 Final logo | |
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | |
| Predecessors | |
| Founded | 1991; 35 years ago (1991) |
| Founder | Keith Samples |
| Defunct | 1999; 27 years ago (1999) |
| Fate | Shut down by Cox Broadcasting; assets acquired by Vine Alternative Investments |
| Successor | Company: Vine Alternative Investments Library:Paramount Pictures (film library with the exception ofThe Opposite of Sex, retained bySony Pictures Classics) CBS Media Ventures (television arm) |
| Headquarters | Santa Monica,California, United States |
| Parent | Cox Enterprises (1993–1999) |
Rysher Entertainment was an American film and television production company and distributor founded in 1991. In 1993, Rysher Entertainment was acquired byCox Enterprises and subsequently closed in 1999. That same year,Viacom entered into an agreement with Cox Enterprises for distribution rights to the Rysher library, which currently lie with Viacom's successor,Paramount Skydance – specifically its subsidiariesParamount Pictures andCBS Media Ventures. Ownership of the company's assets changed hands multiple times over the 2000s before finally being acquired byVine Alternative Investments in 2011.
Keith Samples established the company in April 1991,[1] as an independent company, whose sole product had been the distribution of the seriesSaved by the Bell (at the time,NBC could not distribute it in syndication due tofin-syn rules). Encouraged by the success, it made its second move with their first foray into animation,Captain N and the Video Game Masters, the off-net syndicated version of theDIC Entertainment series that also aired onNBC,Captain N: The Game Master.[2] Also that year, it attempted to merge with film and television production companyThe Kushner-Locke Company, only for the deal to be aborted.[3][4]
Also that year,Cox Enterprises was in discussions to purchase the studio and helped them merge with TPE.[5] It was considered that later that year that Gay Rosenthal was inking a deal with the studio to distribute their own projects and it merged with TPE. However, the Cox/Rysher merger was finalized,[6] and soon afterwards, Rysher merged withAl Masini's Television Program Enterprises to formRysher TPE, its alternate name used from 1993 to 1994, and helped them to syndicateCalifornia Dreams, withKeith Samples remaining at the helm.[7]
Through it, they produced and distributed shows, such asLifestyles of the Rich and Famous (renamedLifestyles with Robin Leach and Shari Belafonte for the final season) andStar Search. Later, they produced and distributedGeorge & Alana. The company branched out into feature films, and in the span of three years had produced over two dozen. In late 1993,Beverly Hills 90210 starGabrielle Carteris, through GABCO Productions struck a deal with Rysher TPE for a production/distribution agreement.[8]
In May 1995, Rysher entered into a five-film domestic distribution arrangement withMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM). The company closed the film unit due to underperforming box-office sales in July 1997.[9] Later that year, in 1997, Papazian-Hrsch Entertainment struck a deal with Rysher to develop their television projects.[10]
In 1998, Rysher collaborated withHBO to distribute some of the series outside of the United States, includingArli$$,Oz andSex and the City. The company was closed in 1999 afterViacom entered an agreement with Cox Enterprises, allowingParamount Pictures and itstelevision unit to handle distribution rights.[11] The company's library is incorporated intoCBS Media Ventures for television series and Paramount Pictures for films (exceptThe Opposite of Sex). The company's films and series includedHogan's Heroes (whose partial rights are held by CBS),Ben Casey,Walking Tall,Nash Bridges (continued byParamount Network Television),Highlander: The Series,Kingpin, andBig Night. In 1998, Rysher andCBS Productions jointly purchased theAnn-MargretCBS dramaFour Corners fromColumbia TriStar Television.[12]
The company's assets were acquired by2929 Entertainment in 2001. They were bought by Qualia Capital, LLC. in 2006, and were merged with Gaylord Films and Pandora Entertainment. The combined entity became known as Qualia Libraries Co. and the brand name served as alimited partnership, and now owns the trademark toHogan's Heroes. In 2011, Qualia Libraries Co. was acquired by affiliates of Vine Alternative Investments.[13]Viacommerged withCBS Corporation, under the nameViacomCBS (later Paramount Global and currently known asParamount Skydance Corporation), as a single distribution company in December. CBS Media Ventures currently distributes Rysher's television library, while the distribution rights to the film library lie with Paramount Pictures, withTrifecta Entertainment handling North American broadcast television rights.
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