Kinney National Company

Kinney National Services, Inc. (later known as Kinney Services, Inc.) was an American conglomerate company from 1966 to 1972. Its successors were National Kinney Corporation and Warner Communications, Time Warner and AOL Time Warner and its current successor is WarnerMedia. Kinney National's predecessors were Kinney Service Corporation and National Cleaning Contractors (founded in 1886 as National House Cleaning Contractors, Inc., the founder was Louis Frankel[1] and Max Sweig[2]), which they were began to merge each together in January 1966 and completed in August of the same year.

Kinney Services, Inc.
FormerlyKinney National Services, Inc. (1966-1971)
Kinney Services, Inc. (1971-1972)
IndustryEntertainment
FateCorporate spin-off; reincorporated as Warner Communications, Inc.
PredecessorKinney Parking Company (1945–1966)
National Cleaning Contractors, Inc. (1886–1966)
SuccessorsWarnerMedia (2018-present)
AOL Time Warner (2001-2003)
Time Warner (1990-2001, 2003-2018)
Warner Communications (1972–1990)
National Kinney Corporation (1971–1982)
FoundedAugust 12, 1966 (1966-08-12)
FounderSteve Ross
DefunctFebruary 10, 1972 (1972-02-10)
Headquarters
New York City, New York
,
United States
ProductsParking services
Cleaning services
Film
Television
Music
Magazine
Divisions

History

It was formed on August 12, 1966[3] as Kinney National Services, Inc., when the Kinney Parking Company and the National Cleaning Contractors, Inc. were merged.[4] The new company was headed by Steve Ross.[5]

Kinney National Company (later, National was removed from the company title in February 1971[6]) was known for purchases and sales:

  • On July 21, 1967, Kinney National expanded by acquiring National Periodical Publications (more commonly, but not yet officially, called DC Comics in 1977) and its now defunct sister publisher company, E. C. Publications. The acquisition was completed on August 25 of the same year.
  • On November 13, 1967, Kinney bought Hollywood talent agency Ashley-Famous.[7] Ted Ashley (the founder of 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 month.[8]
  • On February 1968, Kinney acquired Panavision, Inc.
  • On October 8 of the same year, Kinney National sold its subsidiary Kinney System Rent-A-Car to Sandgate Corporation for about $11-million in cash and notes.[9]
  • On January 28, 1969, it was announced that Kinney National would acquire Warner-Bros.-Seven Arts.[10] When acquisition was completed on 15 March 1969,[11] on April 25, Ashley-Famous was sold because of antitrust laws prohibiting a company from owning both a production studio and a talent agency. In August of the same year, Ted Ashley became a chief of the film company[12]
  • On December 16, 1969, Warner Bros.-Seven Arts Inc. was rebranded as Warner Bros. Inc.[13] Beginning with the unexpected success of the concert documentary Woodstock (1970), Warner Bros. started scoring box office hits again and became a major studio, and created the original Warner Cable Pictures, which was renamed Dimension Pictures in 1971.

On June 10, 1971, Kinney sold Riverside Memorial Chapel to Service Corporation International. Kinney also announced that it would form a new separate company, which it will focus on parking and cleaning business, and that it happened, when Kinney created National Kinney Corporation in September of the same year.[14]

On November 22, 1971, Kinney Services also bought Television Communications Corporation, including its recording studio operations of 1,210,500 common shares.[15][16]

Kinney National also owned wood flooring manufacturer Circle Floor from Seymour Milstein and Paul Milstein, when Kinney's predecessor bought it in 1964 for $15 million, with the Milsteins remaining as managers of the unit until 1971 before sale.[17]

Financial scandal

Due to a financial scandal involving price fixing in its parking operations,[5] Kinney National spun off its non-entertainment assets in September 1971 as the National Kinney Corporation, and renamed the remaining Kinney National Company as Warner Communications Inc. on February 10, 1972.[18]

Steve Ross was the company's sole CEO, president, and chairman. Directors included Charles A. Agemian, the CEO of Garden State National Bank.

References
  1. R. L. Polk & Co.'s 1918-19 Trow New York Copartnership and Corporation Directory. R. L. Polk & Company (Inc.). January 1919. Retrieved 14 November 2020.
  2. "Max Sweig, 54". nytimes.com. The New York Times. 1 December 1937. p. 23. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  3. "The merge of Kinney Service & National Cleaning". Newspaper.com. Chicago Tribune. 14 September 1966. Retrieved 8 November 2020.
  4. KINNEY SERVICE PLANS EXPANSION; Proposing a Merger With National Cleaning
  5. Connie Bruck (2013). Master of the Game: Steve Ross and the Creation of Time Warner. New York: Simon and Schuster. ISBN 9781476737706. Retrieved 30 August 2015.
  6. "Kinney National recalled as Kinney Services". Newspaper.com. The Evening Sun. 17 February 1971. Retrieved 8 November 2020.
  7. World of Business The Courier-News
  8. The Emergence of Cinema
  9. Sandgate in Kinney Deal
  10. National News
  11. Market Briefs National Post
  12. Ashley Named Chief of Warner-7 Arts
  13. "Warner Bros. Drops Name of Seven Arts". Newspaper.com. Valley Times. 16 December 1969. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
  14. SOUTHWEST IN BID FOR RIEGEL PAPER June 10, 1971
  15. COLGATE IN OFFER FOR KENDALL CO. October 13, 1971
  16. Kinney‐TVC Terms Shift November 23, 1971
  17. New York Times: "Milstein Opens Throttle as Builder" October 18, 1981
  18. Kinney Changes Name
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