Lyrick Studios
Lyrick Studios was an American video production and distribution company based in Allen, Texas, best known for their flagship property Barney & Friends.
The company was known for producing and distributing television shows, home videos, audio products and children's books and toys. On February 9, 2001, the company was acquired by British entertainment company HIT Entertainment. HIT later folded the studio in June of that year following the completion of the acquisition.
History
1988-1994: Beginnings and formation
The company's origins traces back to when Barney & Friends became a huge success. The show was owned and produced by The Lyons Group, a company that was created by Richard C. Leach, who previously produced its predecessor, Barney & the Backyard Gang. Both series were created by his daughter-in-law, Sheryl Leach. In 1994, Leach had begun production on a new series titled Wishbone, which was produced by Big Feats! Entertainment. Because of the emerging video business, it led to the creation of Lyrick Studios, which was formed under its parent company Lyrick Corporation. Leach's vision for Lyrick Studios was to expand the offerings of quality children's entertainment products. Both The Lyons Group and Big Feats! Entertainment became subsidiaries of the new company.1995-2000: Acquisitions and expansion
In the late 1990s, Lyrick turned its primary focus on distribution of children's TV shows and films. They acquired the distribution rights for VeggieTales and The Wiggles and also distributed book publishing and video gaming rights for some Humongous Entertainment video game characters like Putt-Putt, Freddi Fish, and Pajama Sam.In 1999, Lyrick planned to expand their existing headquarters to add 400,000 square feet. The first phase of the campus was expected to cost $6 million, which consisted of a two-story 60,000-square-foot building. The goal of the building expansion was to unite the company's operations in one spot.
2001: HIT Entertainment acquisition
Leach, who was now in his seventies, was ready to slow down and wanted to resolve ownership of Lyrick, although none of his children wanted to run the company. In 2001, the company was acquired and folded into HIT Entertainment for $275 million, with eventual Lyrick CEO, Robert Lawes, being the driving force of the acquisition. Leach decided that HIT Entertainment was a good fit for Lyrick as he believed the two companies shared the same values about creating quality programs for the preschool market. The deal included that 'Lyrick Studios' was to be retained as a consumer brand for existing Lyrickproperties, however, the Lyrick Studios name disappeared a few months after, as Lyrick merged into HIT Entertainment. Richard C. Leach was to be appointed a non-executive director of HIT on completion. However, he died of a heart attack on May 29, 2001 at the Dallas-Fort Worth Airport.
On June 6, 2001, it was announced that Lyrick and HIT were to operate as one company as reorganization of management occurred. Rob Lawes, who was the newly appointed Chief Executive of Lyrick Corporation and CEO of Lyrick Studios for four months, became chief executive of HIT Entertainment while Steve Ruffini, who was the CFO of Lyrick Studios, became the CFO of HIT. Although the merger was complete, the Lyrick Studios logo wouldn't be phased out until the end of August of that year.