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TriStar Television

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TriStar Television, Inc.
FormerlyTri-Star Television (1986-1988)
Company typeDivision
IndustryTelevision production
FoundedMarch 1986; 38 years ago (1986-03) (original launch)
October 1991; 33 years ago (1991-10) (first re-launch)
May 28, 2015; 9 years ago (2015-05-28) (second re-launch)
DefunctJanuary 1988 (original launch)
June 1999 (first re-launch)
FateMerged with Columbia Pictures Television to form Columbia TriStar Television and later folded into Columbia TriStar Television, then transformed into Sony Pictures Television (1999)
Re-launched (2015)
Headquarters10202 West Washington Boulevard, Culver City, California, United States
Area served
Worldwide
ParentSony Pictures Television

TriStar Television, Inc. (first spelled Tri-Star, and abbreviated as TT) is an American television production studio that is a division of Sony Entertainment's Sony Pictures Television. TriStar Television was launched in March 1986 by TriStar Pictures, and remained a joint-venture between Columbia Pictures, CBS, and HBO until it was acquired by Sony Pictures Entertainment, the parent of both Columbia and TriStar. After a purchase by Sony Pictures Entertainment, both companies Columbia Pictures Television and TriStar Television merged and formed Columbia TriStar Television on February 21, 1994. The television studio was relaunched twice and is currently a specialty label for Sony Pictures Television. The entity was originally a sister company of Columbia Pictures Television which was shut down in 2001.

History

It was formed when Tri-Star Pictures joined forces with Stephen J. Cannell Productions and Witt/Thomas Productions and created a television distribution company called TeleVentures. Scott Siegler was immediately hired as president of the studio. As the Tri-Star Television studio rolled around, the company inked overall deals with various personnel, like Ron Samuels, Richard Leder, Michael Jacobs, Larry Tucker, Donald P. Bellisario, Jim Green and Larry Epstein to help develop projects for the studio and decided that they would be involved in various television movies.[1]

By December 1987, Coca-Cola owned 80% Columbia Pictures Entertainment until January 1988, when it was reduced down to 49% and Tri-Star Television was then merged with Columbia/Embassy Television into the reorganized Columbia Pictures Television (CPT) in January 1988, although TeleVentures was retained to handle sales of the existing Tri-Star programs that were inherited under contract to CPT, which would continue as a separate sales and distribution company from the CPT unit.[2] Scott remained president of the studio until he left in 1993.[3] Columbia Pictures Entertainment was sold in November 1989 to Sony of Japan.

In the late of 1988, Witt/Thomas Productions withdrew from the TeleVentures venture, ceding it to Walt Disney Television, and sold its shares to Cannell.[4] On July 11, 1990, both Tri-Star and Cannell dissolved the TeleVentures joint venture and Tri-Star sold its shares to Stephen J. Cannell Productions and TeleVentures became Cannell Distribution Co. Most of the series and the Tri-Star film packages that were distributed by TeleVentures were taken over by Columbia Pictures Television Distribution.[5]

Revival and merger with Columbia Pictures Television

CPT would continue on under Sony Pictures Entertainment (SPE), but TriStar Television was reestablished in October 1991 after CPT acquired some of the library of New World Television.[6] Jon Feltheimer, who was president of New World Television became the new president of TriStar Television.[6] On March 15, 1993, star Larry Hagman had inked a deal with the studio to develop their own projects for the 1993-94 TV season.[7] On February 21, 1994, TriStar Television merged with Columbia Pictures Television and formed Columbia TriStar Television (CTT).[8][9] In 1997, most new shows, and some existing TriStar shows like Early Edition, dropped the separate CPT and TriStar logos and begin placing it under the CTT logo, and also in January 1997, changed monikers from Sony Television Entertainment to Columbia TriStar Television Group.[10]

When TriStar Television's productions were folded into Columbia TriStar Television in 1999, Early Edition (a joint production with CBS) retained the TriStar copyright until 2000. The final season of Malcolm & Eddie was later produced by CTT and TriStar Television operated in-name-only. On October 25, 2001, Columbia TriStar Television and Columbia TriStar Television Distribution merged to become Columbia TriStar Domestic Television. On September 16, 2002, SPE retired the Columbia and TriStar names from television, renaming CTDT as Sony Pictures Television.[11]

Second revival

On May 28, 2015, TriStar Television was re-launched as a boutique production label for Sony Pictures Television. Until her death in March 2018, the revived studio was run by Suzanne Patmore-Gibbs after being in-name-only for 15 years.[12] The first new series was Good Girls Revolt and was piloted for Amazon Prime Video on November 5, 2015.[12]

List of shows by TriStar Television

Title Years Network Notes
Downtown 1986–1987 CBS
Take Five 1987
Nothing in Common NBC Based on the 1986 movie of the same name by Tri-Star Pictures
Werewolf 1987–1988 Fox Produced by Columbia Pictures Television in January 1988
My Two Dads 1987–1990 NBC
Buck James 1987–1988 ABC
Get a Life 1990–1992 Fox Produced by New World Television from 1990 to 1991
Charlie Hoover 1991
The Fifth Corner 1992 NBC
The Boys of Twilight CBS Unsold pilot
Forever Knight 1992–1996
The Edge 1992–1993[13] Fox
Mad About You 1992–1999 NBC
Tribeca 1993 Fox
Good Advice 1993–1994 CBS
The Nanny 1993–1999 Co-production with Sternin & Fraser Ink Inc. and Highschool Sweethearts (1995-1999)
The Mighty Jungle 1994 The Family Channel
TV Nation 1994–1995 NBC, Fox, BBC Two
Women of the House 1995 CBS, Lifetime
Simon 1995–1996 The WB
Ned and Stacey 1995–1997 Fox Co-production with Hanley Productions
Can't Hurry Love 1995–1996 CBS Co-production with CBS Productions
Hudson Street ABC Co-production with Katie Face Productions
Dead By Sunset 1995 NBC Miniseries
Matt Waters 1996 CBS
The Dana Carvey Show ABC
Malcolm & Eddie 1996–2000 UPN Produced by Columbia TriStar Television from 1999 to 2000
Moloney 1996–1997 CBS
Love and Marriage 1996 Fox
Early Edition 1996–2000 CBS Co-production with CBS Productions
Produced by Columbia TriStar Television from 1997 to 2000
Life... and Stuff 1997
The Simple Life 1998
Good Girls Revolt 2015–2016 Amazon Prime Video Co-production with Amazon Studios
Shut Eye 2016–2017 Hulu Co-production with Gran Via Productions
The Last Tycoon Amazon Prime Video Co-production with Amazon Studios
On Becoming a God in Central Florida 2019 Showtime Co-production with Smoke House Pictures and Pali Eyes Pictures
The Afterparty 2022–present Apple TV+ Co-production with Lord Miller Productions and Sony Pictures Television Studios

References

  1. ^ Kaufman, Dave (1986-06-04). "Tri-Star Delves Into TV Prods; Now Making Deals Around Town". Variety. p. 43.
  2. ^ "Coke's EBS & Tri-Star Merge TV Biz, Forming Col Pictures TV". Variety. 1987-10-21. pp. 512, 528.
  3. ^ "Coca -Cola Entertainment and Tri-Star to merge TV units" (PDF). Broadcasting. 1987-10-19. Retrieved 2021-09-08.
  4. ^ "Action-Packed Expansion" (PDF). Channels of Communication. 1990-04-09. Retrieved 2021-08-16.
  5. ^ "IN BRIEF". Broadcasting. 1990-07-16. p. 110.
  6. ^ a b "CPT TO ACQUIRE NEW WORLD PROPERTIES". Broadcasting. 1991-10-14. p. 27.
  7. ^ "TriStar gives J.R. a shot" (PDF). Broadcasting. 1993-03-15. Retrieved 2021-12-02.
  8. ^ Feltheimer heads new Columbia TriStar TV Broadcasting via Ebsco Host Connection, Retrieved on December 18, 2012
  9. ^ "Feltheimer heads new Columbia TriStar TV". Broadcasting. 1994-02-21. p. 20.
  10. ^ Cox, Dan (1997-01-30). "SONY STREAMLINING". Variety. Retrieved 2021-08-29.
  11. ^ Sony Pictures Entertainment Renames Television Operations; Domestic and International Divisions Take Sony Name, prnewswire.com
  12. ^ a b Sony Eyes Relaunching TriStar Television Banner Run By Suzanne Patmore Gibbs Nellie Andreeva deadline.com, Retrieved on May 28, 2015
  13. ^ Lippman, John (1992-10-19). "Television: The Fox network is in the position of having offended its top program supplier". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2011-07-11.
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