~ RHF wrote:


Hence God Is Universal and We* Are Not ~ RHF


From the First Book of Laemmle:

UNIVERSAL STUDIOS MILESTONES

1909: Carl Laemmle forms what will soon be known as the Independent
Moving Picture Company of America (IMP).
1912: IMP merges with five other film companies to create Universal Film
Manufacturing Company, encompassing all facets of movie production,
distribution, and exhibition.

1915: Universal City officially opens. Thomas Edison, founder of GE,
dedicates Universal's state-of-the-art electric studio.

1924: Dr. Jules Stein and William R. Goodheart, Jr. form the Music
Corporation of America (MCA), representing music's biggest stars of the day.
1928: Universal opens its first "talking picture," Melody of Love.
1930: All Quiet on the Western Front wins Academy Award for Best Picture.
1931: Dracula and Frankenstein are released, beginning Universal's
leadership in horror genre.
1936: Lew Wasserman, age 22, joins MCA in Cleveland.

1938: Devised by Lew Wasserman, MCA radio show Kay Kyser and His Kollege
of Musical Knowledge, debuts on NBC Radio.

1946: Lew Wasserman appointed President of MCA.
1948: Laurence Olivier's Hamlet earns Academy Award for Best Picture.
1950: Lew Wasserman's negotiation of percentage deal between Universal
and Jimmy Stewart on Winchester '73 revolutionizes film industry.
1951: Universal is acquired by Decca Records.

1953: Premiere of General Electric Theater. A year later, Ronald Reagan
becomes host

1958: MCA buys Paramount Studios' pre-1948 sound film library in richest
TV syndication deal to date.
1961: Spartacus spears four Academy Awards.
1962: MCA purchases Decca Records, and with it, Universal Pictures.
1963: Gregory Peck receives Best Actor Oscar for To Kill a Mockingbird.
1964: Universal Studios Tour opens for business. MCA acquires Alfred
Hitchcock's Shamley Productions, including rights to Psycho and all his
television work.
1974: The Sting captures seven Academy Awards, among them Best Picture.
1978: The Deer Hunter brings home four Academy Awards, including Best
Picture.
1980: MCA Home Entertainment Group founded, creating catalog video
distribution division.
1983: E.T.: The Extra Terrestrial takes over domestic and international
box office.
1985: Out of Africa honored with Best Picture Oscar.
1990: Universal Studios Florida opens in Orlando.

1991: Electronics giant Matsu****a Electric Industrial Co. purchases MCA.

1993: Steven Spielberg's Schindler's List wins Academy Award for Best
Picture. Universal CityWalk opens.
1995: Joseph Seagram Company, Ltd. buys 80 percent interest in MCA. Ron
Meyer appointed president and COO, succeeding Sidney Sheinberg.
1996: MCA, Inc. renamed Universal Studios, Inc.
1997: TV's most successful franchise, Law & Order, wins Emmy for
Outstanding Drama Series.
1999: Islands of Adventure, the Portofino Resort, and Universal CityWalk
open in Orlando, Florida.
2000: Vivendi, Canal+, and parent Seagram Company form strategic
business combination, creating Vivendi Universal.
2001: Universal Studios Japan stages grand opening and shatters
attendance records worldwide. Universal gains USA Network assets
including USA Films, later renamed Focus Features.
2003: Universal becomes first studio with five summer releases breaking
$100 million mark.

May 12, 2004: Day One of the new NBC Universal.