Founder Stephen Jay Ross Ceased operations 1972 | Founded 1966 | |
A kinney national company 1971
Kinney National Services, Inc. (later, Kinney Services, Inc.) was an American conglomerate company from 1966 to 1972. Its successor was Warner Communications.
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History
It was formed in 1966 as Kinney National Company, when the Kinney Parking Company and the National Cleaning Contractors, Inc. were merged. The new company was headed by Steve Ross.
In 1967, Kinney National expanded by acquiring National Periodical Publications (more commonly, but not yet officially called DC Comics), Hollywood talent agency Ashley-Famous, and Panavision. Ted Ashley (from Ashley-Famous) suggested to Ross that he buy out the cash-strapped film company Warner Bros.-Seven Arts, which had purchased Atlantic Records that same year.
When the acquisition of Warner Bros.-Seven Arts was completed in 1969, Ashley-Famous was sold because of anti-trust laws prohibiting a company from owning both a production studio and a talent agency. Ted Ashley was put in charge of the movie studio. Beginning with the unexpected success of the concert documentary Woodstock (1970), the company started scoring box office hits again, reestablishing Warner Bros. as a major studio.
In 1970, Kinney National bought Jac Holzman's Elektra Records and Nonesuch Records.
Kinney National purchased wood flooring manufacturer Circle Floor from Seymour Milstein and Paul Milstein for $15 million, with the Milsteins remaining as managers of the unit until 1971.
Financial scandal
Due to a financial scandal involving price fixing in its parking operations, Kinney National spun off its non-entertainment assets in 1972 as the National Kinney Corporation, and renamed the remaining Kinney National Company as Warner Communications Inc..
Steve Ross was the company's sole CEO, president, and chairman. Directors included Charles A. Agemian, the CEO of Garden State National Bank.