Warner Bros.-Seven Arts
| Company type | Private |
|---|---|
| Industry | Entertainment |
| Predecessor | Warner Bros. Pictures |
| Founded | 1967 |
| Founder | Seven Arts Productions (via purchase of Jack L. Warner's stake) |
| Defunct | 1969 |
| Fate | Acquired by Kinney National Company; renamed Warner Bros. Inc. |
| Headquarters | United States |
Key people | Kenneth Hyman (production head), Ted Ashley (chairman after acquisition) |
| Products | Motion pictures, music labels (Warner Bros.-Seven Arts Records, Reprise Records, Atlantic Records) |
Warner Bros.-Seven Arts, Inc. was a U.S.-based entertainment firm that operated between 1967 and 1969.
History
In November 1966, Seven Arts Productions purchased Jack L. Warner's controlling stake in Warner Bros. Pictures for $32 million. This transaction was completed by July 15, 1967, resulting in the creation of Warner Bros.-Seven Arts.
The deal encompassed Warner Bros. Records, which was subsequently renamed Warner Bros.-Seven Arts Records, along with Reprise Records. Later that same year, Warner Bros.-Seven Arts acquired Atlantic Records. By 1971, these music labels were merged with Elektra Records and Nonesuch Records to form Warner-Elektra-Atlantic (WEA), under the leadership of Mo Ostin and Joe Smith.
Kenneth Hyman, son of Seven Arts co-founder Eliot Hyman, took charge of production. The studio’s initial film release was Reflections in a Golden Eye, while Cool Hand Luke marked the final production under the Warner Bros. Pictures banner prior to the rebranding.
Acquisition by Kinney
On July 4, 1969, Kinney National Company completed its acquisition of Warner Bros.-Seven Arts, appointing Ted Ashley as chairman the following month. The company was renamed Warner Bros. Inc. on December 16, 1969.
The last film released under the Warner Bros.-Seven Arts name was Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed in February 1970. Starting with Woodstock in March 1970, films carried the Warner Bros. branding once again, reaffirming the studio's prominence in the entertainment sector.
In September 1971, after a financial scandal involving its parking operations, Kinney National separated its non-entertainment businesses into National Kinney Corporation and adopted the name Warner Communications Inc. on February 10, 1972.
Filmography
- Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
- Camelot (1967)
- Cool Hand Luke (1967)
- Countdown (1968)
- Norman Normal (1968); Warner Bros.-Seven Arts Animation
- Petulia (1968)
- The Green Berets (1968)
- Bullitt (1968)
- Dracula Has Risen from the Grave (1968); in collaboration with Hammer Films
- The Wild Bunch (1969)
- The Learning Tree (1969)
- The Rain People (1969)
- The Valley of Gwangi (1969); co-produced with Hammer Films
- Moon Zero Two (1969); partnered with Hammer Films
- Jeff (1969); produced alongside Alain Delon's Adel Productions
- Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies shorts (1967–69); Warner Bros.-Seven Arts Animation
- Frankenstein Must Be Destroyed (1970); collaboration with Hammer Films