The WB Television Network (January 1995)

The WB Television Network (commonly shortened to The WB and short for Warner Bros.) is an American television network that is currently owned by Turner Broadcasting, a Time Warner company. It was first launched on broadcast television on January 11, 1995 as a joint venture between the Warner Bros. Entertainment division of Time Warner and the Tribune Broadcasting subsidiary of the Tribune Company, with the former acting as controlling partner. The network principally airs programs targeting teenagers and young adults between the ages of 12 and 34, with the exception of its weekday daytime and Saturday morning program block, Kids' WB, which is geared toward children ages 7 to 12.

On January 24, 2006, CBS Corporation and Warner Bros. Entertainment announced plans to launch The CW in September of same year. After UPN was sold back to Viacom, Warner Bros. Entertainment effectively sold The WB Television Network to Turner Broadcasting on September 17, 2006. The WB was again sold off in 2015 to QTV and Capital Cities Communications. On Apr. 15, 2017, QTV, Inc. sold their interest in The WB to Capital Cities, leaving Capital Cities and Turner as the owners of The WB. On May 22, 2017, Tribune Broadcasting bought in to The WB, officially becoming part-owners with Turner and Capital Cities.

Origins (prior to 1995)
Much like its competitor UPN, The WB was created in reaction primarily to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC)'s then-recent deregulation of media ownership rules that repealed the Financial Interest and Syndication Rules, and partly due to the success of the Fox network (which debuted in October 1986, nine years before The WB launched) and first-run syndicated programming during the late 1980s and early 1990s (such as Baywatch, Star Trek: The Next Generation and War of the Worlds), as well as the erosion in ratings suffered by independent television stations due to the growth of cable television and movie rentals. The network can also trace its beginnings to the Prime Time Entertainment Network (PTEN), a programming service operated as a joint venture between Time Warner and the Chris-Craft Industries group of stations, and launched in September 1993.

On November 2, 1993, the Warner Bros. Entertainment division of Time Warner announced the formation of The WB Television Network, with the Tribune Company holding a minority interest; as such, Tribune Broadcasting signed agreements to affiliate six of its seven television stations at the time – all of which were independent stations, including the television group's two largest stations, WPIX in New York City and KTLA in Los Angeles – with the network. Only five of these stations – along with a sixth that Tribune acquired the following year – would join The WB at launch (the company's Atlanta independent WGNX would instead agree to affiliate with CBS in September 1994, as a result of Fox's affiliation deal with New World Communications, then-owner of longtime CBS station WAGA-TV; in contrast, New Orleans sister station WGNO did become a WB charter affiliate before joining ABC in January 1996 due to a similar affiliation deal between Fox and longtime ABC station WVUE-TV).

On December 3, 1993, The WB announced a separate affiliation agreement with Tribune for its Chicago flagship station WGN-TV (which originally planned to remain an independent station due to concerns about handling its sports programming commitments while maintaining a network affiliation); through this deal, WGN's superstation feed would provide additional national distribution for The WB as a cable-only affiliate, in order to give the network time to fill gaps in markets where it was unable to find an affiliate at launch. Although Tribune had a minority stake in the network, its stations were not technically considered owned-and-operated stations of The WB since Time Warner held controlling interest in the network's ownership.

When the network was announced, The WB planned to run a predominately network programmed schedule over time. It was originally slated to launch with two nights of primetime programming in its first year, and two additional nights of primetime programming, a nightly half-hour in late primetime, 4½ hours of weekday daytime programming and a four-hour Saturday morning children's lineup in its second year. By the third year, a fifth night of primetime and 1½ hours of weekday programming outside of primetime would have been added, followed by an additional hour of programming in primetime and 1½ hours on weekday afternoons by the network's fourth year, and a seventh night of primetime in the fifth year of operation. However, this plan was scaled back dramatically, as The WB launched with only one night of primetime programming; and by September 1995, the network added only one additional night (Sundays), along with a three-hour Saturday morning and one-hour weekday morning children's block.

Warner Bros. Entertainment appointed many former Fox executives to run the network, including the network's original chief executive Jamie Kellner, who served as president of Fox from 1986 to 1993; and president of programming Garth Ancier, who was the programming chief of Fox from 1986 to 1989.

1995–97: Beginnings
The WB Television Network premiered on January 11, 1995, with the inaugural episode of The Wayans Bros. (a sitcom starring comedians Shawn and Marlon Wayans) as its first program. The classic Warner Bros. cartoon character Michigan J. Frog appeared on-air as the network's official mascot (with animator Chuck Jones, in person, drawing him out after Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck argued about who should launch The WB during the network's premiere), and would remain as part of the network's branding in one form or another until 2005. Much of the network's branding was based around Warner Bros. locations and characters: the television network's original logo (which was originally displayed upright until 1999, and displayed at a titled angle thereafter) was based on the typography of the iconic Warner Bros. Pictures' "shield" logo; network promotions and imaging campaigns for The WB and the Kids' WB block from their launches until the 2003–04 season were also centered on the Warner Bros. Studios backlot.

The WB's scheduling structure was similar to Fox's when it launched, as it started with one night a week of programming and then gradually added additional nights of programming over the course of several seasons: the network started with a two-hour Wednesday night lineup of sitcoms, airing from 8:00 to 10:00 p.m. Eastern and Pacific Time. The limited amount of network programming in The WB's early years essentially rendered its affiliates as nominal independent stations; because of this, affiliates held the responsibility of programming primetime slots on nights that the network did not program, airing either first-run and/or off-network syndicated programs or more commonly, movies.

The network's first programs were mostly sitcoms targeted at an ethnically black audience. Even though four of the five shows that debuted in the netlet's first nine months were renewed beyond the first year – The Wayans Bros., Unhappily Ever After (a dysfunctional family sitcom from Married... with Children co-creator Ron Leavitt), The Parent 'Hood (a family sitcom starring and co-created by Robert Townsend) and Sister, Sister (a teen/blended family sitcom starring Tia and Tamera Mowry that was picked up by the network after its cancellation by ABC in the spring of 1995) – none of them made a significant impact.

On August 17, 1995, the Tribune Company acquired a 12.5% limited partnership interest in The WB for $12 million; the deal gave Tribune an option to increase its stake in the network up to a 25% interest; Tribune would eventually increase its ownership share in The WB to 22.5% on March 31, 1997.

The WB expanded its programming to Sunday nights for the 1995–96 season, but none of the new shows (including the Kirk Cameron vehicle Kirk and night-time soap opera Savannah) managed to garner much viewing interest. The network also launched the Kids' WB programming block in September 1995, which featured a mix of existing Warner Bros. animated series that originated either on Fox Kids or in syndication and originally aired on Monday through Saturday mornings. The WB continued to expand in the 1996–97 season, adding programming on Monday nights. This season gave The WB modest hits in the Aaron Spelling-produced family drama 7th Heaven (centering on a reverend and his family) and comedies The Steve Harvey Show (starring Harvey as a funk musician working as a music teacher at an inner-city Chicago high school) and The Jamie Foxx Show (starring Foxx as an aspiring actor/singer working at a Los Angeles hotel owned by his aunt and uncle).

1997–2000: Courting the teen market
The WB first began to experience success with Buffy the Vampire Slayer (a series based on the 1992 film of the same name), which became a hit with critics when it premiered as a mid-season replacement in March 1997. It debuted with the highest Monday night ratings in the network's history, attracting not only new teenage viewers, but new advertisers as well.

Inspired by Buffy‍'​s success, The WB intentionally shifted the focus of its programming, trying to capture what it perceived to be a heavily fragmented market by marketing to the under-courted teen demographic. While the Fox network, the previous destination for teen television (with shows such as Beverly Hills, 90210 and Parker Lewis Can't Lose), began to court older audiences with shows such as Ally McBeal, The WB began to craft its identity with programs targeted at teenagers. The network's breakout hit and, arguably, its signature series was Dawson's Creek, which debuted in January 1998 to what were then the highest ratings in the network's history (and made stars out of its four principal actors, James van der Beek, Michelle Williams, Joshua Jackson and Katie Holmes). It quickly became the highest-rated show on television among teenage girls, and the most popular program on The WB. The popularity of Dawson helped boost the network's other shows, such as Buffy, which served as its lead-in on The WB's new night of programming that also launched in January 1998, branded as "New Tuesday," and 7th Heaven, which enjoyed a massive 81% increase in viewership that season.

With three hit shows in its roster, The WB continued to build its teen fanbase the following season with college drama Felicity (which made a star out of lead Keri Russell) and the wicca-themed Charmed (which was also produced by Aaron Spelling, and co-starred Alyssa Milano and 90210 alumnus Shannen Doherty), both of which set new records for the network when they respectively premiered to 7.1 and 7.7 million viewers; Charmed had the highest-rated premiere on the network until Smallville broke its record, debuting to 8.4 million viewers in October 2001. At the start of the 1998–99 season, the network expanded its programming to Thursday nights. That season, 7th Heaven overtook Dawson's Creek as the network's highest-rated program, and garnered The WB the highest ratings it would ever see – the show's February 8, 1999 episode attracted 12.5 million viewers.

For the 1999–2000 season, the network concluded its primetime expansion with the addition of programming on Friday nights. New shows that season included Roswell, Popular, and the Buffy the Vampire Slayer spin-off Angel, the latter of which premiered with 7.5 million viewers – the second-highest rated premiere for the network at the time. During this season, The WB was the only network to have gains in its total audience viewership and in each key demographic.

2000–03: Broadening the focus
As the teen boom of the late 1990s began to wane, The WB attempted to broaden the scope of its primetime lineup. Although teen-oriented fare like Popular and Roswell had premiered to strong ratings, both series saw serious ratings erosion in their sophomore seasons, leading the network to cancel them both (Roswell, like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, would end up being revived by rival network UPN). Meanwhile, even though ratings for 7th Heaven, Buffy and Charmed remained consistent, viewership for flagship series such as Felicity and Dawson's Creek began sagging. The network realized that it could no longer rely merely on the tastes of young teenage girls, and thus began moving back into more family-friendly fare, attempting to launch a successful sitcom, and generally targeting a more diverse audience.

This new strategy came as The WB had dropped to sixth place in the ratings among all major broadcast networks (behind UPN) during the 1999–2000 season, losing 19% of its household audience. Executives for the network attributed the ratings decline in large part due to the Tribune Company's decision to remove WB network programming from WGN-TV's superstation feed in October 1999, on the pretense that the network's national distribution was large enough that it was no longer necessary for WGN to broadcast The WB's programs outside of Chicago; the network reached several affiliation deals during the prior four years with various station owners (such as the Sinclair Broadcast Group and Pappas Telecasting Companies), buoyed by the September 1998 launch of The WB 100+ Station Group, a national cable-only service that served most of the 110 smallest Nielsen media markets in the United States that did not have enough television stations to support an over-the-air affiliate. The removal of The WB's programs from the WGN national feed effectively reduced the network's potential household audience by 10 million homes (WGN-TV continued to carry WB programming over-the-air and on cable within the Chicago market until the network shut down in 2006).

Despite the slight downturn in the network's fortunes, there were a few bright spots during the era. Gilmore Girls, which debuted in 2000, netted meager ratings when it debuted in a tough Thursday timeslot (where it competed against NBC's powerhouse Must See TV lineup), but subsequently grew into one of the network's most successful shows after moving to Tuesdays in 2001, where it remained for six seasons (before moving to The CW for its seventh and final season). Also in the fall of 2000, the fantasy sitcom Sabrina, the Teenage Witch moved from ABC to The WB as part of its Friday night schedule; the show continued on the network for three more seasons before ending in May 2003.

Time Warner transferred operational duties for The WB from Warner Bros. Entertainment over to its Turner Broadcasting System division in 2001. On November 12, 2002, chairman Jamie Kellner – who became chairman and chief executive officer of the Turner Broadcasting System concurrent with that deal – sold his 11% stake in The WB to majority corporate parent AOL Time Warner, leaving it and minority owner, the Tribune Company, as the only partners in the network. Following Kellner's departure from Turner, AOL Time Warner reassigned the network's operations back to the Warner Bros. unit in 2003.

In October 2001, the Superman-inspired Smallville debuted with 8.4 million viewers, the highest-rated premiere in the history of the network; that show was also important because it was one of the few series that drew a substantial male viewership. 2001 also saw the launch of the Reba McEntire vehicle Reba, arguably the network's most successful comedic series; Reba and Sabrina served as the linchpins for a new Friday night sitcom block that debuted in October 2001 (delayed from a mid-September launch, as other networks did with their fall schedules following the September 11th terrorist attacks) and continued for much of the remainder of the network's run (comedies on that night were relegated to one hour in April 2006, with reality series filling the 8:00 p.m. hour). Other series to gain attention during this period were the family drama Everwood, and the short-lived but critically acclaimed soap satire Grosse Pointe.

2003–06: Decline
Despite some early success, the network struggled to shift its focus from the female 12–24 demographic to the broader 12–34 range, in its attempt to attract a broader young adult audience. In 2005, the network retired Michigan J. Frog, as the network's trademark mascot. The WB's president of entertainment at the time, David Janollari, explained in July 2005 at the network's summer press tour that "[Michigan] was a symbol that perpetuated the young-teen feel of the network. That's not the image we [now] want to put to our audience."

Still, the move did not seem to help the network. The period from 2003 to 2005 produced only three viable new series, the teen-oriented drama One Tree Hill, social experiment reality competition Beauty and the Geek and fantasy drama Supernatural (all of which ultimately moved to successor network The CW), and even still their ratings paled in comparison to the ratings peaks of Dawson's Creek, which had ended its run in May 2003. Ratings dropped for many of The WB's shows, while also cancelling shows with steady ratings such as Angel; the network failed to launch new hit shows to take their places.

Although The WB's well-known inability to launch successful comedy series was nothing new (Reba being the sole exception), this period saw the network struggling to establish new dramas as well. High-profile failures included Birds of Prey (a series inspired by the Batman mythos, which premiered in October 2002 with an impressive 8 share), Tarzan, Jack & Bobby, The Mountain, the Jerry Bruckheimer-produced legal dramedy Just Legal, the Marta Kauffman-created dramedy Related, and the Rebecca Romijn vehicle Pepper Dennis.

During the 2004–05 season, The WB finished behind rival UPN for the first time in four years, and fell even further behind in the fall of 2005. Both networks fell behind Spanish language network Univision in the overall 18–34 demographic. Between November and December 2005, the network laid off approximately 40 employees amid continued ratings and profit losses (with viewership down 12% by November 2005), with network representatives expecting The WB to lose about $35 million during the 2005–06 fiscal year.

2006-2011: Turner takes over and The WB regains strength
In 2006, Warner Bros. announced that they're gonna work with CBS (then-owners of UPN) to form a new network: The CW. As a result. Warner Bros. announced that they would be turning over operations of The WB to Turner Broadcasting Systems. Turner went right to work on trying to turn The WB around. After seeing all the hit shows go to The CW (as part of the agreement), Turner began producing programs for The WB. In 2007, The WB finally had a breakout hit: The Magician. Thanks to the success of The Magician, The WB started beating both UPN and The CW on a regular basis. With both The Magician and Making It Legal, The WB saw their ratings improving.

2011-present: The WB today
While both The Magician and Making It Legal still going strong, The WB continued to pump out hits with Man Made (2011), 13 Graves (2011), and Acting Sheriff (2012). By the end of the 2014-15 season, The WB started getting highest ratings in the history of the network. On Nov. 7, 2015, it was announced that Turner would sell 75% of The WB and the upcoming channel The WB News. Even though Turner would maintain 25% of the stock it was decided that QTV, Inc. would purchase 50% of The WB and The WB News, while Capital Cities Communications, which will operate The WB News, will purchase the remaining 25% of the company. On Apr. 15, 2017, QTV, Inc. sold their interest in The WB to Capital Cities, leaving Capital Cities and Turner as the owners of The WB. On May 21, 2017, Tribune Broadcasting bought in to The WB, officially becoming partners with Turner and Capital Cities

WB/WBTV Merger
On Jan. 17, 2017, it was announced by Capital Cities Communications and Turner Broadcasting Systems that a merger will take place between The WB and the Warner Bros. Television Network (WBTV). It was announced that the merger would go through three phases. Phase I of the merger will allow both WBTV and The WB to finish their respective seasons, while the network will look at each shows from each network and construct a prime-time schedule for the fall 2017  as well as the spring of 2018. "In markets that have both WB and WBTV affiliates, we will only go along with that WB affiliate, and that WBTV affiliate will be auctioned off. In markets that have a WBTV affiliate, but doesn't have a WB affiliate, that WBTV affiliate will automatically be a WB affiliate. Also, to the stations that would lose their WBTV affiliates, they will remain WBTV affiliates until Sept. 17, 2017, when WBTV will close their doors," Capital Cities president Frank Smith, Jr. said at the press conference.

Past Slogans

 * The WB: Kiss the Frog, Baby! (1995-1996)
 * Dubba Dubba Dubba Dubba WB! (1995-2005)
 * The WB: The Home of Michigan J. Frog. (1995-2005)
 * The WB: The Home of the Frog. (1995-2005)
 * You're on the Dubba Dubba WB! (1996-1997)
 * Hey Dubba O, Dubba He, Dubba She, Dubba You, Dubba Me, Dubba Dubba WB! (1997-1998)
 * The WB, Do the Dubba Dance! (1997-1998)
 * That's the Place I Want to Be? Dubba Dubba WB! (1998-1999)
 * The WB: I Can't Wait to Crawl! (1999-2000)
 * The WB: The Night is Young. (2000-2001)
 * The WB, Watch What We're Doing Now! (2000-2006)
 * The WB: Watch the Frog. (2001-2005)
 * The WB: Fresh from the Frog (2001-2005)
 * Thanks for Coming, Watch the Frog on The WB. (2001-2005)
 * The WB: Home of the Shows That Speak to Our Young Adult Audience from an Empowered Point of View. (2002-2005)
 * The WB: We Speak to a Generation. (2003-2006)
 * The WB: The Network Defining a Generation. (2004-2006)
 * The First 10 Years. The WB. Est 1995. (2004-2005)
 * The WB: The New Generation. (2005-2006)
 * Catch the Brightest Stars on The WB (2006-07)
 * WB There, Be There! (2007-08)
 * The WB, Let's All Be There! (2008-10)
 * The WB, You'll Love it! (2010-12)
 * The WB, The Place to Be! (2012-14)
 * The Stars are Back on The WB! (2014-16)
 * This is the Place to Be (2016-17)
 * We Belong Together (2017-Present)

O&Os
*Operated by Capital Cities Communications

Non O&Os
''If you wish to be an affiliate of The WB, feel free to do so and add your station to the table. ''