 Logo used from 2020 to 2024 | |
 The studio building on the Walt Disney StudiosRiverside Drive property inBurbank, California | |
| Formerly |
|
|---|---|
| Industry | Television production Home video |
| Founded | May 3, 1948; 77 years ago (1948-05-03)[1] |
| Defunct | October 1, 2024; 16 months ago (2024-10-01) |
| Fate | Folded into20th Television |
| Successor | 20th Television |
| Headquarters | , U.S. |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | |
| Parent | Disney Television Studios |
ABC Signature[2] was a production arm of theAmerican Broadcasting Company (ABC), which is a subsidiary ofDisney Television Studios, a sub-division of theDisney Entertainment business segment and division ofthe Walt Disney Company. The studio's banner was also used byWalt Disney Studios Home Entertainment for its distribution of the studio's shows onhome video starting in 2008.
Established in 1948 as the television unit of the company under the nameWalt Disney Productions,[3] it was renamedWalt Disney Network Television in 1983 and was merged with a separate studio known as the first incarnation ofTouchstone Television, which was established in 1985. Disney rebranded the studio asABC Studios in 2007 in an in-house push to drop secondary brands. It was then renamed toABC Signature on August 10, 2020, after it merged with another separate studio,ABC Signature Studios.[2] It was dissolved on October 1, 2024 and folded into20th Television, which had beenacquired by Disney in 2019 and renamed from 20th Century Fox Television in 2020.
In the 1930s, Walt Disney had no interest in television, but that changed by 1950 when he did an hour-long special onNBC, followed up a year after by a special onCBS. Both of these programs received excellent ratings. Disney eventually got into full series production whenDisneyland debuted on ABC in 1954.[4]
Following the success ofDisneyland, in 1957, Disney was producing another primetime series for ABC, the western showZorro. It did not last long in the ratings and was cancelled in 1959.[5]
In 1961, Disney severed its terms with ABC and moved its weekly program to NBC, where it stayed for nearly 20 years until 1981. For years, Disney's lone television show on primetime was the eponymous anthology series.[6]
After NBC axed the program, in 1981, it struck an agreement with CBS to take the anthology program there.[7] In 1982, Disney produced the first prime-time show since the cancellation ofZorro in 1959,Herbie the Love Bug. It was cancelled after only one season.[8] It was followed by three more programs as part of an agreement with CBS,Gun Shy,Small & Frye andZorro and Son. These were sitcoms, and were cancelled after one season.[9]
After the cancellation of the three prime-time series on CBS in 1983, Disney ventured back into primetime television.[10] TheTouchstone Films banner was used for television by then-new Disney CEOMichael Eisner in the 1984–1985 television season, with the short lived westernWildside.[11] By 1985, Disney signed an agreement with sitcom producersWitt-Thomas-Harris Productions.[12] In the next season, Disney's television production unit produced a hit inThe Golden Girls using the Touchstone Films brand.[13] The Touchstone name would be used for more mature shows, while the Disney name would be used for more family friendly series.
By the 1986–1987 television season, Disney was producing two shows for the fall season,Sidekicks, produced under the Walt Disney Network Television label; andThe Ellen Burstyn Show, produced under the Touchstone Television label. Both were cancelled after the fall 1986 season, to be followed up by two more shows produced by Touchstone, the ABC showHarry, and the Fox showDown and Out in Beverly Hills.[14][15][16] In 1987, Randy Reiss was named president of both television units.[17] In the fall of 1987, Disney sold its third television drama,The Oldest Rookie, to CBS.[18] In late 1988, after Witt/Thomas/Harris pulled out of theTeleVentures production unit (they were co-founders along withTri-Star Pictures andStephen J. Cannell Productions), Disney began selling, marketing and distributing Witt/Thomas programs exclusively.[19] It was renewed two years later in 1990; the duo left to sign with rivalWarner Bros. Television in 1992.[20][21]
On April 18, 1989, Walt Disney Network Television and Touchstone Television were grouped together underGarth Ancier, the then-president of network television for Walt Disney Studios.[22] The following week, Disney struck development deals with upstart Wind Dancer Productions (headed byRoseanne alumnusMatt Williams), and KTMB Productions (backed byThe Golden Girls writers Kathy Speer, Terry Grossman,Barry Fanaro andMort Nathan).[23] The first projects were Wind Dancer'sCarol & Company and KTMB'sThe Fanelli Boys, both of which aired on NBC.[24][25] That same year, Disney signed a long-term contract with producerMichael Jacobs and hisproduction company. Among the first projects under the collaboration wasSinger & Sons, for NBC in 1990. The company also had a contract with producerTerry Louise Fisher, after she quitL.A. Law due to disputes with co-creatorSteven Bochco and studio20th Television, then-known as 20th Century Fox Television.[26] Later that year, Disney signed a deal withNeal Marlens andCarol Black, creators ofThe Wonder Years, to produce three series for ABC.[27]
With difficulties of selling in the off-network syndicated market, Disney television executives decided in late September 1990 thatHull High, then on NBC, or a potential NBC mid-season replacement inDisney Action-Adventure Hour, would be its last hour-long drama.High's pilot cost the company $4.5 million.[28] The company also had another drama in collaboration withStephen J. Cannell,The 100 Lives of Black Jack Savage, which was produced under the Walt Disney Network Television label.[29][30] In 1991, Disney collaborated with Michael Jacobs andJim Henson Productions on a primetime sitcom with puppets byJim Henson's Creature Shop,Dinosaurs, which debuted on ABC.[31] In 1992, the Touchstone Television label moved into producing longer forms for television, focusing on more adult-oriented fare with its first telefilm for CBS about Edna Buchanan, a Miami Herald crime reporter who won a Pulitzer Prize.[32] The company would eventually sign a deal withABC to develop 5 television movies for the 1993–94 and 1994–95 television seasons.[33]
In 1992, KTMB Productions left Disney for Paramount. Eventually the team split into two separate production companies, one led by Speer and Grossman, the other led by Fanaro and Nathan.[34] Within that same year, Wind Dancer Productions had received an exclusive deal with the ABC television network, with Disney serving as distributor of their series.[35] And also that year, Michael Jacobs had renewed his deal with the studio.[36] Also in May of that year, the company signed a deal with Grant/Tribune Productions, a joint venture between ex-CBS broadcasterBud Grant andTribune Broadcasting (who was subsequently renamed to Bud Grant Productions after Tribune pulled out)[37] to distribute their programming, with Cutters the only one that came out of the deal.[38] In 1993, Disney had reached a deal with comedianSinbad and his David & Golitah Productions company for a film and television deal.[39]
On August 24, 1994, withJeffrey Katzenberg's resignation,Richard Frank became head ofWalt Disney Television and Telecommunications, a new group taking in Touchstone Television and other television units of the Disney studios.[40] In 1995, they returned to producing dramas withNowhere Man.[41] That same year, Wind Dancer was signed to a new deal with Disney, following the expiration of their contract with ABC.[42]
In April 1996, with the ongoing post-Disney-CC/ABC merger and the retirement of its president, Walt Disney Television and Telecommunications' divisions were reassigned to other groups, with Walt Disney Television and Touchstone Television transferred tothe Walt Disney Studios.[43] In 1997, Disney struck a deal withImagine Entertainment to launch a television venture.[44] On November 1, 1997, David Neuman assumed the presidency of Touchstone Television while retaining his post as president of Walt Disney Network Television.[45] In March 1998, Touchstone Television was placed under Buena Vista Television Productions, a newly formed group under chairmanLloyd Braun, along with Walt Disney Network Television.[46] In June 1998, former ABC chiefGreer Shephard andNYPD Blue directorMichael M. Robin launched a production company with an exclusive agreement at the studio.[47] In May 1999,J.J. Abrams, who createdFelicity at that time, signed a film and television deal with the studio.[48] By June 1999, Neuman left for the Digital Entertainment Network.[49] In 1999, after Disney'sSmart Guy was cancelled, all Disney shows for primetime would be produced under the Touchstone Television label.[50]
In late 1999, Walt Disney Television Studios (also called Buena Vista Television Group or Buena Vista Television Productions), were transferred from the Disney Studios to theABC Television Network to merge with ABC's primetime division, ABC Entertainment, forming the ABC Entertainment Television Group. By then, the Walt Disney Television label was dropped and all primetime programming produced by Disney would use the "Touchstone Television" name.[51][52][53] Shortly afterwards, writer Seth Kurland struck a deal with the studio to produce shows.[54] Following Kurland's deal, writerDon Reo, formerly ofLenny andBlossom when Witt-Thomas was producing for Disney also struck a deal with the studio.[55] Around the same time, Touchstone Television sold the series,Daddio to NBC. The program lasted only nine episodes before NBC cancelled it.[56]
In 2000, Touchstone Television created two departments for comedy in September, and a department for drama in December.[57] Touchstone Television had infamously left the production of the CBS seriesCSI: Crime Scene Investigation in 2000, fearing it was a flop and sold Disney's interest in the series toAlliance Atlantis.[58][59] By 2001, Steve McPherson signed on as president of the television unit.[60] While two of their pilots were in consideration to be picked up by ABC in April 2003,Tollin/Robbins Productions signed a two-year development deal with Touchstone Television, which included a two-year option, shares in profits and outside sales.[61]
In 2004,Alias creatorJ.J. Abrams and hisBad Robot production company had struck a development deal with Touchstone Television to produce television series,[62] eventually going further into production ofLost. Also that year,Marc Cherry signed a development deal at the studio.[63] The following year,the Russo brothers has struck a two-year deal with the studio,[64] with veteran writer and producerSteven Bochco, who had produced several shows for ABC, signing a deal with the studio that same year to produce future shows.[65] In 2006,Marti Noxon struck a deal with the studio to produce shows.[66]
In February 2007, Disney announced that Touchstone Television would be renamed ABC Television Studio as part of Disney's push to drop secondary brands likeBuena Vista in favor of the Disney, ABC and ESPN brands.[67][11] By the time the name change was implemented that fall, the new name had been modified to ABC Studios.
On August 4, 2008, Lionsgate completed a deal withWalt Disney Studios Home Entertainment, the distributor of ABC Studios/Touchstone Television shows on DVD, to acquire the distribution rights to several shows includingAccording to Jim,Reaper,Hope & Faith,8 Simple Rules andBoy Meets World.[68] At the same time, new DVDs of ABC andABC Family shows phased out the Buena Vista Home Entertainment logo at the beginning of the disc and replaced it with the ABC Studios and ABC Family logos, respectively.
In June 2009,ABC Entertainment announced a new organization, effective immediately as ABC Entertainment Group, while consolidating back office functions like business affairs, distribution and scheduling of ABC Studios and ABC Entertainment and retaining separate creative units.[69][70] In January 2010,Disney-ABC Television Group announced it was cutting 5% of its workforce.[71] In October 2012, ABC Studios formed itsSignature unit to sell to outside networks.[72]
In early 2016, ABC Studios International (also referred to as ABC International Studios) was set up with the appointment of Keli Lee as its managing director of international content and talent, combined with her move to London. The unit, announced atMIPCOM in October 2016, would allow more overseas local productions, leveraging fellow Disney Media Network expertises in distribution and production for the local and international co-productions, IP reinventions, and original format acquisitions and productions. This would add to Disney-ABC's international productions in Latin America, where the company has 16 years of producing local content.[73] In April 2017, the international unit greenlit its first co-production, the Australian seriesHarrow.[74] Lee signed a first look deal withHoodlum Entertainment, the co-producers ofHarrow, by February 2018.[75] With ABC picking up the international unit'sReef Break in August 2018, ABC Studios started co-producing.[76]
In August 2017,Ryan Seacrest Productions left CBS at the end of their deal to move over to ABC Studios.[77] Following the expansion of its cable/streaming unit, ABC Studios launched a new alternative division for the full range of unscripted work, from documentaries to game shows to social experiment series. The former executive vice president of development and production at Ryan Seacrest Productions, along with Fernando Hernandez, the former head ofUniversal Television Alternative Studios, were hired by the studio to lead the division around January 2018. This division was announced in October 2018 with a small slate under production executive Gareth Provan, and an in-house development group called The Originals Group. The division is tapping existing production companies with deals at ABC Studios, including Ryan Seacrest Productions, Larry Wilmore's Wilmore Films and Bob Sertner Productions, in addition to partnerships that Hernandez has developed, including those with Mission Control Media, Parker Paige Media, INE Entertainment, and Party Pit Productions.[78]
ABC Studios was moving to sell to outside networks. As the studios have placed the formerABC comedyCougar Town atTBS, andDevious Maids atLifetime (originally ordered and developed at ABC), Signature was set up in October 2012 to continue the trend.[72] In 2013, ABC Studios vice president of drama Tracy Underwood was appointed senior vice president of ABC Signature.[79] Signature was incorporated onSeptember 23, 2013.[80]
Signature developedMistresses, which was included in ABC's summer schedule and renewed for another season.[72] In October 2013, the division placed its first outside project,Benched, forUSA, with a pilot order that finished shooting by December. Other projects were in the works withA&E,WE tv and TBS. In the works with ABC, Signature has a possible straight-to-seriesStephen King story adaptation calledGrand Central, based onThe New York Times at Special Bargain Rates.[72] Corporate siblingFreeform picked upRated P For Parenthood for development as its first program from Signature in June 2014.[81]
In April 2015, Signature and ABC Studios signed a two-year first-look withBlack Label Media, started byMolly Smith, Trent Luckinbill andThad Luckinbill three years prior as a finance and production company.[82]McG'sWonderland Sound & Vision signed a two-year overall production agreement with Signature, Freeform and ABC Studios in October 2015. This follows two productions from McG on Freeform/ABC Family.[83] Signature signedSMILF creator, executive producer and starFrankie Shaw to a two-year overall deal in July 2018.[84] In March 2019, the deal was suspended following an investigation into allegations of misconduct against Shaw on the set ofSMILF.[85]
In April 2016, Freeform greenlitCloak & Dagger with a straight-to-series order, asMarvel Television's first co-production with Signature.[86] Another co-production with Marvel Television was greenlit in August 2016, withRunaways confirmed for theHulu streaming service.[87] Signature also put a live-actionMighty Ducks series in development beginning in January 2018,[88] which later ended up as aDisney+ original series calledThe Mighty Ducks: Game Changers.
Signature is teaming withJohn Grisham,Hulu and Michael Seitzman'sManiac Productions to create a Grisham Universe set of series. The franchise would begin with two series,The Rainmaker andRogue Lawyer, based on Grisham's books, with a potential to grow to additional series.[89] Hulu had dropped out of the Grisham Universe by September 5, 2019, with the pair being shopped given other interested outlets.[90]
From its pilot, Signature'sThe Wilds, a young adult drama, was picked up in May 2019 by Amazon, its first from the company.[91] Underwood was promoted in February 2020 to the new position of executive vice president, creative affairs of ABC Studios to oversee development at ABC Studio in addition to managing ABC Signature.[79]
After theacquisition of 21st Century Fox completed on March 20, 2019, ABC Studios and ABC Signature Studios both became part of Disney Television Studios.[92] In July 2019, Disney TV Studios announced a reorganization in executive leadership. Fox TV executives Jonnie Davis and Josh Sussman have replaced Patrick Moran and Howard Davine as president and executive vice president of business affairs of ABC Studios respectively.[93] It was also announced that Amy Hartwick, the studio's head of the comedy department, has exited.[94] In September 2019, ABC Studios' alternative division head Hernandez exited the post, with ABC indicating that they would remain in the businesses.[95]
ABC Studios International produced the anthology seriesUnsung Heroes which was in development while the company was launching ABC Discover to find more British talent. In December 2019, an exodus of the international unit's top executives including managing director Keli Lee occurred. However, no replacements have been named given a re-assessing of the unit is taking place.[96]
On August 10, 2020, ABC Studios and ABC Signature were merged into one unit as part of a restructuring plan by Disney regarding their television production units; the merged company took on the latter's name. Meanwhile, Fox 21 Television Studios was renamedTouchstone Television, restoring that brand name after a thirteen-year dormancy (only to be folded into 20th Television on December 1 that year), and 20th Century Fox Television was renamed20th Television (the former name of that entity's domestic syndication division, which in turn was absorbed intoDisney–ABC Domestic Television).[97]
On August 18, 2021, writers Jordan Reddout and Gus Hickey signed an overall deal with the studio.[98] On October 29, 2021, writer-producer Lila Byock also signed an overall deal with the studio.[99] Matt Lopez, creator/executive producer ofPromised Land, also signed an overall deal with the studio the same year on November 17.[100]
On October 1, 2024, Eric Schrier, president of Disney Television Studios & Business Operations, announced that ABC Signature would be dissolved effective immediately, with its operations folded into sister company20th Television (formerly a syndication and distribution arm until it was absorbed intoDisney–ABC Domestic Television). As a result, senior vice president Erin Wehrenberg will leave the company, with president Tracy Underwood transitioning to an overall producing deal with Disney Television Studios; multiple employees will be transferred to 20th Television.[101]
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