The Burbank Studios

This article is about the former NBC facility. For the former studio facility partnership between Warner Bros. and Columbia Pictures, see Warner Bros. Studios, Burbank.

The Burbank Studios (formerly known as NBC Studios) is a television production facility located in Burbank, California, United States. The studio is home to Days of Our Lives, Extra, the IHeartRadio Theater, and was formerly home to the Blizzard Arena (home of the Overwatch League).

The Burbank Studios
Former names	NBC Studios (1952–2014)
General information
Status	Completed
Type	Television Studios Complex
Address	3000 West Alameda Avenue Burbank, California 91505
Completed	1952
Owner	NBCUniversal (1952–2014) Worthe Real Estate Group (2014–2023) Warner Bros. Discovery (2023-present)
Technical details
Floor count	6
Design and construction
Developer	Radio Corporation of America
References
^[1]

NBC Radio City Hollywood was located at Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street in Hollywood, 1937—1962, in 1968, it was replaced by Home Savings and Loan headquarters.^[2][3][4]

History

NBC Radio City Hollywood

NBC Radio City Hollywood,^[5][6] located at Sunset Boulevard and Vine Street in Hollywood, opened in 1938 and served as headquarters to the NBC Radio Networks' West Coast operations. It served as a replacement for NBC Radio City San Francisco in San Francisco which had been in service since 1942. Since NBC never owned a radio station in Los Angeles, the network's West Coast programming originated from its San Francisco station (KPO, which later became KNBC, and is now KNBR). NBC radio network programming was carried on KFI in Los Angeles.

The architect for the distinctive Streamline Moderne building at Sunset and Vine was John C. Austin.^[7]

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 the Radio Corporation of America, decided to build a television studio, nicknamed NBC Color City, that would be exclusively equipped for color television broadcasting. For many of the same reasons why CBS eventually built Television City in the early 1950s to replace its Columbia Square, the television facilities at Radio City gradually became too small for NBC to produce its television broadcasts.

NBC Color City Studios Burbank

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.^[8] 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 later years.

KNBC moved to a new building in 1962. In 1964, the West Coast Radio City building was demolished, as NBC moved more of their West Coast television operations to the Burbank facility. The site is now occupied by a bank.

This studio hosted production of many of the best-remembered game and variety shows from the 1950s through the 1990s, including Hollywood Squares from 1966 to 1980, Wheel of Fortune from 1975 to 1989, Rowan and Martin's Laugh-in from 1968 to 1973, and The Tonight Show beginning in 1972. The latter two shows would frequently reference their home in "Beautiful Downtown Burbank" though Tonight would invariably begin each episode with the technically incorrect announcement, "From Hollywood...") During the late 1960s, Carson's Tonight Show would move for periods to Burbank, using studio 1. After the permanent move to Burbank in 1972, Bob Hope's shows taped in studio 1, with The Tonight Show taking a hiatus while Hope produced his specials. In 1971, President Richard Nixon announced Henry Kissinger's secret negotiations with Zhou Enlai and his impending visit to China from the studio.^[9]

The Tonight Show would stay in Burbank through Johnny Carson's retirement, Jay Leno's ascendency to host until the end of his first run in 2009, when it moved to an all-digital studio on the Universal lot in 2009 for the short-lived The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien. The show moved back to the Burbank Studios when Leno returned as host of The Tonight Show on March 1, 2010. The show used studio 11 until Leno stepped down as host on February 6, 2014. After that, The Tonight Show moved back to New York City's Rockefeller Center when Jimmy Fallon replaced Leno as host, marking the end of the 42-year era in which the show had recorded in Southern California.^[10]

NBC's move to Universal City

 

Administrative building in 2015

 

Studio 11, formerly the home of The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and The Jay Leno Show.

In October 2007, NBC announced plans to move most of its operations from Burbank to a new complex across the street from Universal Studios in Universal City.^[11] It would retain offices at the Burbank site until May 2013, though the studio complex was sold to Catalina/Worthe Real Estate Group in 2008, with NBCUniversal leasing space until 2013. The former Technicolor building on the Universal lot serves as the new home to NBC's West Coast operations.^[12] KNBC-TV and NBC News' Los Angeles bureau, along with KVEA, began broadcasting from Universal Studios on February 2, 2014. In addition, production of The Ellen DeGeneres Show moved to the nearby Warner Bros. Studios in 2008.

The Burbank facility was one of the few television-specific studio facilities in Hollywood that offered tours to the general public until they ceased July 6, 2012.^[13]

On March 13, 2014, Lawrence O'Donnell announced that his MSNBC broadcast that night would be the last nationally-televised program to be broadcast live from NBC's Burbank studio, with the move of the NBC News Los Angeles bureau to Universal City.

After NBC

On October 2, 2017, Studio 1 became the official home of Blizzard Arena Los Angeles and the Overwatch League, marking Burbank Studios' very first esports broadcast. The inaugural season began on January 10, 2018, in which over 437,000 viewers tuned in live on opening night via Twitch and MLG.tv streaming platforms.^[14] The final match was played on September 15, 2019 before the league moved to a traditional sports home-and-away format.

In 2019, WarnerMedia (now Warner Bros. Discovery) announced that it would purchase the Burbank Studios. The transaction is expected to be completed in Late 2023.^[15][16]

Program history

Today, the studio houses Days of Our Lives (the last remaining NBC series in production there) and the IHeartRadio Theater. Programs produced here over the years include:

Program	Network/Station	Years Taped	Studio	Notes
The All-New Jeopardy!	NBC	1978–1979	3	The present-day syndicated revival of the show (which began in 1984) is currently being taped at Sony Pictures Studios in Culver City.
All Star Secrets	NBC	1979
All That	Nickelodeon	2019–2020	9	Reboot series
The Andy Williams Show	NBC	1962–1967; 1969–1971	4
An Evening with Fred Astaire (TV special)	NBC	1958	2
Baffle	NBC	1973–1974
Battlestars	NBC	1981–1982; 1983	3
The Big Game	NBC	1958	4
Blank Check	NBC	1975	4
Blockbusters	NBC	1980–1982; 1987	1, 2, 3, 4
Bullseye	Syndication	1980–1981	3, 4
Card Sharks	NBC	1978–1981	3, 4	CBS and first syndicated version taped at Television City from 1986 to 1989, second syndicated version taped at Tribune Studios from September to December 2001, ABC version taped at Television City in 2019 and CBS Studio Center in 2020
Celebrity Sweepstakes	NBC, Syndication	1974–1977	9
Chain Letter	NBC	1966
Chain Reaction	NBC	1980	2, 4	USA Network version taped at CFCF-TV in Montreal, Quebec from 1986 to 1991; GSN version taped at Sony Music Studios in New York City from 2007 to 2008 and at an unknown location from 2015 to 2016
Channel 4 News	KNBC	1962–2014	5"N", 10	KNBC moved to a studio near Universal Studios Hollywood in 2014
Chico and the Man	NBC	1974–1978	3
Classic Concentration	NBC	1987–1991	3
Cousins for Life	Nickelodeon	2018	9
C.P.O. Sharkey	NBC	1976–1978	3
Days of Our Lives	NBC, Peacock	1965–present	9, 2 & 4	The series moved to NBC's streaming service Peacock starting in September 2022.
The Dean Martin Show	NBC	1965–1974	2
Dream House	NBC	1983–1984	3
Dog Eat Dog	NBC	2002–2003	1
The Don Knotts Show	NBC	1970–1971	2
Danger Force	Nickelodeon	2020–present	11
The Don Rickles Show	NBC	1968–1969	2
Elvis Presley's '68 Comeback Special (TV special)	NBC	1968	4
The Ellen DeGeneres Show	Syndication	2003–2008	11	Production moved to Warner Bros. Studios in 2008
Extra	Syndicated	2019–present	Newsroom
The Fairly OddParents: Fairly Odder	Paramount+	2021	9
Fight Back! with David Horowitz	Syndication	1980–1992	5"P"
The Flip Wilson Show	NBC	1970–1974	2
Frank Sinatra: A Man and His Music (TV special)	NBC	1965	4
The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air	NBC	1993–1996	11
The Funny Side	NBC	1971–1972
Game Shakers	Nickelodeon	2015–2018	9
Generations	NBC	1989–1991	11
Go	NBC	1983–1984	2
The Gong Show	NBC, Syndication	1976–1978	3
Henry Danger	Nickelodeon	2014–2019	11
High Rollers	NBC	1974–1976; 1978–1980	3	1987–88 version taped at Television City
Hit Man	NBC	1983	4
Hollywood Squares	NBC, Syndication	1966–1980; 1986–1987	1, 3, 4	Production moved prior to 1987–1988 season; 1998–2004 version taped at Television City
Hot Potato	NBC	1984	2
The Howie Mandel Show	Syndication	1998–1999	1
iHeartRadio Theater	The CW	2013–present	3
In the House	NBC, UPN	1995–1999
I'll Bet	NBC	1965
It Could Be You	NBC	1956–1961
It Pays to Be Ignorant	Syndication	1973–1974
It Takes Two	NBC	1969–1970
It's Anybody's Guess	NBC	1977	3
It's Your Bet	Syndication	1969–1973
The Jay Leno Show	NBC	2009–2010	11
The John Davidson Show	Syndication	1980–1981	2
Just Men!	NBC	1983	2
Late Night with David Letterman	NBC	1985	11
Late Night with Conan O'Brien	NBC	1999	1
Last Call with Carson Daly	NBC	2005–2009	9
Let's Make a Deal	NBC, Syndication	1963–1968; 1984–1985; 2003	1, 4	CBS version tapes at Raleigh Studios from 2015 onwards; formerly taped at the Tropicana Resort & Casino from 2009 to 2010 and at Sunset Bronson Studios from 2010 to 2014
Letters to Laugh-In	NBC	1969	2
Lotsa Luck	NBC	1973–1974
Match Game–Hollywood Squares Hour	NBC	1983–1984	3
Make Your Own Kind of Music	NBC	1971
The Midnight Special	NBC	1972–1983	2, 4
Mindreaders	NBC	1979–1980	3, 4
The Nat King Cole Show	NBC	1956–1957	2
Night Court	NBC	1984–1991		Production moved to Warner Bros. Studios in 1991–92
Overwatch League	ABC, Disney XD, ESPN, ESPN2^[17]	2018–2019	1
PDQ	Syndication	1965–1969
Password Plus	NBC	1979–1982	1, 2, 3, 4
People are Funny	NBC	1956–1961; 1984	3
People Will Talk	NBC	1963	3
Punky Brewster	Syndication	1987–1988	11
Real People	NBC	1979–1984
The Robert Irvine Show	The CW	2016–2018	1
Rowan & Martin's Laugh-In	NBC	1968–1973	3
Sale of the Century	NBC, Syndication	1983–1989	3
Saturday Night Live	NBC	1982	1	For the season premiere of Season 8 (1982-83), host Chevy Chase performed the cold open and all his other sketches from Burbank via satellite. His segments were done from the then-set of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson; at Studio 8H in New York, a TV monitor was set up on each stage where Chase's Burbank-originated image appeared as the rest of the cast performed as usual, in person.
The Sammy Davis Jr. Show	NBC	1966	2
Sanford and Son	NBC	1972–1977	3
Santa Barbara	NBC	1984–1993	11
Saved by the Bell	NBC	1989–1993
Saved by the Bell: The New Class	NBC	1993–2000
Scrabble	NBC	1984–1990; 1993	2, 3
Sonny with a Chance	Disney Channel	2009	11
Super Password	NBC	1984–1989	1, 3	2008 incarnation known as Million Dollar Password taped at Kaufman Astoria Studios in New York City, then CBS Studio Center
Supermarket Sweep	Pax TV	2001–2003	11
Three for the Money	NBC	1975
This Is Your Life	NBC	1958–1961	3
Time Machine	NBC	1985
To Say the Least	NBC	1977–1978
To Tell the Truth	NBC, Syndication	1990–1991; 2000–2002	1, 11
Tomorrow	NBC	1973–1974; 1977–1979	1, 5
The Tonight Show starring Johnny Carson	NBC	1972–1992	1^[18]
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno	NBC	1992–2009; 2010–2014	1, 3,^[19]^[20] 11^[21]	Since 2014 as The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon taped at Rockefeller Center NBC Studios in New York City
Truth or Consequences	NBC	1960–1965	1, 3
Twenty One	NBC	2000	1
Vicki!	Syndication	1992–1994	3
The Weakest Link	NBC, Syndication	2001–2003	1
The Weird Al Show	CBS	1997–1998	11
Welcome Back, Kotter	ABC	1975–1976		Pilot recorded at CBS Television City; Seasons 2 to 4 recorded at ABC Television Center
What's This Song?	NBC	1964–1965
Wheel of Fortune	NBC, Syndication	1975–1989	2, 4	Taped at CBS Television City from 1989 until 1995. Since 1995, has been taping at Sony Pictures Studios
Wordplay	NBC	1986–1987	4
You Bet Your Life/The Groucho Show	NBC	1960–1961	3
You Don't Say!	NBC	1963–1969	3
Your Number's Up	NBC	1985	2

Geography

The Burbank Studios is located on West Alameda Avenue, in Burbank, California. It lies across the street, on Bob Hope Drive, from Johnny Carson Park, the busiest park in Burbank.^{[22][23][24][25][26][27]}

See also

• 30 Rockefeller Plaza
• NBC Tower
• NBC Radio City Studios

References

1. "Emporis building ID 341386". Emporis.^{[dead link]}
2. Turnbull, Martin (May 31, 2017). "A collection of photos of the NBC radio and television studios on the northeast corner of Sunset Blvd and Vine Street, Hollywood, Los Angeles". Martin Turnbull .com. Retrieved November 4, 2023. NBC moved out of the studios in 1962 and relocated to Burbank. The building was demolished in 1964 to make way for a bank.
3. "6285 Sunset Part 2: NBC Radio City West". J. H. Graham .com. November 25, 2020. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
4. Graham, J. H. (November 24, 2020). "6285 Sunset Part 1: Carpenter's Drive-In". J. H. Graham .com. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
5. "NBC Radio City Hollywood". westmb.org. Western States Museum of Broadcasting. Retrieved November 4, 2023.
6. "National Broadcasting Company (NBC), Studios, Hollywood, Los Angeles, CA". pcad.lib.washington.edu. Pacific Coast Architecture Database (PCAD). Retrieved November 4, 2023.
7. Kepos, Paula, ed. (1994). "The Austin Company". International Directory of Company Histories. Vol. 8. Detroit: St. James Press. p. 41. ISBN 978-1-5586-2323-1. Retrieved June 24, 2022.
8. "Thomas W. Sarnoff". Television Academy Interviews. October 22, 2017. Retrieved June 24, 2022.
9. Graff, Garrett M. (2022). Watergate: A New History (1st ed.). New York: Avid Reader Press. p. 78. ISBN 978-1-9821-3918-6. Retrieved June 24, 2022.
10. Memmott, Mark (April 3, 2013). "It's Set: Jimmy Fallon To Replace Jay Leno On 'Tonight Show' In Spring 2014". Must Reads. NPR. Retrieved August 22, 2013.
11. Schneider, Michael (October 10, 2007). "NBC moving from Burbank to L.A." Variety. Retrieved August 22, 2013.
12. Miller, Daniel (January 4, 2012). "NBCUniversal to Build New Broadcast Center". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved August 22, 2013.
13. Flint, Joe (July 6, 2012). "The Morning Fix: Big web for 'Spider-Man' and 'Ted.' WikiLeaks race". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 22, 2013.
14. Wolf, Jacob (January 17, 2018). "Overwatch League outperforms Thursday Night Football livestream on opening day". ESPN. Retrieved February 23, 2018.
15. (Press release). Warner Media. Archived from the original on April 18, 2019.
16. "Warner Bros. Plans to buy Burbank Studios and occupy new Frank Gehry 'iceberg' towers". Los Angeles Times. April 15, 2019.
17. "Overwatch League comes to ESPN, Disney and ABC". ESPN. July 11, 2018. Retrieved May 11, 2019.
18. Sweeney, Don (2006). Backstage at The Tonight Show: From Johnny Carson to Jay Leno. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-58979-303-3.
19. Sweeney, Don (2006). Backstage at The Tonight Show: From Johnny Carson to Jay Leno. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 978-1-58979-303-3.
20. Abramson, Albert (September 15, 2007). The History of Television, 1942 to 2000. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-3243-1.
21. Carter, Bill (November 4, 2010). The War for Late Night: When Leno Went Early and Television Went Crazy. Penguin. ISBN 978-1-101-44342-2.
22. "The Burbank Studios". Google Maps.
23. "Johnny Carson Park (34.1551988,-118.3326244)". Google Maps.
24. "Johnny Carson Park; 400 S. Bob Hope Drive; Burbank; CA; 91505". Burbank, California Parks and Recreation.
25. Corrigan, Kelly (July 1, 2016). "After more than a year of renovating, curtain rises on Burbank's Johnny Carson Park". Los Angeles Times.
26. "Johnny Carson Park". Seeing Stars: Where the Stars are Immortalized. 1999.
27. "Map". Burbank Studios.

External links

• Official website

34°09′14″N 118°20′01″W / 34.15389°N 118.33361°W / 34.15389; -118.33361