Warner Bros. Studios Page at Magic Lantern Video & Book Store

“I don't see what Jack Warner can do with an Oscar - it can't say yes.”
— Al Jolson

        Three brothers from Poland - Harry & Albert & Sam Warner - began exhibiting motion pictures in towns across Pennsylvania & Ohio in 1903; in 1904, they incorporated the Duquesne Amusement & Supply Co. in Pittsburgh; by 1918, they were producing silent films and had opened a studio on Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood, California; Sam & youngest brother Jack produced while Harry & Albert ran the business side; formally incorporated as Warner Bros. Pictures, Inc. in 1923; bought New York studio & distributor Vitagraph in 1925; bought the Vitaphone sound-on-disk process from Western Electric in 1925; bought the Stanley Co. theater chain in 1928, which included a stake in First National Pictures.
        Warner merged with First National in 1930 and moved to the latter's studio lot in Burbank; Technicolor musicals thrived for a while, then gritty gangster films, then historical dramas, then Looney Tunes & Merrie Melodies cartoons; Jack Warner helped organize the U.S. Army's First Motion Picture Unit during World War II; Jack (secretly) brought in bankers to buy out his brothers' interest, which poisoned family relations; the studio successfully moved into television production and launched the Warner Records division [1958]; the aging Jack sold the movie & record business in 1967 to Seven Arts, which sold in two years to the Jersey mob-connected Kinney National Co.
        New studio head Ted Ashley signed major stars – Paul Newman & Barbra Streisand [First Artists], Robert Redford, John Wayne [Batjac], and Clint Eastwood [Malpaso] – and invested in non-movie businesses such as theme parks and video-gamer Atari; a studio management joint venture formed with Columbia Pictures in 1972 {'The Burbank Studios' or T.B.S.) was phased out circa 1987.
        The surprise merger with Time, Inc. in 1989 was then the biggest merger in history; in 1995, Warner and Tribune Broadcasting of Chicago launched the W.B. Network, aimed at teens; the 2000 takeover of conglomerate Time-Warner by internet monster A.O.L. was very bumpy; in 2006, Warner and C.B.S. agreed to shut down U.P.N. & The W.B. and jointly launch the C.W. cable network. Warner announced in May 2008 that it was closing Picturehouse and Warner Independent Pictures. Time-Warner announced in May 2009 that it was spinning off all A.O.L. assets, which was completed in December.

"Warner Gangsters Collections"

	Volume 1 [2008]: Warner Home Video b&w DVD set [3/2008] 6 disks for $51.69 box set includes: "Angels With Dirty Faces" [1938] starring James Cagney, Humphrey Bogart, The Dead End Kids & Pat O'Brien; "Little Caesar" [1931] starring Edward G. Robinson & Douglas Fairbanks Jr.; "The Petrified Forest" [1936] starring Humphrey Bogart, Leslie Howard & Bette Davis; "The Public Enemy" [1931] starring James Cagney & Jean Harlow; "The Roaring Twenties" [1939] directed by Raoul Walsh, starring James Cagney & Humphrey Bogart; and "White Heat" [1949] directed by Raoul Walsh, starring James Cagney & Edmond O'Brien
	Volume 2 [2008]: Warner Home Video b&w DVD set [3/2008] 6 disks for $44.99 box set includes "A Slight Case of Murder" [1938] starring Edward G. Robinson; "Bullets or Ballots" [1936] starring Edward G. Robinson & Humphrey Bogart; "City For Conquest" [1940] starring James Cagney, Ann Sheridan & Arthur Kennedy; "Each Dawn I Die" [1939] starring James Cagney & George Raft; "G Men" [1935] starring James Cagney; and "San Quentin" [1937] starring Pat O'Brien, Humphrey Bogart & Ann Sheridan
	Volume 3 [2008]: Warner Home Video b&w DVD set [3/2008] 6 disks for $44.99 box set includes "Black Legion" [1937] starring Humphrey Bogart & Dick Foran; "Brother Orchid" [1940] starring Edward G. Robinson, Ann Sothern & Humphrey Bogart; "Lady Killer" [1933] starring James Cagney & Mae Clarke; "The Mayor of Hell" [1933] starring James Cagney & Madge Evans; "Picture Snatcher" [1933] starring James Cagney, Ralph Bellamy & Patricia Ellis; and "Smart Money" [1931] starring Edward G. Robinson & James Cagney
	Volume 4 [2008]: Warner Home Video b&w DVD set [10/2008] 6 disks for $53.99 box set includes "The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse" [1938] with Edward G. Robinson, Humphrey Bogart & Claire4 Trevor; "Invisible Stripes" [1939] with George Raft, Humphrey Bogart & William Holden; "Kid Galahad" [1937] with Edward G. Robinson, Humphrey Bogart & Bette Davis; "Larceny, Inc." [1942] with Edward G. Robinson, Broderick Crawford & Jane Wyman; "The Little Giant" [1933] with Edward G. Robinson & Mary Astor; the feature-length documentary "Public Enemies: The Golden Age of The Gangster Film" [2008], plus vintage trailers, newsreels, shorts, cartoons & more

"Best of Warner Bros. 100 Film Collection" on DVD [2013]

Best of Warner Bros. 100 Film Collection DVD box set

Warner Home Video DVD set [1/2013] for $299.99 – list price $3.00 per movie!
contains 100 feature films, b&w and color, many are widescreen; the 50 films on the Blu-ray set just above match perfectly to this set, the remaining 50 films are: "The Jazz Singer" [1927]; "Broadway Melody of 1929" [1929] §; "The Public Enemy" [1931] directed by William A. Wellman, starring James Cagney & Jean Harlow; Edna Ferber's "Cimarron" [1931] §; "42nd Street" [1933 musical] choreography by Busby Berkeley; "A Night At The Opera" [1935] starring The Marx Brothers; "The Great Ziegfeld" [1936 musical]; "The Life of Emile Zola" [1937) §; "The Adventures of Robin Hood" [1938] starring Errol Flynn; "Dark Victory" [1939] starring Bette Davis; "The

Philadelphia Story" [1940] directed by George Cukor; Orson Welles's "Citizen Kane" [1941]; "Yankee Doodle Dandy" [1942 musical] directed by Michael Curtiz; "Gaslight" [1944] directed by George Cukor; "Anchors Aweigh" [1944 musical]; "Mildred Pierce" [1945] directed by Michael Curtiz, starring Joan Crawford; "Best Years of Our Lives" [1946] § directed by William Wyler; "The Big Sleep" [1946] directed by Howard Hawks, starring Humphrey Bogart; "Seven Brides For Seven Brothers" [1954 musical]; "A Star Is Born" [1954] directed by George Cukor, starring Judy Garland; John Steinbeck's "East of Eden" [1955] directed by Elia Kazan, starring James Dean; "Rebel Without A Cause" [1955] directed by Nicholas Ray, starring James Dean; "Around The World In 80 Days" [1956] §; Edna Ferber's "Giant" [1956] directed by George Stevens, starring James Dean; "The Searchers" [1956] directed by John Ford, starring John Wayne; "A Face In The Crowd" [1957] directed by Elia Kazan; Tennessee Williams's "Cat On A Hot Tin Roof" [1958]; "What Ever Happened To Baby Jane?" [1962]; "Viva Las Vegas" [1964 musical] starring Elvis Presley; Edward Albee's "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" [1966] directed by Mike Nichols; "The Dirty Dozen" [1967] starring Lee Marvin; Sam Peckinpah's "The Wild Bunch" [1969]; "Cabaret" [1972 musical] directed by Bob Fosse; "Enter The Dragon" [1973] starring Bruce Lee; Mel Brooks's "Blazing Saddles" [1974]; "Dog Day Afternoon" [1975] directed by Sidney Lumet; "All The President's Men" [1976]; "Caddyshack" [1980]; "Clash of The Titans" [1981]; "National Lampoon's Vacation" [1983]; "The Outsiders" [1983] directed by Francis Ford Coppola; "The Right Stuff" [1983] directed by Philip Kaufman; "The Goonies"
[1985]; "Batman" [1989] directed by Tim Burton; "The Fugitive" [1993]; Anne Rice's "Interview With The Vampire" [1994]; "Seven/Se7en" [1995]; James Ellroy's "L.A. Confidential" [1997]; "The Notebook" [2004]; and Frank Miller's "300" [2007] — red § indicates Best Picture Oscar winner — same bonus material as the "Best of WB 50 Film Collection" just above (with additional commentaries and featurettes).

"Best of Warner Bros. 25 Cartoon Collection: Hanna-Barbera" [2013]

Best of Warner Bros. 25 Cartoon Collection: Hanna-Barbera DVD box set

Warner Home Video color DVD set [5/2013] 2 disks for $19.48
contains 25 animated TV episodes: The Abbott & Costello Cartoon Show [1968]; The Atom Ant/Secret Squirrel Show [1965] (3); Augie Dogie (2); The Flintstones [1961]; Frankenstein, Jr. and the Impossibles [1966] (2); The Hanna-Barbera New Cartoon Series [1963]; Hokey Wolf [1960]; The Huckleberry Hound Show [1960]; The Jetsons [1962]; Jonny Quest [1964]; Loopy De Loop [1959]; The Magilla Gorilla Show [1965]; The Peter Potamus Show [1964] (2); Quick Draw McGraw (2); Snooper and Blabber (2); Space Ghost [1966]; Top Cat [1962]; and The Yogi Bear Show [1961]

"Best of Warner Bros. 50 Cartoon Collection: Looney Tunes" [2013]

Best of Warner Bros. 50 Cartoon Collection: Looney Tunes DVD box set

Warner Home Video color DVD set [6/2013] 2 disks for $19.59
CAVEAT: all but 2 of these cartoons are included on previous "Golden Collection" or "Platinum Collection" DVDs - this set is a deal only if you already own none of those Looney Tunes DVDs
two-disk set contains 50 animated short films featuring Bugs Bunny (12), Daffy Duck (8), Porky Pig (2), and Sylvester & Tweety (2); other featured characters include: "A Corny Concerto" with Bugs & Porky & Elmer Fudd [1943]; "Baby Bottleneck" with Porky Pig & Daffy Duck [1946]; "A Pest In Ihe House" with Daffy Duck & Elmer Fudd [1947]; "Scaredy Cat" with Porky Pig & Sylvester the Cat [1948]; "Wild Over You" with Pepe le Pew [1953]; "Speedy Gonzales" [1955]; "There They Go-Go-Go" with Road Runner [1956]; "Rocket-bye Baby" with Marvin the Martian [1956]; "Crockett-Doodle-Do" with Foghorn Leghorn [1960]; "The Pied Piper of Guadalupe" with Sylvester & Speedy Gonzalez [1961]; and other characters: "I Love To Singa" [1936], "The Dover Boys" [1942], "The Bashful Buzzard" [1945], "Dough Ray Me-Ow" [1948], "Mouse Wreckers" [1948], "A Ham In A Role" [1949], "It's Hummer Time" [1950], "The Hypo-Chondri-Cat" [1950], "Chow Hound" [1951], "A Bear For Punishment" [1951], "Feed The Kitty" [1952], "Goo Goo Goliath" [1954], "One Froggy Evening" [1955], "The Honey-Mousers" [1956], "Three Little Bops" [1957], and "From A To Z-z-z-z" [1957]

Warner Home Video
Founded in 1978 as a division of Warner Bros.; became an autonomous division in 1996 (Time-Warner takeover of Turner).
Agreed in May 2010 to acquire social movie site Flixster, which owns the Rotten Tomatoes website. Warner acquired exclusive
distribution rights to the 70-film Sam Goldwyn library in March 2012.
Warner Home Video entry at Wikipedia

Warner Archive Collection [est. 2009] distributes Warner & M.G.M. & United Artists & Sam Goldwyn titles

The Warner Archive began in 2009 as online seller of custom DVDs & Blu-ray from the vast Warner Bros. library, which also includes
the M.G.M. & United Artists titles obtained with Turner Entertainment in 1996. The agreement with Netflix ended in Spring 2013
at which time the Warner Archive Instant service was launched.

New Line Cinema [1967-2008]

Founded in 1967 by Robert Shaye & Michael Lynne, who are still co-studio heads; very successful maker of genre films and series such as "Nightmare On Elm Street", "Lord of The Rings", "Austin Powers" & "Blade"; formed a sub-division in 1972 called Fine Line Features which has since been merged into the mini-major Picturehouse; acquired by Turner Broadcasting System in 1994, which was acquired by Warner in 1996. Then in February 2008, Warner announced that New Line is being absorbed as a division of Warner Bros., releasing six movies per year. In February 2011, New Line was scaled back further, to releasing only four movies per year.

New Line Cinema official website
New Line Cinema entry at Wikipedia

Turner Broadcasting System

Beginning with one TV station in 1970, Ted Turner built a string of stations used to launch his 'superstation' concept in 1976; the company was renamed Turner Broadcasting System in 1979; launched 24-hour news channel C.N.N. in 1980; in a roundelay of high finance in 1985, Turner bought M.G.M./U.A. from Kirk Kerkorian, sold the studio lot to Lorimar TV [1968-93], kept the film library, and sold the rest back to Kerkorian - the amazing thing is that each party made money on the deals!; purchased New Line Cinema & Castle Rock Entertainment in 1994; merged with conglomerate Time-Warner in 1996, making Ted Turner vice chairman and head of cable networks; Turner resigned his positions at Time-Warner in February 2006.

official T.B.S. website
Turner Broadcasting System entry at Wikipedia

"Revolutions In Sound: Warner Bros. Records - The First Fifty Years" 10-CD Box Set [2008]
Warner Bros. music CD set[12/2008] 10 disks for $89.98
199 tracks from GROUPS: The Association; The Beach Boys; The Black Crowes; Devo; Dire Straits; The Doobie Brothers; Everly Brothers; Fleetwood Mac; Grateful Dead; Green Day; Jethro Tull; Los Lobos; Metallica; Peter, Paul & Mary; Ramones; Red Hot Chili Peppers; R.E.M.; Seals and Crofts; The Staple Singers; Steely Dan; Talking Heads; The Traveling Wilburys; Van Halen; The White Stripes; and ZZ Top; and from PERFORMERS: Captain Beefheart, Edd Byrnes, Johnny Cash, Cher, Eric Clapton, Ry Cooder, Alice Cooper, Elvis Costello, Miles Davis, Sammy Davis Jr., John Fogerty, Arlo Guthrie, Emmylou Harris, George Harrison, Jimi Hendrix, Don Henley, Faith Hill, Don Ho, Tab Hunter, Ice-T, Elton John, Rickie Lee Jones, Tom Lehrer, Gordon Lightfoot, Madonna, Pat Metheny, Dean Martin, Steve Martin, Bob Newhart, Jack Nitzche, Tom Petty, Richard Pryor, Linda Ronstadt, Allan Sherman, Paul Simon, Frank Sinatra, Rod Stewart, James Taylor, Tiny Tim, Mason Williams, and Neil Young
– plus many, many more (and a 64-page booklet)

Warner Bros. Records, The First Fifty Years book by Warren Zane

companion book [2009] by Warren Zane
(of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland)
Chronicle Books hardcover [1/2009] for $23.27

"Okay For Sound" 20-minute documentary [Warner Bros. 1946] /tt0241789/
celebrates the 20th anniversary of Warners Vitaphone sound-on-film

Vitaphone Films Features & Shorts book by Roy Liebman

"Vitaphone Films: A Catalogue of The Features and Shorts"
[2003] by Roy Liebman
McFarland & Co. 11x8¼ pb [8/2010] for $55.00
McFarland & Co. 11x9 hardcover [7/2003] orig $95.00 - out of print/used

The Vitaphone Project

Announced 2/2012: Founded in the 1990s, The Vitaphone Project has so far located over 3,000 12-inch and 16-inch shellac soundtrack discs in private hands, assisted on the restoration of over 35 shorts and 12 features during 2009-2010, and has secured private funding for further early Vitaphone sound-on-disk shorts restorations. Ned Price, Chief Preservation Officer at Warner Bros., will manage the restorations in-house, which do not require projectable 35mm prints. The Vitaphone Project's donors, primarily Dudley Heer, will provide funding to U.C.L.A. to make prints of each restored short, thereby allowing exhibition to theatre audiences. Completed restorations will be available as projectable prints and-or DVDs by early 2013.

	"Vitaphone Cavalcade of Musical Comedy Shorts" DVD Box Set [2011] Warner Bros. DVD-R set [3/2011] 6 disks for $28.62 contains 53 theatrical shorts, including twelve that are 'in eye-popping early three-strip Technicolor'; the dramatic shorts feature The Howard Brothers, The Duncan Sisters, many others; documentary shorts include four Movie Album/Memories, "Hollywood Newsreel" [1934], "A Trip Thru A Hollywood Studio" [1935], and four Vaude-ville Reels; the musical shorts feature Gus Arnheim's orchestra, Tal Henry's orchestra, Red Nichols & His Five Pennies, Jack Buchanan's orchestra, The Gumm Sisters {Judy Garland at age 8}, and composer Harry Warren — plus many more
	"Vitaphone Varieties, 1926-1930" DVD Box Set [2011] Warner Bros. DVD-R set [7/2011] 4 disks for $27.15 contains 60 theatrical sound shorts on four disks: the dramatic {based on guesswork} shorts feature Born & Lawrence (2), Tom Dugan (2), Jay C. Flippen, Harry Fox (2), Joe Frisco, Billy 'Swede' Hall, Robert Emmet Keane, George Kelly, Mitchell Lewis, Montague Love, Morrisey & Miller, Franklin Pangborn, billiard champion Charles C. Peterson, Val & Ernie Stanton (2), Slim Timblin, and Henry B. Walthall; the musical shorts feature Oklahoma Bob Albright, Earl Burtnett's orchestra (2), harpist Carlena Diamond, The Gotham Rhythm Boys, Kjerulf's Mayfair Quintette, Al Lyons & His Four Horsemen, The Rangers, Dick Rich & His Synco-Symphonists, Douglas Stanbury & The Lyric Quartet, and Jack White & The Montrealers — plus many more
	"Vitaphone Varieties, 1926-1930: Volume 2" DVD Box Set [2012] Warner Bros. DVD-R set [11/2012] 2 disks for $25.19 contains 35 theatrical sound shorts recorded from 1926 to 1930, on two disks; the mostly musical and comedy acts are essentially 'vaudeville in a can', just performers in front of a camera, often unedited, and so a record of vaudeville in its natural state; the shorts feature Fred Allen; Edgar Bergen & Charlie McCarthy; Jay Brennan & Ann Butler; Joe E. Brown; comedian Hobart Cavanagh with young Natalie Schafer; Chaz Chase; William B. Davidson; Jack Haley; Mike Hanapi's Hawaiian group; Josephine Harmon; radio superstars Jones & Hare ("The Happiness Boys"); Bert Lahr; John Litel; Helen Morgan; Pat O’Brien; Jack Osterman; dynamic Georgie Price; Gregory Ratoff; Al Shaw & Sam Lee; Blanche Sweet; Fred Waring with his jazz band; half of The Yacht Club Boys — plus many more
	"Vitaphone Varieties: Volume 3, 1928-1929" on DVD [2017] Warner Archive Collection DVD-R [3/2017] for $17.99 Warner Archive Collection DVD-R [3/2017] for $21.99 contains 16 theatrical sound shorts recorded in 1928 and 1929; the mostly musical and comedy acts are essentially 'vaudeville in a can', just performers in front of a camera, often unedited, and so a record of vaudeville in its natural state; the shorts feature 'The Old Maestro' Ben Bernie & His Orchestra, Ray Mayer & Edith Evans, The Croonaders singing trio, Kjerulf's Mayfair Quintette, Gilbert Wells, 'The Cuban Nightingale' Carolina Segrera and Don Alberto & His Argentines, The Big Paraders, Edison & Gregory, Horace Heidt & His Californians, Bobbe Arnst & Peggy Ellis, Molly Picon, Zelda Santley, Sam Summers & Estelle Hunt, 'Poet of The Piano' Herschel Henlere, comedic pianist Al Trahan, and Clara Barry & Orval Whitledge

Kids W.B. website
Re-launched 4/2008; includes games & video, shopping, Scooby Doo, Looney Tunes 'zones'
official website • Wikipedia

Albert 'Abe' Warner
[b. Poland 1884; active 1903-50?; d. 1967]
IMDb listing • Wikipedia

Samuel Lewis 'Sam' Warner
[b. Poland 1887; active 1903-1927; d. 1927]
IMDb listing • Wikipedia

Ted Ashley [1922-2002]
talent agent 1942-69; WB chairman 1969-81; vice chair Warner Communications 1981-88

Mervyn Leroy [1900-87]
director 1927-65; Harry Warner's son-in-law 1934-42; WB producer 1955-65
IMDb listing • Wikipedia

	"Warner Brothers: A History of The Studio - Its Pictures, Stars & Personalities" [1975] by Charles Higham Scribner 9½x6 hardcover [1/75] out of print/used
	"Here's Looking At You, Kid: Fifty Years of Fighting, Working and Dreaming At Warner Brothers" [1976] by James R. Silke Little, Brown hardcover [9/76] out of print/used
	"Those Crazy Wonderful Years: When We Ran Warner Brothers" [1983] by Stuart Jerome Lyle Stuart 9¼x6¼ hardcover [5/83] out of print/used "The Warner Brothers" [1983] by Michael Freedland St. Martins Press hardcover [12/83] out of print/used
	"The Warner Bros. Story: The Complete History of The Great Hollywood Studio" [1987] by Clive Hirschhorn Random House Value 12½x9¼ hardcover [1/87] out of print/many used
	"The Women of Warner Brothers: The Lives and Careers of 15 Leading Ladies With Filmographies For Each" [2001] by Daniel Bubbeo The lives & careers of fifteen Warner Brothers screen legends: Joan Blondell, Nancy Coleman, Bette Davis, Olivia de Havilland, Glenda Farrell, Kay Francis, Ruby Keeler, Andrea King, Priscilla Lane, Joan Leslie, Ida Lupino, Eleanor Parker, Ann Sheridan, Alexis Smith & Jane Wyman McFarland & Co. 10x7 pb [10/2001] for $39.95
	"You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story" [2008] by Richard Schickel & George Perry Running Press 11½x10 bargain price hardcover [9/2008] out of print/used Running Press 11½x10 hardcover [9/2008] for $35.00 basis for the 5-part TV documentary project narrated by Clint Eastwood Warner Home Video color DVD [4/2009] 2 disks for $26.99
	"Early Warner Bros. Studios (Images of America)" [2010] by E.J. Stephens & Marc Wanamaker Arcadia Publng 9¼x6½ pb [7/2010] for $14.95

	"The Brothers Warner" [Warner Sisters Sept 2008] 90-minute family documentary about brothers Harry, Albert, Sam, and Jack L. who rose from poverty in Baltimore and Ohio to become Hollywood movie moguls.Co-produced, written & directed by {granddaughter of Harry} Cass Warner Sperling Warner Home Video widescreen color DVD [3/2010] for $5.38 full credits at IMDb • official movie site • company site
	"The Brothers Warner: The Intimate Story of A Hollywood Studio Family Dynasty" [2008] by Cass Warner Sperling This book is companion to the movie {above}, and an update & reissue (7th edition) of "Hollywood Be Thy Name" [1993] {below} Warner Sisters 9x6 pb [6/2008] for $20.99
	"Hollywood Be Thy Name: The Warner Brothers Story" [1993] by Cass Warner Sperling & Cork Millner, with Jack Warner Jr. Univ Press of KY 9x6 pb [9/98] out of print/used Prima Publng 9¾x6½ hardcover [9/93] out of print/many used
	"Jack L. Warner: The Last Mogul - The Epic Story of The Man Behind The Movies" [indep 1993] Produced, written & directed by {Jack's grandson} Gregory Orr; narrated by Efrem Zimbalist, Jr. CustomFlix color DVD [7/2006] for $24.95 full credits from IMDb
	"My First Hundred Years In Hollywood: An Autobiography" [1964] by Jack L. Warner Random House 8¾x6 hardcover [1964] out of print/many used

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