Background
Times Square Studios is owned by The Walt Disney Company, a media and entertainment conglomerate, which also owns ABC. It was designed by Walt Disney Imagineering, Disney's design and development arm. The original concept for the studio was conceived by Harry Grossman. His plan called for the studio to broadcast many shows twenty-four hours a day for both Disney-owned and non-Disney programs.
The building's outer facade consists of over 9 LED ribbons of lights. The 8th LED ribbon of lights from the top is used as a ticker for ABC News, while the 9th is a sports ticker for ESPN. Also on the facade is a large TV display made by Mitsubishi - Diamond Vision despite the visual that states Siemens. This screen mainly broadcasts the late SportsCenter, along with WABC-TV and ABC News newscasts during non-GMA hours, along with high-profile sports events, series and films on the ABC and ESPN family of networks for both the convenience of Times Square visitors and to provide a simple venue for crowd photo ops for those high-profile events.
The studio is primarily used for productions of ABC News. When Good Morning America is not on the air, the studios have been used regularly to produce programming (such as special week-long New York weeks for international morning shows) for other companies including:
- Australia Network
- BBC World News
- Cartoon Network
- Discovery Channel
- CCTV-4
- CCTV News
- DW-TV North America
- CNN International
- ESPN
- France 24
- Formosa TV
- GMA Pinoy TV
- HBO
- KBS World
- NHK World Television
- Nine Network Australia
- Rai Italia 1
- Rossiya 24
- RT America
- RTP Internacional
- RTR Planeta
- SIC Internacional
- The Filipino Channel
- TVB1
- TVB2
- TVBe
- TVE Internacional
- TV5MONDE États-Unis
The core management staff is Jeff Hartnett, Robert Agnello and Maura Hayes.
The studio is on the site of the former Hotel Claridge, built in 1911. In 1972, the hotel was demolished and the current structure, which housed the National Theater, and a Beefsteak Charlie's restaurant, was built. The theater closed in 1998.
Read more about this topic: Times Square Studios
Famous quotes containing the word background:
“In the true sense one’s native land, with its background of tradition, early impressions, reminiscences and other things dear to one, is not enough to make sensitive human beings feel at home.”
—Emma Goldman (1869–1940)
“Pilate with his question “What is truth?” is gladly trotted out these days as an advocate of Christ, so as to arouse the suspicion that everything known and knowable is an illusion and to erect the cross upon that gruesome background of the impossibility of knowledge.”
—Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–1900)
“... every experience in life enriches one’s background and should teach valuable lessons.”
—Mary Barnett Gilson (1877–?)