440: The manufacturer. In the entertainment industry, in order to secure experienced professional talent and crew, production companies often become a signatory company to that talent or crew members "guild". By becoming a signatory company, it agrees to abide by the guild regulations. All big budget guild productions are exclusive to guild members and non guild members are not allowed to participate in these productions unless authorized by

1260-403: The name "Avco" from the name to bring back the name Embassy Pictures and T.A.T. Communications Co. was renamed as Embassy Communications, Inc. The television division was renamed as Embassy Television, a division name for his shows by the former T.A.T. Communications such as The Jeffersons , One Day at a Time , and The Facts of Life . More shows were produced by Embassy Television such as

1305-485: The nine best picture Oscar nominees were originally books. Previously, publishers did not develop their books into movie nor receive any of the profits. Neither Scholastic or Little Brown, get any box office revenue from the Harry Potter and The Twilight Saga movies just through book sales. As the publishers faced decreasing revenue due to increased competition from self-published e-books, or Amazon.com moving into

1350-424: The past. If a production company has major funding either through earnings, studio investors, or private investors, and has done or been involved with big budget productions in the past, it is considered to be a major production company. These companies often work with well-known and expensive talent. If a production company does not have much funding and has not done or been involved with any big budget productions, it

1395-459: The post-production studio Trans-American Video (TAV) that was founded on June 29, 1981. In 1982, the company joined forces with King World (now CBS Media Ventures ) to syndicate a nightly version of Wheel of Fortune . The company also had the rights to syndicate The Merv Griffin Show . KW also distributed the first two pilots of Jeopardy! in 1983 and January 9, 1984. In 1984, Griffin expanded his company as Merv Griffin Enterprises and during

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1440-464: The production or may accomplish this through a parent company , partner, or private investor. It handles budgeting, scheduling, scripting, the supply with talent and resources , the organization of staff, the production itself, post-production , distribution, and marketing . Production companies are often either owned or under contract with a media conglomerate , film studio , record label , video game publisher , or entertainment company, due to

1485-416: The production process begins with the development of a specific project. Once a final script has been produced by the screenwriters, the production enters into the pre-production phase, most productions never reach this phase for financing or talent reasons. In pre-production, the actors are signed on and prepared for their roles, crew is signed on, shooting locations are found, sets are built or acquired, and

1530-486: The production's shooting locations for both privacy and safety reasons. In many cases, the director, producers, and the leading actors are often the only people with access to a full or majority of a single script. Supporting actors, background actors, and crew often never receive a full copy of a specific script to prevent leaks. Productions are often shot in secured studios, with limited to no public access, but they are also shot on location on secured sets or locations. Due to

1575-552: The proper shooting permits are acquired for on location shooting. Actors and crew are hand picked by the producer, director, and casting director, who often use collaborators or referenced personnel to prevent untrusted or unwelcomed people from gaining access to a specific production and compromising the entire production through leaks. Once a production enters into principal photography, it begins filming. Productions are almost never cancelled once they reach this phase. Codenames are often used on bigger productions during filming to conceal

1620-517: The publishing field, publishers have started to enter the film and TV production business to boost their net income with Amazon attempting to compete there too. More screenwriters are turning to book publishers to get their screenplay published as a book, so as to have a boost in their attempt to have the screenplay turned into a movie, given that it is a known product after the book. Publisher Simon & Schuster , though not involved with film and TV, shares possible film and TV deals with CBS (S&S

1665-566: The sale, Lear, Perenchio, nor Bud Yorkin were no longer involved with Embassy or Tandem. A month later in July 1985, CBS canceled The Jeffersons and Diff'rent Strokes was already canceled by NBC . The latter was later moved to ABC . During the fall, a new Embassy sitcom called 227 debuted on NBC. A year later, Embassy Communications became the only television banner as Embassy's television divisions (Embassy Television, Embassy Telecommunications, and Tandem Productions) were consolidated into

1710-482: The same year, Jeopardy! also returned to television on September 10. On May 5, 1986, Griffin sold the company to The Coca-Cola Company (then-owner of Columbia Pictures Industries ) for $ 250 million during his semi-retirement. TAV, however, was not included in the deal. The company later became part of Columbia Pictures Entertainment on December 21, 1987, and was sold to Sony Corporation along with CPE's other companies on November 8, 1989. Merv Griffin Enterprises

1755-415: The talent. Marketing is also a major factor. All films, as a tradition, are often marketed around the image and the performance of the actors; with an option of marketing the behind the scenes crew such as the directors and screenwriters. Unlike many other businesses, a production company does not rely on an ongoing revenue stream , they operate on ongoing investments; this often requires a parent company or

1800-615: The term production team typically refers to a group of individuals filling the role of " record producer " usually reserved for one individual. Some examples of musical production teams include Matmos and D-Influence . The aforementioned publishing conglomerates distribute said creative works, but it is not uncommon for production companies to act as a publication . For example, The Walt Disney Company and Nintendo act as publisher for Walt Disney Animation Studios and Nintendo Entertainment Planning & Development respectively. Self-publishing , in this case, should not be confused with

1845-458: The term refers to all individuals responsible for the technical aspects of creating a particular product, regardless of where in the process their expertise is required, or how long they are involved in the project. For example, in a theatrical performance, the production team has not only the running crew , but also the theatrical producer , designers , and theatrical direction . The production company may be directly responsible for fundraising

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1890-747: Was Beakman's World in 1992. In February 1994, SPE merged Columbia Pictures Television and the newly relaunched TriStar Television to become Columbia TriStar Television . All series by CPT, TriStar, ELP, and Merv Griffin were brought under the banner (though most shows would not begin to use CTT's logo until around 1997). Beakman's World was cancelled in 1998 and ELP Communications became an in-name only unit of Columbia TriStar Television. Today, television distribution rights to both Embassy's television and theatrical libraries are now owned by Sony Pictures Television . Also, all shows from T.A.T. Communications Company to ELP Communications are all copyrighted by ELP Communications. Production company Generally

1935-462: Was an American television production company founded by Merv Griffin , in operation from March 7, 1963, to June 4, 1994. The company was first established as Milbarn Productions on March 7, 1963, and later as Merv Griffin Productions on March 5, 1964. Griffin's first production under the Milbarn name was Word for Word . Griffin's second game show was Jeopardy! as Griffin's first production under

1980-662: Was folded into Columbia TriStar Television (now Sony Pictures Television ) on June 4, 1994. Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune were taken over by CTT starting in September of that year, while Griffin remained executive producer for both game shows until 2000. Griffin later founded Merv Griffin Entertainment on May 13, 1996. One of the most prolific employees was Don Pardo . The others were Charlie O'Donnell , Jack Clark , John Harlan , M. G. Kelly , and Johnny Gilbert , who were also announcers on Griffin shows. Most of

2025-649: Was restructured at the end of 2010 under new management and currently struck deals with some of the Big Six studios (most notably the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group and Warner Bros. ); Miramax , which was downsized by former owner Disney into a smaller division. Because a production company is only operational when a production is being produced and most of the talent and crew are freelancers , many production companies are only required to hire management staff that helps to oversee

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