Wometco Enterprises
Encyclopedia
Wometco Enterprises is a company headquartered in Coral Gables, Florida
; a suburb of Miami. It was a large media company but today it is known only as the owner of the Miami Seaquarium
.
Mitchell Wolfson (1900–1983) and Sidney Meyer.. The first movie theater opened by the firm was the Capitol Theater in downtown Miami, built in 1926. Over the years the company built up the largest chain of movie theaters in South Florida, and adopted the portmanteau name of Wometco sometime in the 1950s.
In 1949 Wometco moved into broadcasting with the founding of WTVJ
in Miami, Florida's first television station. The station signed on in March 1949 from studios inside the Capitol Theatre, which was renovated for television. Wometco purchased WLOS-AM-FM
-TV
in Asheville, North Carolina
in 1958, and KVOS-TV
in Bellingham, Washington
was added in 1961. In 1976 Wometco bought WTVG (now WFUT-TV
) in Newark, New Jersey
, and in 1978 acquired WZZM-TV
in Grand Rapids, Michigan
. In 1977 Wometco launched a nationwide, over-the-air subscription television service called Wometco Home Theater
, using WTVG as its flagship station.
Wometco expanded its non-entertainment holdings in 1955, with the opening of the Miami Seaquarium
. It bought the Blue Circle hamburger chain, based in Knoxville, Tennessee
in 1966, but sold it in 1974.
, and daughter Frances Wolfson Cary. (Mitchell Wolfson was widowed when wife Frances Meyer Wolfson died in 1980; eldest son Louis Wolfson, II
passed away a year earlier.) The elder Wolfson left no succession plans in his will, and as a result Wometco quickly unraveled, making it a ripe takeover target. Investment firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts took over Wometco in 1984 in a deal worth $
1 billion, the largest corporate buyout ever to that date. Assets included 45 movie theaters, three television stations, 47 cable TV systems, the Miami Seaquarium, the Citrus Tower
, the vending machine division, and the soft drink division, one of the largest Coca-Cola bottlers in the nation In 1994 Cobb Theatres
bought out the Wometco movie theatre chain.
Wometco today still owns the Seaquarium and a franchise of Baskin-Robbins
/Dunkin' Donut stores
in Miami, the Caribbean and Puerto Rico
.
Footnotes:
**: WTVJ was the only station which was built and signed-on by Wometco;
1: Wometco operated the Asheville stations under a subsidiary, Wometco-Skyway Broadcasting, after purchasing majority control of WLOS-AM-FM-TV in 1958;
2: Wometco held a controlling (47 percent) share of Florida-Georgia Television Co., founding owner of WFGA-TV/WTLV, at the station's launch in 1957. Wometco's share was reduced to a minority (11 percent) stake in 1971. Wometco and other partners were bought out by Harte-Hanks Communications in 1975.
Coral Gables, Florida
Coral Gables is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, southwest of Downtown Miami, in the United States. The city is home to the University of Miami....
; a suburb of Miami. It was a large media company but today it is known only as the owner of the Miami Seaquarium
Miami Seaquarium
The Miami Seaquarium is a oceanarium located on the island of Virginia Key in Biscayne Bay, Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States and is located near downtown Miami. It is the longest operating oceanarium in the United States. In addition to the marine mammals, the Miami Seaquarium also...
.
History
Wometco was founded in 1925 as the Wolfson-Meyer Theater Company, a movie theatre chain in based in Miami. The company's co-founders were brothers-in-lawBrother-in-law
A brother-in-law is the brother of one's spouse, the husband of one's sibling, or the husband of one's spouse's sibling.-See also:*Affinity *Sister-in-law*Brothers in Law , a 1955 British comedy novel...
Mitchell Wolfson (1900–1983) and Sidney Meyer.. The first movie theater opened by the firm was the Capitol Theater in downtown Miami, built in 1926. Over the years the company built up the largest chain of movie theaters in South Florida, and adopted the portmanteau name of Wometco sometime in the 1950s.
In 1949 Wometco moved into broadcasting with the founding of WTVJ
WTVJ
WTVJ, virtual channel 6 , is an owned-and-operated television station of the NBC television network, located in Broward County. WTVJ shares its TV studio and office facility with co-owned Telemundo station WSCV in Miramar, Florida, and its transmitter is located near Sun Life Stadium in north...
in Miami, Florida's first television station. The station signed on in March 1949 from studios inside the Capitol Theatre, which was renovated for television. Wometco purchased WLOS-AM-FM
WKSF
WKSF is a country music station licensed to Old Fort, North Carolina. The Clear Channel station broadcasts from a tower on Mount Pisgah, southwest of Asheville at 99.9 FM with an ERP of 48 kW, and a 6 bay antenna...
-TV
WLOS
WLOS is the ABC-affiliated television station for Western North Carolina and Upstate South Carolina licensed to Asheville, North Carolina. It broadcasts a high definition digital signal on VHF channel 13 from a transmitter on Mount Pisgah in North Carolina. The station can also be seen on Charter...
in Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville, North Carolina
Asheville is a city in and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the 11th largest city in North Carolina. The City is home to the United States National Climatic Data Center , which is the world's largest active...
in 1958, and KVOS-TV
KVOS-TV
KVOS-TV is television station licensed in Bellingham, Washington and is an affiliate of Me-TV. The station's over-the-air transmissions are on digital channel 35, though through PSIP the station remaps to its former analog channel 12...
in Bellingham, Washington
Bellingham, Washington
Bellingham is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Whatcom County in the U.S. state of Washington. It is the twelfth-largest city in the state. Situated on Bellingham Bay, Bellingham is protected by Lummi Island, Portage Island, and the Lummi Peninsula, and opens onto the Strait of Georgia...
was added in 1961. In 1976 Wometco bought WTVG (now WFUT-TV
WFUT-TV
WFUT-DT, virtual channel 68, is a Spanish-language television station licensed to Newark, New Jersey, which serves as an affiliate of the Telefutura network for the New York City market...
) in Newark, New Jersey
Newark, New Jersey
Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S...
, and in 1978 acquired WZZM-TV
WZZM-TV
WZZM channel 13 is the Western Michigan affiliate television station for the American Broadcasting Company. It's based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, broadcasting at 16.5 kilowatts of power from a tower located in Newaygo County, near Grant...
in Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand...
. In 1977 Wometco launched a nationwide, over-the-air subscription television service called Wometco Home Theater
Wometco Home Theater
The Wometco Home Theater was an early pay television service in the New York City area, owned by Miami-based Wometco Enterprises, which owned several major network affiliates in medium markets and their flagship WTVJ in Miami...
, using WTVG as its flagship station.
Wometco expanded its non-entertainment holdings in 1955, with the opening of the Miami Seaquarium
Miami Seaquarium
The Miami Seaquarium is a oceanarium located on the island of Virginia Key in Biscayne Bay, Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States and is located near downtown Miami. It is the longest operating oceanarium in the United States. In addition to the marine mammals, the Miami Seaquarium also...
. It bought the Blue Circle hamburger chain, based in Knoxville, Tennessee
Knoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
in 1966, but sold it in 1974.
Transition and sale
Wometco co-founder Mitchell Wolfson died in January 1983, survived by two children: son Mitchell Wolfson, Jr.Mitchell Wolfson, Jr.
Mitchell "Micky" Wolfson, Jr. is a businessman, collector, philanthropist, and founder of the Wolfsonian Museum in Miami Beach, Florida, and Nervi, Italy....
, and daughter Frances Wolfson Cary. (Mitchell Wolfson was widowed when wife Frances Meyer Wolfson died in 1980; eldest son Louis Wolfson, II
Louis Wolfson, II
Louis Wolfson, II was a member of the Florida House of Representatives from Miami-Dade County from 1963-1973....
passed away a year earlier.) The elder Wolfson left no succession plans in his will, and as a result Wometco quickly unraveled, making it a ripe takeover target. Investment firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts took over Wometco in 1984 in a deal worth $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
1 billion, the largest corporate buyout ever to that date. Assets included 45 movie theaters, three television stations, 47 cable TV systems, the Miami Seaquarium, the Citrus Tower
Florida Citrus Tower
The Florida Citrus Tower is a structure built in 1956 in Clermont, Florida. Once the most famous landmark of the Orlando area, it was built to allow visitors to observe the miles of orange groves surrounding it; developments in the citrus industry since its construction have left it providing a...
, the vending machine division, and the soft drink division, one of the largest Coca-Cola bottlers in the nation In 1994 Cobb Theatres
Cobb Theatres
Cobb Theatres, who presently operates 18 locations with 232 screens, is a cinema chain based in Birmingham, Alabama. The majority of Cobb Theatres' currently operating cinemas are in Florida, with others in Alabama, Virginia, and Colorado plus a new location under construction in Georgia.The...
bought out the Wometco movie theatre chain.
Wometco today still owns the Seaquarium and a franchise of Baskin-Robbins
Baskin-Robbins
Baskin-Robbins is a global chain of ice cream parlors founded by Burt Baskin and Irvine Robbins in 1953, from the merging of their respective ice cream parlors, in Glendale, California. It claims to be the world's largest ice cream franchise, with more than 5,800 locations, 2,800 of which are...
/Dunkin' Donut stores
in Miami, the Caribbean and Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
.
Television stations
| City of license City of license A city of license or community of license, in American and Canadian broadcasting, is the community that a radio station or television station is officially licensed to serve by that country's broadcast regulator.... /Market |
Station | Channel TV Analog television Analog television is the analog transmission that involves the broadcasting of encoded analog audio and analog video signal: one in which the message conveyed by the broadcast signal is a function of deliberate variations in the amplitude and/or frequency of the signal... / DT Digital terrestrial television Digital terrestrial television is the technological evolution of broadcast television and advance from analog television, which broadcasts land-based signals... |
Years owned | Current Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newark, N.J. Newark, New Jersey Newark is the largest city in the American state of New Jersey, and the seat of Essex County. As of the 2010 United States Census, Newark had a population of 277,140, maintaining its status as the largest municipality in New Jersey. It is the 68th largest city in the U.S... - New York City New York City New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and... |
WTVG/WWHT (now WFUT-TV WFUT-TV WFUT-DT, virtual channel 68, is a Spanish-language television station licensed to Newark, New Jersey, which serves as an affiliate of the Telefutura network for the New York City market... ) |
68 / 30 | 1976–1984 | TeleFutura TeleFutura TeleFutura is a U.S. Spanish-language broadcast television network owned by Univision with headquarters in Miami, Florida.-Overview:TeleFutura Is America’s #2 Spanish-Language Network in prime time... affiliate owned by Univision Communications Univision Communications Univision Communications is an American Spanish language media company in the United States. Its headquarters are in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. Prior to 2007, the headquarters were in Century City, Los Angeles, California, USA.- History :... |
| Smithtown, New York Smithtown, New York As of the census of 2000, there were 115,715 people, 38,487 households, and 31,482 families residing in the town. The population density was 2,159.9 people per square mile . There were 39,357 housing units at an average density of 734.6 per square mile... |
WSNL-TV (now WFTY-TV WFTY-TV WFTY-DT is one of two TeleFutura network-Owned stations for the New York City market, along with WFUT-DT. Owned by the Univision Broadcast Group, the station is licenced to Smithtown, New York and serves Long Island.-History:... ) (satellite of WFUT) |
67 / 23 | 1980–1984 | TeleFutura affiliate owned by Univision Communications |
| Bellingham, WA Bellingham, Washington Bellingham is the largest city in, and the county seat of, Whatcom County in the U.S. state of Washington. It is the twelfth-largest city in the state. Situated on Bellingham Bay, Bellingham is protected by Lummi Island, Portage Island, and the Lummi Peninsula, and opens onto the Strait of Georgia... - Vancouver, B.C. Vancouver Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,... (Bellingham is nominally in the Seattle Seattle, Washington Seattle is the county seat of King County, Washington. With 608,660 residents as of the 2010 Census, Seattle is the largest city in the Northwestern United States. The Seattle metropolitan area of about 3.4 million inhabitants is the 15th largest metropolitan area in the country... -Tacoma Tacoma, Washington Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to... market) |
KVOS-TV KVOS-TV KVOS-TV is television station licensed in Bellingham, Washington and is an affiliate of Me-TV. The station's over-the-air transmissions are on digital channel 35, though through PSIP the station remaps to its former analog channel 12... |
12 / 35 | 1961–1984 | Me-TV affiliate owned by Newport Television Newport Television Newport Television, LLC is a television station holding company founded by Providence Equity Partners and Sandy DiPasquale in 2007 to acquire the television stations owned by Clear Channel Communications. In September 2007, Newport agreed to sell KFTY and KVOS-TV to LK Station Group LLC for $26.6... |
| Miami Miami, Florida Miami is a city located on the Atlantic coast in southeastern Florida and the county seat of Miami-Dade County, the most populous county in Florida and the eighth-most populous county in the United States with a population of 2,500,625... - Fort Lauderdale Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale is a city in the U.S. state of Florida, on the Atlantic coast. It is the county seat of Broward County. As of the 2010 census, the city had a population of 165,521. It is a principal city of the South Florida metropolitan area, which was home to 5,564,635 people at the 2010... |
WTVJ WTVJ WTVJ, virtual channel 6 , is an owned-and-operated television station of the NBC television network, located in Broward County. WTVJ shares its TV studio and office facility with co-owned Telemundo station WSCV in Miramar, Florida, and its transmitter is located near Sun Life Stadium in north... ** |
4 (now 6 / 31) |
1949–1984 | NBC NBC The National Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network and former radio network headquartered in the GE Building in New York City's Rockefeller Center with additional major offices near Los Angeles and in Chicago... owned-and-operated (O&O) |
| Asheville Asheville, North Carolina Asheville is a city in and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the 11th largest city in North Carolina. The City is home to the United States National Climatic Data Center , which is the world's largest active... - Greenville Greenville, South Carolina -Law and government:The city of Greenville adopted the Council-Manager form of municipal government in 1976.-History:The area was part of the Cherokee Nation's protected grounds after the Treaty of 1763, which ended the French and Indian War. No White man was allowed to enter, though some families... - Spartanburg Spartanburg, South Carolina thgSpartanburg is the largest city in and the county seat of Spartanburg County, South Carolina, United States. It is the second-largest city of the three primary cities in the Upstate region of South Carolina, and is located northwest of Columbia, west of Charlotte, and about northeast of... |
WLOS-TV1 | 13 / 36 | 1958–1984 | ABC American Broadcasting Company The American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948... affiliate owned by Sinclair Broadcast Group Sinclair Broadcast Group The Sinclair Broadcast Group is an American telecommunications company that operates the largest number of local television stations in the United States. Headquartered in Hunt Valley, Maryland, it owns a total of 57 stations across the country in 35 primarily small and medium markets, many of... |
| Grand Rapids Grand Rapids, Michigan Grand Rapids is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan. The city is located on the Grand River about 40 miles east of Lake Michigan. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 188,040. In 2010, the Grand Rapids metropolitan area had a population of 774,160 and a combined statistical area, Grand... - Kalamazoo Kalamazoo, Michigan The area on which the modern city stands was once home to Native Americans of the Hopewell culture, who migrated into the area sometime before the first millennium. Evidence of their early residency remains in the form of a small mound in downtown's Bronson Park. The Hopewell civilization began to... - Battle Creek, MI Battle Creek, Michigan Battle Creek is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan, in northwest Calhoun County, at the confluence of the Kalamazoo and Battle Creek Rivers. It is the principal city of the Battle Creek, Michigan Metropolitan Statistical Area , which encompasses all of Calhoun county... |
WZZM-TV WZZM-TV WZZM channel 13 is the Western Michigan affiliate television station for the American Broadcasting Company. It's based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, broadcasting at 16.5 kilowatts of power from a tower located in Newaygo County, near Grant... |
13 / 13 | 1978–1984 | ABC affiliate owned by Gannett Company Gannett Company Gannett Company, Inc. is a publicly-traded media holding company headquartered in Tysons Corner, Virginia, United States, near McLean. It is the largest U.S. newspaper publisher as measured by total daily circulation. Its assets include the national newspaper USA Today and the weekly USA Weekend... |
| Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is the largest city in the U.S. state of Florida in terms of both population and land area, and the largest city by area in the contiguous United States. It is the county seat of Duval County, with which the city government consolidated in 1968... |
WFGA-TV/WTLV WTLV WTLV is the NBC-affiliated television station for Jacksonville, Florida. The station broadcasts a digital signal on VHF channel 13. The station is owned by Gannett as part of a duopoly with the area's ABC affiliate, WJXX. The two stations share studios located on East Adams Street in downtown near... 2 |
12 / 12 | 1957–1975 | NBC affiliate owned by Gannett Company |
Radio stations
| AM Station | FM Station |
| Market | Station/ Frequency |
Years owned | Current Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asheville, North Carolina Asheville, North Carolina Asheville is a city in and the county seat of Buncombe County, North Carolina, United States. It is the largest city in Western North Carolina, and the 11th largest city in North Carolina. The City is home to the United States National Climatic Data Center , which is the world's largest active... |
WLOS-13801 (now WKJV) |
1958-1969 | owned by International Baptist Outreach Missions |
| WLOS-FM-99.91 (now WKSF WKSF WKSF is a country music station licensed to Old Fort, North Carolina. The Clear Channel station broadcasts from a tower on Mount Pisgah, southwest of Asheville at 99.9 FM with an ERP of 48 kW, and a 6 bay antenna... ) |
1958-1984 | owned by Clear Channel Communications Clear Channel Communications Clear Channel Communications, Inc. is an American media conglomerate company headquartered in San Antonio, Texas. It was founded in 1972 by Lowry Mays and Red McCombs, and was taken private by Bain Capital LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners LP in a leveraged buyout in 2008... |
|
Footnotes:
**: WTVJ was the only station which was built and signed-on by Wometco;
1: Wometco operated the Asheville stations under a subsidiary, Wometco-Skyway Broadcasting, after purchasing majority control of WLOS-AM-FM-TV in 1958;
2: Wometco held a controlling (47 percent) share of Florida-Georgia Television Co., founding owner of WFGA-TV/WTLV, at the station's launch in 1957. Wometco's share was reduced to a minority (11 percent) stake in 1971. Wometco and other partners were bought out by Harte-Hanks Communications in 1975.