The Burbank Studios | |
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General information | |
Status | Complete |
Type | Television Studios Complex |
Location |
Burbank, California United States |
Completed | 1952 |
Owner | Worthe Real Estate Group (Currently) NBCUniversal (Previously) |
Technical details | |
Floor count | 6 |
Design and construction | |
Developer | Radio Corporation of America |
References | |
The Burbank Studios (formerly known as NBC Studios) is a television production facility located in Burbank, California. The studio is home to Days of Our Lives, The Robert Irvine Show, and Henry Danger.
The West Coast Radio City opened in 1938 and served as headquarters to the NBC Radio Networks' West Coast operations. It served as a replacement for NBC's radio broadcast center in San Francisco, which had been in service since the network's formation in 1927. Since NBC never owned a radio station in Los Angeles, the network's West Coast programming originated from its San Francisco station (KPO-AM, which later became KNBC-AM, and is now KNBR).
The architect for the distinctive Streamline Moderne building at Sunset and Vine was John C. Austin.
In January 1949, NBC launched its newest television station for Los Angeles, KNBH (Channel 4; now KNBC) from Radio City; the radio studios were later equipped for live television broadcasting in the transition phase from radio broadcasting. However, as television production was increasing for NBC, the network and its then-parent RCA decided to build a television studio, nicknamed NBC Color City, that would be exclusively equipped for color broadcasting. For many of the same reasons why CBS eventually built Television City in the early 1950s, the television facilities at Radio City gradually became too small for NBC to produce its television broadcasts.
RCA's decision to expand television studio facilities required moving to the real estate market in the San Fernando Valley-Burbank area, with land purchased from Jack Warner. The newly christened NBC Color City Studios opened in March 1955, as the first television studio designed specially for the origination of color television broadcasting, although their rivals, ABC and CBS would gradually add color broadcasting to their studio facilities in the later years.