Universal Pictures | |
Formerly | List
|
Company type | Division |
Industry | Film |
Predecessor | Independent Moving Pictures |
Founded | April 30, 1912 |
Founders | |
Headquarters | 10 Universal City Plaza, , U.S. |
Number of locations | 3 |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people |
|
Products | Motion pictures |
Revenue | US$11.622 billion (2022) |
Parent | NBCUniversal |
Divisions | |
Subsidiaries |
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Website | |
Footnotes / references [1][2][3] |
Universal City Studios LLC, doing business as Universal Pictures (informally as Universal Studios or also known simply as Universal), is an American film production and distribution company owned by NBCUniversal, a division of Comcast.
Founded in 1912 by Carl Laemmle, Mark Dintenfass, Charles O. Baumann, Adam Kessel, Pat Powers, William Swanson, David Horsley, Robert H. Cochrane, and Jules Brulatour, Universal is the oldest surviving film studio in the United States; the world's fifth oldest after Gaumont, Pathé, Titanus and Nordisk Film; and the oldest major film studio in scope of the cinema of the United States, best known as "Hollywood", in terms of the overall film market. Its studios are located in Universal City, California, and its corporate offices are located in New York City.
The most commercially successful film series from Universal include Fast & Furious, Jurassic Park, and Despicable Me. Additionally, the studio's library includes many individual films such as Jaws and E.T. the Extraterrestrial, both of which became the highest-grossing films of all time during their initial releases. Universal Pictures is a member of the Motion Picture Association (MPA), and was one of the "Little Three" majors during Hollywood's golden age.[4]
1912 | Universal Pictures is founded |
---|---|
1926 | NBC is founded |
1928 | Universal Cartoon Studios (later known as Universal Animation Studios) is founded |
1943 | Universal Television is founded |
1953 | NBC begins first compatible color broadcasts, preceding other networks by nine years |
1956 | NBC's peacock logo debuts |
1963 | American Cable Systems is founded |
1964 | Universal Studios Hollywood opens |
1967 | NBC broadcasts the first-ever Super Bowl |
1968 | American Cable Systems rebrands to Comcast |
1972 | Comcast began trading on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) |
1975 | PolyGram Filmed Entertainment is founded Universal releases Jaws |
1982 | Universal releases E.T. The Extra Terrestrial |
1983 | Sally premieres |
1985 | Universal's Back to the Future premieres |
1986 | General Electric buys NBC for $6.4 billion NBC's modern peacock logo introduced |
1989 | NBC launches CNBC |
1990 | Sky is founded Universal Studios Florida opens Law & Order premieres |
1991 | Universal releases Backdraft and Cape Fear Jerry Springer and Maury both premiere |
1992 | Dateline NBC premieres |
1993 | Universal releases Jurassic Park and Schindler's List Homicide: Life on the Street premieres |
1994 | DreamWorks Animation is founded New York Undercover premieres |
1996 | NBC and Microsoft launch MSNBC |
1998 | Seagram acquires PolyGram Filmed Entertainment Universal Television becomes Studios USA Television |
1999 | PolyGram Filmed Entertainment is folded into Universal Pictures Universal Studios Florida expands to become Universal Orlando Resort Law & Order: Special Victims Unit premieres |
2001 | Grand opening of Universal Studios Japan Universal releases The Fast and the Furious and A Beautiful Mind Law & Order: Criminal Intent premieres |
2002 | NBC acquires Telemundo and Bravo Focus Features is formed Comcast acquires AT&T Broadband for $44.5 billion |
2003 | Universal becomes the first studio with five summer releases breaking the $100 million mark |
2004 | GE and Vivendi merge NBC and Universal into NBCUniversal |
2005 | Law & Order: Trial by Jury and The Office both premiere Focus Features releases The Constant Gardener and Brokeback Mountain Comcast sets up a joint-venture with PBS, Sesame Workshop & HIT Entertainment to form PBS Kids Sprout Comcast & Time Warner Cable jointly acquire Adelphia Cable assets for $17.6 billion |
2006 | USA Network begins 13-year streak as #1 cable network in total viewers Focus Features releases Hollywoodland and Catch a Fire |
2007 | Illumination is founded The Steve Wilkos Show premieres |
2010 | Universal releases Despicable Me Law & Order: LA premieres |
2011 | Vivendi divested in NBCU; Comcast buys 51% of NBCU from GE, turning it into a limited liability company The name "PBS Kids" is dropped out from Sprout (Leaving the name "Sprout") NBCUniversal Archives is founded |
2012 | Universal celebrates its 100th anniversary Chicago Fire premieres |
2013 | Comcast buys GE's remaining 49% of NBCU PBS sells Sprout to Comcast/NBCU |
2014 | Comcast attempts to acquire Time Warner Cable for $45.2 billion Chicago P.D. premieres NBCUniversal reaches a new long-term deal with WWE |
2015 | Chicago Med premieres |
2016 | NBCU acquires DreamWorks Animation |
2017 | Chicago Justice premieres Sprout relaunches as Universal Kids |
2018 | Comcast acquires Sky after a heated bidding war with 21st Century Fox FBI premieres |
2019 | NBCU acquires Cineo Lighting Judge Jerry premieres |
2020 | NBCU launches Peacock FBI: Most Wanted premieres |
2021 | Grand opening of Universal Beijing Resort Law & Order: Organized Crime and FBI: International both premiere |
2022 | Karamo and Lopez vs Lopez both premiere |
2023 | Universal releases The Super Mario Bros. Movie, Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken and Oppenheimer |