Unapix Entertainment acquires top ranked PBS series for international distribution.NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 20, 1994--Unapix Entertainment Inc. (NASDAQ NASDAQ in full National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations U.S. market for over-the-counter securities. Established in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD), NASDAQ is an automated quotation system that reports on :UPIX), a fast growing distributor for the worldwide television and home-video markets, announced today that it has acquired international distribution rights for the award winning series The New Explorers, which is one of the top ranked primetime science programs on the Public Broadcasting public broadcasting: see broadcasting. Network. The New Explorers is co-produced by CBS (Cell Broadcast Service) See cell broadcast. newsman Bill Kurtis' Kurtis Productions and WTTW WTTW Window To The World WTTW Word to the Wise WTTW Wind to Thy Wings , the PBS PBS in full Public Broadcasting Service Private, nonprofit U.S. corporation of public television stations. PBS provides its member stations, which are supported by public funds and private contributions rather than by commercials, with educational, cultural, affiliate in Chicago. Major funding for the series is provided by the Amoco Corporation and Duracell International Inc. Commenting on the newest entry into the company's fast growing programming library, David M. Fox, president and chief executive officer, indicated that Unapix Entertainment has acquired distribution rights to 39 half-hour and 16 one-hour programs that have already been produced for PBS during the past five seasons and has an option to acquire future programs in the series. "Educational programming represents a major portion of Unapix International's growing business. The New Explorers is expected to produce a significant income stream for our company in coming years," Fox said. He noted that the demand for science series like The New Explorers for TV broadcast and educational audio-visual outlets overseas is outpacing most other programming categories. "The acquisition of this series, which last season won the prestigious George Foster Peabody
In addition to airing on PBS channels across the country during the past five seasons, The New Explorers has penetrated the national educational arena, where it is estimated that 30,000 teachers and 600,000 students have used the series in classrooms across the country. "Unapix Entertainment will strive to achieve similar success for the series in TV broadcast and educational markets internationally," Fox said. The 1994-1995 season's episodes reflect the wide range of scientific inquiry and broad appeal of the series. In the first episode, The New Explorers crew accompanies University of Chicago paleontologist, Paul Sereno Paul Callistus Sereno (born October 11, 1957) is an American paleontologist who is the discoverer of several new dinosaur species on several continents. He has conducted excavations at sites as varied as Inner Mongolia, Argentina, Morocco and Niger. , in his journey into Africa's Sahara Desert to unearth a missing chapter in dinosaur evolution, which is one of the most important dinosaur discoveries of the century. In the second episode, viewers follow a team of scientists as they dive eight thousand feet below sea level to examine a ridge of underwater volcanoes that form the East Pacific Rise and to study the mysterious array of animal life in one of nature's most volatile sanctuaries. In other programs this season, The New Explorers crew boldly charts completely new territory when they compare the dazzling technology of the Hollywood-created Starship Enterprise Enterprise or USS Enterprise are the names of several fictional starships, some of which are the focal point for various television series and films in the Star Trek franchise created by Gene Roddenberry. and Deep Space 9 space station with current scientific knowledge and space exploration. Bill Kurtis Bill Kurtis (born September 21, 1940) is a television journalist and producer best known as the host of numerous A&E crime and news documentary shows, including Investigative Reports, American Justice, and Cold Case Files. takes viewers on a journey through Hollywood sound stages, NASA NASA: see National Aeronautics and Space Administration. NASA in full National Aeronautics and Space Administration Independent U.S. research centers and high-tech labs to discover the science behind the fiction of Star Trek. Unapix Entertainment Inc. owns a growing library of recently produced television programs and feature films, which it sells to the worldwide television, home-video and educational markets. CONTACT: Sylvia A. Dresner, 212/575-7070 |
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