Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank

Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank, formerly known as Warner Bros.-Seven Arts Studios (1967-1970) and The Burbank Studios (1972-1990), is a major filmmaking facility owned and run by Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. in Burbank, California.[1] First National Pictures built the 62-acre (25 ha) studio lot in 1926 as it expanded from a film distributor to film production.[2]

Warner Bros. Studios
The iconic historic WB water tower
LocationBurbank, California, United States
Address4000 Warner Boulevard
Coordinates
Opening date1926 (1926)
ManagerWarner Bros. Studio Facilities
OwnerWarner Bros. Studio Facilities
(Warner Bros. Entertainment)
Size62 acres (25 ha)
Websitestudiofacilities.warnerbros.com

History

The financial success of The Jazz Singer and The Singing Fool enabled Warner Bros. to purchase a majority interest in First National in September 1928 and it began moving its productions into the Burbank lot. The First National studio, as it was then known, became the official home of Warner Bros.–First National Pictures with four sound stages.[3] Though Warner's Sunset Boulevard studios remained in active use during the 1930s both for motion picture filming and "phonograph recordings"[4] a fire in December 1934 destroyed 15 acres (6.1 ha) of the studios in Burbank, forcing the company to put its Sunset Boulevard studio back into full use.

In 1937, Stage 7 was raised 30 feet and renamed Stage 16 to become a 98-foot high stage with a 2-million-gallon water tank, one of the largest stages in the world,[3] and has been used to film scenes from The Goonies (1985), The Perfect Storm (2000) and Dunkirk (2017) and is also where Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone's characters can be seen walking in the film La La Land (2016). Stage 22, built in 1937, was the last stage built on the studio lot for 60 years.[5] By 1937, Warner Bros. had all but closed the Sunset studio, making the Burbank lot its main headquarters – which it remains to this day. Eventually Warner dissolved the First National company and the site has often been referred to as simply Warner Bros. Studios since.

The backlot has various sets including New York Street; Hennessy Street; Midwest Street and The Jungle. New York Street was built in 1930 and can be used to represent other cities and has been used for films including 42nd Street (1933), Blade Runner (1982) and The Dark Knight (2008) and television series such as Friends (1994–2004). Hennessy Street was originally known as Tenement Street and was built in 1937. It was used for My Fair Lady (1964), Annie (1982) and Spider-Man (2002). Midwest Street was built in 1939 for Four Wives and has since been used as River City in The Music Man (1962) and for The Dukes of Hazzard (1979-1985) and Gremlins (1984). The Jungle set was built in 1955 for the film Santiago (1956) and has later been used for The Goonies (1985) and The Waltons.[6] In 1955, Warner Bros. Television was created and TV productions on the lot increased with some of the stages subdivided into two or three smaller stages.[3] The Laramie Street set was built in 1957 used for westerns including Blazing Saddles (1974) and TV series Cheyenne and Maverick. In 2004 it was turned into Warner Village, a residential street, used in TV series including Two and a Half Men and The Big Bang Theory.[6]

In a cost-cutting move in 1972, Warner Bros. entered into a joint venture with Columbia Pictures to create The Burbank Studios on the Warner lot and its auxiliary facility, The Burbank Studios Ranch on Columbia's Columbia Ranch, located a mile north of the main lot. The Burbank Studios was often abbreviated as TBS, especially the ranch, i.e., TBS Ranch. During this period, whether a Columbia Pictures Television series (e.g., Police Woman, Joe Forrester, Fantasy Island, Hart to Hart, Police Story) or a Warner Bros. Television property (e.g., The Dukes of Hazzard, Alice, Harry O, Kung Fu, The New Land), a credit for The Burbank Studios being the production base was included within one of each series' end title cards' credits. Additionally, the new independent supplier Lorimar Productions was based at The Burbank Studios so within the end credits of its properties like The Waltons, The Blue Knight, and Eight Is Enough, a "Filmed at The Burbank Studios" notation was included. The joint venture lasted until 1990 when the partnership was dissolved and Columbia Pictures and sister division Tri-Star Pictures moved into and took over the former Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/Lorimar (now Sony Pictures Studios) lot in Culver City, with the two studio lots in Burbank reverted to Warner Bros. Studios and Warner Bros. Studios Ranch Facilities, respectively.[7]

Friends was filmed on the studio lot for ten years. The first season was shot on Stage 5[8] but at the beginning of the second season, production moved to the larger Stage 24. Stage 24 was renamed "The Friends Stage" after the series finale in 2004.[9] Other shows shot on Stage 24 included Full House and Mike & Molly.[10] The Big Bang Theory was filmed on Stage 25 and Stage 1 is one of 3 stages where they tape The Ellen DeGeneres Show.[11] By 2015, the studio had 35 sound stages.[3][12]

Studio tour
Main article: Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood

Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood is a public attraction in Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank that offers visitors the chance to glimpse behind the scenes of one the oldest film studios in the world.[13]

The public tour started in 1973 and was renamed after the success of Warner Bros. Studio Tour London in Leavesden. Previously it was known as the Warner Bros. Studios VIP Tour.[14][15]

Museum
Main article: Warner Bros. Museum

The Warner Bros. Museum opened at the studio in 1996.

References
  1. Warner Bros. "Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank website".
  2. "First National Properties", The Wall Street Journal, May 21, 1926, p. 16.
  3. Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood Official Guide. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. 2015. p. 22.
  4. "New Buildings Finished at Warner Brothers Lot". Los Angeles Times. January 7, 1931.
  5. Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood Official Guide. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. 2015. p. 12-15.
  6. Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood Official Guide. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. 2015. pp. 32–42.
  7. Bingen, Steven (September 16, 2014). Warner Bros.: Hollywood's Ultimate Backlot. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 199. ISBN 978-1589799622.
  8. Endrst, James (February 23, 1995). "Friends wins friends with caffeine-fueled energy". Austin American-Statesman. Archived from the original on November 25, 2018. Retrieved January 3, 2009.
  9. "52 millon friends see off Friends". China Daily. May 8, 2004. Archived from the original on January 25, 2009. Retrieved December 31, 2008.
  10. Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood Official Guide. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. 2015. p. 29.
  11. "Backlots & Soundstages". Warner Bros. Studio Tour. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
  12. Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood Official Guide. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. 2015. p. 30.
  13. "Warner Bros. Studio Tour: Hollywood". Warner Bros.
  14. "Warner Bros. Studio Tour Hollywood". AAA.
  15. "Warner Bros. Studios V.I.P. Tour". Seeing Stars in Hollywood. Retrieved January 3, 2019.
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