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Warner Bros. names execs
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August 2, 1999: 6:52 p.m. ET
Barry Meyer and Alan Horn to take over helm at Time Warner movie studio
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NEW YORK (CNNfn) - Time Warner Inc. Monday named Barry Meyer and Alan Horn to head its Warner Bros. division, replacing an executive team that had run the studio for 20 years.
Meyer, currently Warner Bros. executive vice president and chief operating officer, will take over as chairman and chief executive officer. Horn, Castle Rock Entertainment chairman and CEO, will assume the title of president and chief operating officer.
Their appointments will become effective Oct. 4.
"Barry Meyer and Alan Horn are the ideal team to run Warner Bros.," said Gerald Levin, chairman and chief executive of Time Warner (TWX). "Both are seasoned entertainment executives with the right mix of business and creative savvy. As well as possessing the values that are crucial to the success of our company, they have a profound understanding of what it takes to run a global entertainment conglomerate like Warner Bros."
Meyer, a 28-year Warner Bros. veteran, and Horn will take over the helm of Warner Bros. in the wake of last month's sudden resignations of co-chairmen Terry Semel and Robert Daly. For 20 years, the duo helped build Warner Bros. into one of Hollywood's most profitable studios.
Nonetheless, analysts said the transition to a new executive team should be a smooth one, in no small part because Meyer has been Warner Bros. executive VP for 15 years.
"Meyer is one of the best executives in the entire industry," said Jessica Reif, an analyst at Merrill Lynch. "Horn is also an excellent executive."
In 1987, Horn co-founded Castle Rock Entertainment, which was responsible for the hit TV series Seinfeld as well as such films as When Harry Met Sally, A Few Good Men and In the Line of Fire.
Turner Broadcasting acquired Castle Rock in 1993 prior to being acquired by Time Warner, which is the parent company of Warner Bros. and CNNfn.
Time Warner still must fill a management hole left at Warner Music Group; Semel and Daly served as co-chairmen of that division, as well.
Levin said Time Warner will soon announce a leadership team for that division.
Reif said she was "thrilled" that the company has decided to separate the executive teams for the movie and music groups.
"They need to have more focused management," she said. "It's just too much for one management team to handle."
Time Warner shares fell 1-7/8 to close at 70-1/8 in Monday trade.
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