Andy Heyward | |
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| Born | Andrew B. Heyward (1949-02-19)February 19, 1949 (age 76) New York City, U.S. |
| Occupations | Producer, writer, CEO |
| Years active | 1976–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 4 |
Andrew B. Heyward (born February 19, 1949) is an Americanmedia executive andanimator who is CEO ofKartoon Studios, formerly known as Genius Brands International. He previously worked at defunct animation studio and production companyDIC Entertainment as chairman and CEO.[1]
Heyward was born in New York City, the son of Sylvia (née Block) andLouis M. "Deke" Heyward, who was vice president of development at leading entertainment companies such asFour Star International[2] andBarry & Enright Productions,[3] as well as senior vice president for defunct leading cartoon company,Hanna-Barbera.[4]
Andy Heyward's upbringing was robust with access to the entertainment elite, including his first start as an assistant for animatorJoe Barbera of Hanna-Barbera onScooby's All-Star Laff-A-Lympics.[5] In 1986, Heyward took the lead ofDIC Entertainment after he and other investors performed a buyout of majority shares owned by theCompagnie Luxembourgeoise de Télédiffusion (nowRTL Group, owned byBertelsmann).[6] He subsequently bought the remaining shares owned byJean Chalopin, founder of the French company DIC Audiovisuel.[7][8] Heyward eventually sold a majority interest in DIC toCapital Cities/ABC in 1993, forming alimited partnership company called DIC Entertainment L.P. CC/ABC that was later purchased byThe Walt Disney Company in 1996. In 2000, with two venture capital firms, Heyward re-purchased DIC Entertainment.[9] In 2008, Heyward sold DIC Entertainment toCookie Jar Group.[10]
In 2009, he founded A Squared Entertainment (A2) with his wife, Amy.[11] In 2013, the company merged withGenius Brands to form Genius Brands International (now as Kartoon Studios), with Heyward as CEO.[12]
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