DIC Entertainment was an international
filmA film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
and
televisionTelevision is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
production companyA production company provides the physical basis for works in the realms of the performing arts, new media art, film, television, radio, and video.- Tasks and functions :...
. In addition to animated (and occasionally live-action) television shows such as
Ulysses 31is a Franco-Japanese animated television series that updates the Greek mythology of Odysseus to the 31st century. The show comprised 26 half-hour episodes and was produced by DIC Audiovisuel in conjunction with anime studio Tokyo Movie Shinsha...
(1981),
Inspector GadgetInspector Gadget is an animated television series that revolves around the adventures of a clumsy, simple-witted cyborg detective named Inspector Gadget – a human being with various bionic gadgets built into his body. Gadget's arch-nemesis is Dr...
(1983–1986),
The LittlesThe Littles is an animated television series based on The Littles characters in a series of children's novels by American author John Peterson, the first of which was published in 1967...
(1983),
The Real GhostbustersThe Real Ghostbusters is an American animated television series based on the 1984 film Ghostbusters. The series ran from 1986 to 1991, and was produced by Columbia Pictures Television, DiC Enterprises, and Coca-Cola Telecommunications. "The Real" was added to the title after a dispute with...
(1986–1991),
Captain Planet and the PlaneteersCaptain Planet is the title character of the series. In the beginning of the series, Gaia assembles a modern-day team of "Planeteers" from several nations...
(1990-1993), and the first two seasons of the English adaptation of
Sailor MoonSailor Moon, known as , is a media franchise created by manga artist Naoko Takeuchi. Fred Patten credits Takeuchi with popularizing the concept of a team of magical girls, and Paul Gravett credits the series with "revitalizing" the magical-girl genre itself...
(1995–1998), DIC produced live-action feature films while under Disney, including 1998's
Meet the DeedlesMeet the Deedles is a 1998 American comedy film directed by Steve Boyum and starring Paul Walker and Steve Van Wormer. It was the first theatrically released film to be produced by DIC Entertainment since 1986 . Its name is a play on the Beatles album Meet The Beatles...
and 1999's
Inspector GadgetInspector Gadget is a 1999 American live-action comedy film loosely based on the 1983 animated cartoon series Inspector Gadget. It starred Matthew Broderick as the title character, along with Rupert Everett as Dr. Claw, Michelle Trachtenberg as Penny, and Dabney Coleman as Chief Quimby...
.
It was founded in 1971 as
DIC Audiovisuel by Frenchman
Jean ChalopinJean Chalopin is a French producer and writer. In 1971, Chalopin created the company DIC Audiovisuel, which later evolved into DIC Entertainment, and wrote and produced programs animated by Japanese studios. Jean Chalopin is married to Chinese/Singaporean ex-Model, Ethel Chalopin...
in Paris, as a subsidiary of Radio-Television Luxembourg (RTL). "DIC" was originally an acronym for
Diffusion, Information et Communication. They later had a US office in Burbank. Andy Heyward then bought the business and DiC became an American company. The company was also known as
The Incredible World of DiC,
DiC. Audiovisuel,
DiC Enterprises,
DIC Animation City and
DIC Productions. In 2008, the studio closed its doors, and was reallocated to
Cookie Jar EntertainmentThe Cookie Jar Group is an American and Canadian producer of children’s entertainment, consumer products and educational materials...
.
1980s
DIC Entertainment's American arm was founded in 1982 as
DIC Enterprises, headed by
Andy HeywardAndrew A. "Andy" Heyward is the former Chairman and CEO of DIC Entertainment, an animation production company.Heyward was born in New York City, New York, the son of Sylvia and Louis M. "Deke" Heyward, who was vice president in charge of development at Barry & Enright Productions...
, Jean Chalopin and Bruno Bianchi, in Burbank, California.
In 1986, Heyward and other investors bought the company, thus making the US headquarters the main base of operations. Chalopin and Bianchi left around this time, so did formal producer Tetsuo Katayama, in favor of Robby London and Michael Maliani.
After the buyout, the company was in heavy debt and the foreign rights to the DIC library were sold to Saban Productions, who then sold the rights back to Chalopin. At the time, Heyward considered Chalopin an enemy. DIC sued Saban for damages; in 1991, both companies reached a settlement.
In 1989, the company's name changed to DiC Animation City.
1990s
In 1993, DIC Animation City and Capital Cities/ABC formed a joint venture called DIC Entertainment LP and in 1995 it became a subsidiary of
The Walt Disney CompanyThe Walt Disney Company is the largest media conglomerate in the world in terms of revenue. Founded on October 16, 1923, by Walt and Roy Disney as the Disney Brothers Cartoon Studio, Walt Disney Productions established itself as a leader in the American animation industry before diversifying into...
.
2000s
In 2000, with an investment by
Bain CapitalBain Capital LLC is a Boston-based private equity firm founded in 1984 by partners from the consulting firm Bain & Company. Originally conceived as an early-stage, growth-oriented investment fund, Bain Capital today manages approximately $65 billion in assets, and its strategies include private...
, Heyward re-purchased DIC Enterprises. He purchased
Bain CapitalBain Capital LLC is a Boston-based private equity firm founded in 1984 by partners from the consulting firm Bain & Company. Originally conceived as an early-stage, growth-oriented investment fund, Bain Capital today manages approximately $65 billion in assets, and its strategies include private...
's interest in 2004 and took the company public the following year.
The same year, they produced a scene parodying
Strawberry ShortcakeStrawberry Shortcake is a licensed character owned by American Greetings, originally used in greeting cards and expanded to include dolls, posters, and other products...
for the
Fairly OddParentsThe Fairly OddParents is an American-Canadian animated television series created by Butch Hartman about the adventures of Timmy Turner, who is granted fairy godparents named Cosmo and Wanda. The series started out as cartoon segments that ran from September 4, 1998 to March 23, 2001 on Oh Yeah!...
television special
Channel ChasersChannel Chasers is the second television film of the animated series The Fairly OddParents. It first aired on Nickelodeon in the United States on July 23, 2004. The film centers on the series' main character 10-year-old Timmy Turner with his fairy godparents Cosmo and Wanda who grant his wishes....
.
In 2003 DIC launched a syndicated children's programming block called DiC Kids Network.
In early 2006, DIC Entertainment and
CBS CorporationCBS Corporation is an American media conglomerate focused on commercial broadcasting, publishing, billboards and television production, with most of its operations in the United States. The President and CEO of the company is Leslie Moonves. Sumner Redstone, owner of National Amusements, is CBS's...
signed a multi-year deal to unveil a new 3-hour long programming block for Saturday mornings on
CBSCBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
. The resulting
KOL Secret Slumber Party on CBS was launched the following fall. On September 15, 2007, a new programming block:
KEWLopolis premiered, a joint venture between DIC, CBS, and
American GreetingsAmerican Greetings Corporation, Inc. is the world's largest publicly-traded greeting card company. It is based in Brooklyn, Ohio and sells paper greeting cards, electronic greeting cards, party products , and electronic expressive content...
.
In April 2007, DIC Entertainment,
Corus Entertainment'sCorus Entertainment Inc. is a publicly traded Canadian media and entertainment conglomerate.Corus is a leading Canadian specialty television and radio producer, with additional assets in pay television, advertising services, television broadcasting, children's book publishing and children's...
NelvanaNelvana Limited is a Canadian entertainment company founded in 1971 known for its work in children's animation. It was named by founders Michael Hirsh, Patrick Loubert and Clive A. Smith after a Canadian comic book superheroine created by Adrian Dingle in the 1940s...
and
NBC Universal Global NetworksUniversal Networks International, formerly NBC Universal Global Networks, is a part of NBC Universal.When NBC Universal was formed, it owned entertainment television channels in Europe and Latin America...
announced plans to launch
KidsCoKidsCo is an international children's entertainment brand founded by Canadian broadcaster Corus Entertainment's Nelvana Enterprises, American-based producer DIC Entertainment, and European broadcaster Sparrowhawk Media Group in April 2007. By the end of 2007, Sparrowhawk was purchased by media...
, a new international children's entertainment network.
On June 20, 2008, it was announced that DIC Entertainment and Cookie Jar Entertainment were merging. On July 23, 2008, both studios completed their merger, and the company was completely folded into
Cookie Jar EntertainmentThe Cookie Jar Group is an American and Canadian producer of children’s entertainment, consumer products and educational materials...
.
External links