Dick Clark Productions

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Dick Clark Productions, Inc.
TypePrivate
IndustryTelevision production
FoundedPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania, United States (1957)
FounderDick Clark
DefunctSeptember 12, 2021; 4 months ago (2021-09-12)
FateDefunct; rebranded as MRC Live & Alternative
Headquarters
Beverly Hills, California, United States
OwnerMRC

Dick Clark Productions (DCP, stylized in lowercase as dick clark productions or dcp) was an American multinational television production company founded by radio and TV host Dick Clark.

The studio primarily produced award shows and other music entertainment programs, including the Academy of Country Music Awards, the DCP-created American Music Awards, the Billboard Music Awards (presented by co-owned music magazine Billboard), Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve, the Golden Globe Awards, and So You Think You Can Dance (with 19 Entertainment). 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 MRC. Valence as a whole rebranded as MRC in 2020, with DCP being part of the MRC Live & Alternative division. In September 2021, MRC discontinued the Dick Clark Productions branding, and folded all of its productions under the MRC Live & Alternative branding going forward.

History[]

The Dick Clark radio show began syndication in the late 1950s as part of MARS Broadcasting.[1] 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 Bandstand's 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."[2]

In the 1970s, it operated a subsidiary Dick Clark Teleshows, to produce, most notably, the first American Music Awards, Sorority '62, and the 90-minute special 200 Years of American Music.[3] Between the 1970s and 1980s, Dick Clark Productions owned a cinema production company, Dick Clark Cinema Productions, to produce telemovies, and feature films. In 1983, Daniel Paulson was appointed vice president of the division.[4]

In the 1980s, the parent company, The Dick Clark Company, is operating, at least one radio station, WKRS-FM in New York City.[5] Also, in 1985, Dick Clark operated a home video division, Dick Clark Video, to handle videocassettes, with Vestron Video handling distribution of the titles, most notably American Bandstand.[6]

Dick Clark Productions went public on NASDAQ in 1986.[7] It was taken private in 2002 by an investment group that included Mosaic Media Group and the Caisse.[8] Mandalay Entertainment bought DCP's stake in 2004.[9]

On June 19, 2007, Dick Clark Productions was sold to Daniel Snyder, Washington Redskins owner and former chairman of Six Flags, for $175 million.[10] After founder Dick Clark's death on April 18, 2012,[11] 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.[12] 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.[13]

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.[12][14] 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.[15]

In December 2012, reports by several baseball insiders indicated that the Los Angeles Dodgers (also owned by Guggenheim Partners) 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.[16] The Dodgers instead partnered with Time Warner Cable to launch Time Warner Cable SportsNet LA.[17]

In 2014, DCP took over production of the Billboard Music Awards, an awards show presented by Guggengeim-owned Billboard magazine.[18] In July 2014, DCP settled a lawsuit with the Hollywood Foreign Press Association over its contracts with NBC to broadcast the Golden Globe Awards.[19]

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".[20][21][22] Boehly's stake is represented by Eldridge Industries.[23]

In September 2016, it was reported that the Chinese conglomerate Wanda Group (which owns AMC Theatres and Legendary Entertainment) was in talks to acquire Dick Clark Productions.[24] This was confirmed on November 4, 2016, when Wanda Group announced the purchase for $1 billion.[25][26] On February 20, 2017, Bloomberg News reported that the sale was facing regulatory issues in China.[27] On March 10, 2017, an Eldridge Industries spokesperson stated that the sale had been scrapped.[28] 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.[29][30]

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.[31] 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.[32] In July 2020, Valence was rebranded as MRC, with Dick Clark Productions operating as a label of its non-scripted division MRC Live & Alternative.[33]

Thurlow stepped down from DCP in June 2021. In September 2021, the Dick Clark Productions name was discontinued, with all of its productions now falling under the MRC Live & Alternative banner.[34]

References[]

  1. ^ Dick Clark in Syndication. Billboard. New York City. June 29, 1963. p. 56. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
  2. ^ Clark, Dick; Robinson, Richard (1976). Rock, Roll and Remember (4th ed.). New York City: Thomas Y. Crowell Co. p. 253. ISBN 978-0690011845.
  3. ^ "Program Briefs" (PDF). Broadcasting. 1974-04-08. Retrieved 2021-11-24.
  4. ^ "Fates & Fortunes" (PDF). Broadcasting. 1983-09-19. Retrieved 2021-11-24.
  5. ^ "For the Record" (PDF). Broadcasting. 1983-05-30. Retrieved 2021-11-24.
  6. ^ Seideman, Tony (1985-08-31). "Vestron, Dick Clark Team for 'Best of Bandstand'" (PDF). Billboard. Retrieved 2021-11-24.
  7. ^ "Dick Clark Productions Is Going Public : Company Hopes to Raise $14.5 Million With Stock Offering". Los Angeles Times. November 6, 1986. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
  8. ^ James, Meg (December 12, 2000). "Group Completes Purchase of Dick Clark Productions". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
  9. ^ James, Meg (August 10, 2004). "Mandalay Teams With Mosaic to Revamp Dick Clark Unit". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 20, 2012.
  10. ^ Lieberman, David (June 19, 2007). "Dan Snyder buys Dick Clark's TV, music company". USA Today. McLean, Virginia. Retrieved September 7, 2009.
  11. ^ Kathan, Julie; Marikar, Sheila. "Dick Clark, Entertainment Icon Nicknames 'America's Oldest Teenager,' Dies at 82". ABC News. New York City: ABC. Retrieved April 18, 2012.
  12. ^ a b Flint, Joe (June 15, 2012). "Six Flags is motivating possible sale of Dick Clark Productions". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 15, 2012.
  13. ^ Flint, Joe (June 13, 2012). "Dick Clark Productions exploring possible sale". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 13, 2012.
  14. ^ Grover, Ronald; Richwine, Lisa (June 15, 2012). "Seacrest looking at Dick Clark Productions: sources". Reuters. Retrieved June 15, 2012.
  15. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (September 4, 2012). "Guggenheim Partners-Led Group Reaches Agreement To Buy Dick Clark Prods". Deadline Hollywood. United States: Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved September 4, 2012.
  16. ^ Ozanian, Mark. "Dodgers Exploring TV Deal With Dick Clark Productions". Forbes. Retrieved 17 December 2012.
  17. ^ Flint, Joe (July 17, 2014). "Standoff over Dodgers games could be defining moment in sports TV". Los Angeles Times.
  18. ^ "The Billboard Music Awards Keep Bubbling". Billboard. Retrieved 2017-12-02.
  19. ^ Johnson, Ted (July 14, 2014). "HFPA Settles Golden Globes Lawsuit With Dick Clark Prods". Variety. Los Angeles. Retrieved December 2, 2017.
  20. ^ Lieberman, David; Busch, Anita (December 17, 2015). "Guggenheim Prepares To Sell Hollywood Reporter, Dick Clark Productions To Exec". Deadline Hollywood. United States: Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
  21. ^ Chariton, Jordan (December 17, 2015). "Guggenheim Media Spins Off Money-Losing Hollywood Reporter, Billboard to Company President Todd Boehly (Exclusive)". TheWrap. Los Angeles. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
  22. ^ "Hollywood Reporter Parent Company Spins Off Media Assets to Executive". The Hollywood Reporter. Los Angeles. December 17, 2015. Retrieved January 3, 2016.
  23. ^ Soshnick, Scott (March 9, 2017). "Dodgers' Boehly Leads $100 Million DraftKings Investment". Bloomberg News. New York City. Retrieved March 10, 2017.
  24. ^ Lieberman, David; Andreeva, Nellie (September 26, 2016). "Wanda Group In Talks To Add Dick Clark Productions To Global Media Armada". Deadline Hollywood. United States: Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved September 27, 2016.
  25. ^ Bloomberg News Staff (November 3, 2016). "Billionaire Wang Agrees to Buy Dick Clark Productions for $1 Billion". Bloomberg News. New York City. Retrieved November 4, 2016.
  26. ^ "Wanda Faces Hurdles in Closing Dick Clark Prods. Deal". Variety. Los Angeles. Retrieved 27 January 2017.
  27. ^ Ho, Prudence; Sakoui, Anousha (February 21, 2017). "Wanda's $1 Billion Bid for Dick Clark Faces Hurdles". Bloomberg News. New York City. Retrieved February 21, 2017.
  28. ^ Lieberman, David (March 10, 2017). "Dick Clark Productions Owner Scraps $1B Sale To Wanda Group". Deadline Hollywood. United States: Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved March 10, 2017.
  29. ^ Busch, Anita (December 21, 2017). "STX, Dick Clark Prods. Will Distribute 'New Year's Rockin' Eve' In China". Deadline Hollywood. United States: Penske Media Corporation. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  30. ^ Brzeski, Patrick (December 18, 2017). "STX Entertainment to Distribute Golden Globes in China (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Los Angeles. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
  31. ^ Wallenstein, Andrew (February 1, 2018). "Media Rights Capital, Dick Clark Prods., THR-Billboard Form Combined Company". Variety. Los Angeles. Retrieved February 1, 2018.
  32. ^ Low, Elaine (2019-11-13). "Amy Thurlow Named President of Dick Clark Productions, Mike Mahan to Shift Roles". Variety. Retrieved 2019-11-26.
  33. ^ Goldsmith, Jill (July 22, 2020). "THR Parent Valence Media Rebrands As MRC". Deadline. Retrieved July 22, 2020.
  34. ^ Andreeva, Nellie (September 12, 2021). "Adam Stotsky Named President Of MRC Live & Alternative As Dick Clark Prods. Name Is Phased Out". Deadline. Retrieved October 23, 2021.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

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