Tourists visiting Hollywood often head to the studios to soak in movie history. Unfortunately the only studio that is widely open to tours is Universal Studios. Other studios must be experienced from the sidewalk. In recent years, however, Warner Brothers has offered smaller tours that give tourists an even closer view behind Hollywood's curtain.
The strangest thing about this, however, is that the current studio lot in Burbank hasn't always been called the Warner Brothers Studio. In fact, the company has only owned it outright for about twenty years. So where is the historic Warner Brothers Studio? It's actually located miles away on Sunset Boulevard.
It was the Sunset lot that hosted most of Warner Brothers' productions, including the hit that put it on the map- Al Jolson's The Jazz Singer. Emboldened by its success and flush with cash, the studio sought to increase its assets and it purchased First National Studios, which had a newer, flashier lot in Burbank. Despite relocating various divisions to Burbank, the studio kept its operations mostly at the Sunset lot until World War II. Frustrated by a shrinking market for its films, Warner Brothers decided to sell its older lot for quick cash to stay afloat.
Initially, the lot was not used as a studio. Paramount, however, purchased it in the 1950's to accommodate its growing production of television shows. In the late 1960's, Paramount bought the neighboring Desilu Studios and no longer had a need for another lot. This time, Gene Autry would step in, preserving the lot's use as a studio. Today, Warner's historic lot is operated independently as the Sunset Bronson Studios.
Meanwhile, Warner Brothers had continued to have money problems. It would conserve its cash by sharing the Burbank lot with Columbia Pictures. Named "The Burbank Studios", the lot often had to serve two competing masters- Columbia and Warner. Some felt that the studio's physical plant suffered during this time because neither side was truly interested in making things work. When Columbia Pictures was sold to Sony in the 1990's, Sony purchased the old MGM Lot, which was being used by Lorimar-Telepictures at the time. Warner bought out Columbia and renamed its lot The Warner Brothers Studios. Finally it would again have a home to itself.
