Editing United Artists (section)

==History==
[[File:United Artists 1919.svg|thumb|left|upright=0.5|United Artists' first logo, used until the company's sale to Transamerica in 1967|class=skin-invert]]
===Early years===
[[File:Fairbanks - Pickford - Chaplin - Griffith.jpg|thumb|left|[[Douglas Fairbanks]], [[Mary Pickford]], [[Charlie Chaplin]], and [[D.&nbsp;W. Griffith]] in 1919]]

In 1918, [[Charlie Chaplin]] could not get his parent company [[First National Pictures]] to increase his production budget despite being one of their top producers. [[Mary Pickford]] and [[Douglas Fairbanks]] had their own contracts, with First National and [[Famous Players–Lasky]] respectively, but these were due to run out with no clear offers forthcoming. Sydney Chaplin, brother and business manager for Charlie, deduced something was going wrong, and contacted Pickford and Fairbanks. Together they hired a private detective, who discovered a plan to merge all production companies and to lock in "exhibition companies" to a series of five-year contracts.<ref name=uacbs/>

Chaplin, Pickford, Fairbanks, and [[D. W. Griffith]] incorporated United Artists as a joint venture company on February 5, 1919. Each held a 25% stake in the [[Preferred stock|preferred shares]] and a 20% stake in the [[Common stock|common shares]] of the joint venture, with the remaining 20% of common shares held by lawyer and advisor [[William Gibbs McAdoo]].<ref name="siklos">{{cite news|last1=Siklos|first1=Richard|title=Mission Improbable: Tom Cruise as Mogul|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/04/business/yourmoney/04cruise.html|access-date=October 2, 2017|work=[[The New York Times]]|date=March 4, 2007|archive-date=October 2, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171002115739/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/03/04/business/yourmoney/04cruise.html|url-status=live}}</ref> The idea for the venture originated with Fairbanks, Chaplin, Pickford and cowboy star [[William&nbsp;S. Hart]] a year earlier. Already Hollywood veterans, the four stars talked of forming their own company to better control their own work.

They were spurred on by established Hollywood producers and distributors who were tightening their control over actor salaries and creative decisions, a process that evolved into the [[studio system]]. With the addition of Griffith, planning began, but Hart bowed out before anything was formalized. When he heard about their scheme, [[Richard A. Rowland]], head of [[Metro Pictures]], apparently said, "The inmates are taking over the asylum."<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://medium.com/@devonjames/the-inmates-are-taking-over-the-asylum-3b6ffd8a66c4|title=The inmates are taking over the asylum.|last=james|first=devon|date=2016-06-02|website=devon james|access-date=2018-04-26|archive-date=April 27, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180427045157/https://medium.com/@devonjames/the-inmates-are-taking-over-the-asylum-3b6ffd8a66c4|url-status=live}}</ref> The four partners, with advice from McAdoo (son-in-law and former [[U.S. Secretary of the Treasury|Treasury Secretary]] of then-President [[Woodrow Wilson]]), formed their distribution company. [[Hiram Abrams]] was its first managing director, and the company established its headquarters at 729 Seventh Avenue in New York City.<ref name=uacbs>{{cite book| last1=Balio| first1=Tino| title=United Artists, Volume 1, 1919–1950: The Company Built by the Stars, Volume 1| date=March 2, 2009| publisher=University of Wisconsin Press| location=Madison, Wisconsin| isbn=9780299230036| page=29| edition=2nd| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QljKdIYzncoC&pg=PA29| access-date=September 2, 2017}}</ref>

[[File:United Artists Stockholders.jpg|thumb|List of UA stockholders in 1920|class=skin-invert]]

The original terms called for each star to produce five pictures a year. By the time the company was operational in 1921, feature films were becoming more expensive and polished, and running times had settled at around ninety minutes (eight reels). The original goal was thus abandoned.

[[File:United Artists contract signature 1919.jpg|thumb|[[D. W. Griffith|Griffith]], [[Mary Pickford|Pickford]], [[Charlie Chaplin|Chaplin]] (seated), and [[Douglas Fairbanks|Fairbanks]] at the signing of the contract establishing the United Artists motion-picture studio in 1919.<br>Lawyers Albert Banzhaf (left)<br>and Dennis F. O'Brien (right)<br>stand in the background.]]

UA's first production, ''[[His Majesty, the American]]'', written by and starring Fairbanks, was a success. Funding for movies was limited. Without selling stock to the public like other studios, all United had for finance was weekly prepayment installments from theater owners for upcoming movies. As a result, production was slow, and the company distributed an average of only five films a year in its first five years.<ref name="fu">{{cite web| title=History of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc.| url=http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/metro-goldwyn-mayer-inc-history/| website=Funding Universe| access-date=December 20, 2014| language=en| archive-date=February 13, 2022| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220213144356/http://www.fundinguniverse.com/company-histories/metro-goldwyn-mayer-inc-history/| url-status=live}}</ref>{{Unreliable source?|date=September 2017}}

By 1924, Griffith had dropped out, and the company was facing a crisis.{{citation needed|date=December 2014}} Veteran producer [[Joseph Schenck]] was hired as president.<ref name="fu" /> He had produced pictures for a decade,{{citation needed|date=December 2014}} and brought commitments for films starring his wife, [[Norma Talmadge]],<ref name="fu" /> his sister-in-law, [[Constance Talmadge]],{{citation needed|date=December 2014}} and his brother-in-law, [[Buster Keaton]].<ref name="fu" /> Contracts were signed with independent producers, including [[Samuel Goldwyn]], and [[Howard Hughes]].<ref name="fu" /> In 1933, Schenck organized a new company with [[Darryl&nbsp;F. Zanuck]], called [[Twentieth Century Pictures]], which soon provided four pictures a year, forming half of UA's schedule.<ref name="fu" />

Schenck formed a separate partnership with Pickford and Chaplin to buy and build theaters under the United Artists name. They began international operations, first in Canada, and then in Mexico. By the end of the 1930s, United Artists was represented in over 40 countries.

When he was denied an ownership share in 1935, Schenck resigned. He set up [[Twentieth Century Pictures|20th Century Pictures]]' merger with [[Fox Film|Fox Film Corporation]] to form [[20th Century Studios|20th Century-Fox]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.cobbles.com/simpp_archive/zanuck-schenck.htm|title=The Formation of Twentieth Century-Fox (20th Century Fox)|website=www.cobbles.com|access-date=2018-04-26|archive-date=April 21, 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180421065654/http://www.cobbles.com/simpp_archive/zanuck-schenck.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Al Lichtman]] succeeded Schenck as company president. Other independent producers distributed through United Artists in the 1930s including [[Walt Disney Animation Studios|Walt Disney Productions]], [[Alexander Korda]], [[Hal Roach]], [[David O. Selznick]], and [[Walter Wanger]].<ref name="fu"/> As the years passed, and the dynamics of the business changed, these "producing partners" drifted away. [[Samuel Goldwyn Productions]] and [[Disney]] went to [[RKO Pictures|RKO]] and Wanger to [[Universal Pictures]].

In the late 1930s, UA turned a profit. Goldwyn was providing most of the output for distribution. He sued United several times for disputed compensation leading him to leave. MGM's 1939 hit ''[[Gone with the Wind (film)|Gone with the Wind]]'' was supposed to be a UA release except that Selznick wanted [[Clark Gable]], who was under contract to MGM, to play [[Rhett Butler]]. Also that year, Fairbanks died.<ref name="fu"/>

UA became embroiled in lawsuits with Selznick over his distribution of some films through RKO. Selznick considered UA's operation sloppy, and left to start his own distribution arm.<ref name="fu" />

In the 1940s, United Artists was losing money because of poorly received pictures.{{Citation needed|date=September 2017}} Cinema attendance continued to decline as television became more popular.<ref name="fu"/> The company sold its Mexican releasing division to Crédito Cinematográfico Mexicano, a local company.

===Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers (1940s and 1950s)===
In 1941, Pickford, Chaplin, Disney, [[Orson Welles]], Goldwyn, Selznick, Alexander Korda, and Wanger—many of whom were members of United Artists—formed the Society of Independent Motion Picture Producers (SIMPP). Later members included [[Hunt Stromberg]], [[William Cagney]], [[Sol Lesser]], and [[Hal Roach]].

The Society aimed to advance the interests of independent producers in an industry controlled by the studio system. SIMPP fought to end what were considered to be anti-competitive practices by the seven major film studios—Loew's (MGM), [[Columbia Pictures]], [[Paramount Pictures]], [[Universal Pictures]], RKO Radio Pictures, 20th Century-Fox, and [[Warner Bros.|Warner Bros./First National]]—that controlled the production, distribution, and exhibition of motion pictures.

In 1942, SIMPP filed an antitrust suit against Paramount's [[United Paramount Theaters|United Detroit Theatres]]. The complaint accused Paramount of conspiracy to control first-and subsequent-run theaters in Detroit. This was the first antitrust suit brought by producers against exhibitors that alleged monopoly and restraint of trade. In 1948, the [[United States Supreme Court|U.S. Supreme Court]] [[Paramount Decision]] ordered the major Hollywood [[movie studio]]s to sell their theater chains and to end certain anti-competitive practices. This court ruling ended the studio system.

By 1958, SIMPP had achieved many of the goals that led to its creation, and the group ceased operations.

===Krim and Benjamin===
Needing a turnaround, Pickford and Chaplin hired [[Paul V. McNutt]] in 1950,<ref name=UA40/> a former governor of Indiana, as chairman and [[Frank L. McNamee]] as president. McNutt did not have the skill to solve UA's financial problems and the pair was replaced after only a few months.<ref name="fu"/>

On February 15, 1951, lawyers-turned-producers [[Arthur B. Krim]] (of [[Eagle-Lion Films]]), [[Robert Benjamin]] and Matty Fox<ref name=UA40/> approached Pickford and Chaplin with an idea: let them take over United Artists for ten years. If UA was profitable in one of the next three years, they would have the option to acquire half the company by the end of the ten years and take full control.<ref name=UA40>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|last=Mayer|first=Arthur L|author-link=Arthur Mayer|date=June 24, 1959|title=UA at 40|url=http://www.archive.org/stream/variety215-1959-06#page/n251/mode/1up|page=42|access-date=August 31, 2019|via=[[Archive.org]]}}</ref> 20th Century-Fox president [[Spyros Skouras]] extended United Artists a $3&nbsp;million loan through Krim and Benjamin's efforts.<ref name="fu"/><ref name="vt0">{{cite news |last1=Plunkett |first1=Paul |title=United Artists Looks Back on 100 Years of Groundbreaking Films |url=https://variety.com/2019/film/spotlight/rocky-high-noon-west-side-story-1203358522/ |access-date=October 4, 2019 |work=Variety |date=October 4, 2019 |language=en |archive-date=October 4, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191004185121/https://variety.com/2019/film/spotlight/rocky-high-noon-west-side-story-1203358522/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In taking over UA, Krim and Benjamin created the first studio without an actual "studio". Primarily acting as bankers, they offered money to independent producers. UA leased space at the Pickford/Fairbanks Studio but did not own a studio lot. Thus UA did not have the overhead, the maintenance, or the expensive production staff at other studios.

Among their first clients were [[Sam Spiegel]] and [[John Huston]], whose Horizon Productions gave UA one major hit, ''[[The African Queen (film)|The African Queen]]'' (1951) and a substantial success, ''[[Moulin Rouge (1952 film)|Moulin Rouge]]'' (1952). Besides ''The African Queen'' UA also had success with ''[[High Noon]]'' in their first year, earning a profit of $313,000 compared to a loss of $871,000 the previous year.<ref name=UA40/><ref name="fu"/>  Other clients followed, among them [[Stanley Kramer]], [[Otto Preminger]], [[Hecht-Hill-Lancaster Productions]], and actors newly freed from studio contracts and seeking to produce or direct their own films.

With the instability in the film industry due to theater divestment, the business was considered risky. In 1955, movie attendance reached its lowest level since 1923. Chaplin sold his 25% share during this crisis to Krim and Benjamin for $1.1&nbsp;million, followed a year later by Pickford who sold her share for $3&nbsp;million.<ref name="fu"/>

In the late 1950s, United Artists produced two modest films that became financial and critical successes for the company. The company made ''[[Marty (film)|Marty]]'' which won 1955's Palme d'Or and Best Picture Oscar, and ''[[12 Angry Men (1957 film)|12 Angry Men]]'' (1957), which according to Krim before home video, was being seen on television 24 hours a day, 365 days a year some place in the world.<ref name="vt0"/> By 1958, UA was making annual profits of $3&nbsp;million a year.<ref name=UA40/>

===Public company===
United Artists went public in 1957 with a $17&nbsp;million stock and [[debenture]] offering. The company was averaging 50 films a year.<ref name="fu"/> In 1958, UA acquired [[Ilya Lopert]]'s [[Lopert Pictures Corporation]], which released foreign films that attracted criticism or had censorship problems.<ref>{{cite book| last1=Balio| first1=Tino| title=United Artists: The Company that Changed the Film Industry| date=March 2, 2009| publisher=University of Wisconsin Press| location=Madison, Wisconsin| isbn=9780299114404| pages=226–227| edition=1st| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9EeK5s3aw44C&q=united+artists+legal+successor&pg=PA343| access-date=September 2, 2017| archive-date=March 7, 2023| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307172219/https://books.google.com/books?id=9EeK5s3aw44C&q=united+artists+legal+successor&pg=PA343| url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1957, UA created [[United Artists Records]] Corporation and United Artists Music Corporation after an unsuccessful attempt to buy a record company.<ref>{{cite magazine| title=US Sets Up Own Diskery Label| magazine=[[Billboard (magazine)|Billboard]]| date=October 14, 1957| page=20| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UCkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA20| access-date=September 2, 2017| language=en| issn=0006-2510}}</ref> In 1968, UA Records merged with [[Liberty Records]], along with its many subsidiary labels such as [[Imperial Records]] and [[Dolton Records]]. In 1972, the group was consolidated into one entity as United Artists Records and in 1979, [[EMI]] acquired the division which included [[Blue Note Records]].<ref name=EMI>{{cite web| title=About: 1970–1979| url=http://www.emiarchivetrust.org/about/history-of-emi/| publisher=EMI Archive Trust| access-date=October 1, 2017| archive-date=October 2, 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171002165657/http://www.emiarchivetrust.org/about/history-of-emi/| url-status=live}}</ref>

In 1959, after failing to sell several pilots, United Artists offered its first ever television series, ''[[The Troubleshooters (1959 TV series)|The Troubleshooters]]'',<ref>{{cite book| last1=McNeil| first1=Alex| title=Total television: the comprehensive guide to programming from 1948 to the present| date=1996| publisher=Penguin Books| location=New York| isbn=9780140249163| page=886| edition=4th| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dctkAAAAMAAJ| access-date=September 2, 2017| archive-date=March 7, 2023| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307172219/https://books.google.com/books?id=dctkAAAAMAAJ| url-status=live}}</ref> and later released its first sitcom, ''[[The Dennis O'Keefe Show]]''.

In the 1960s, mainstream studios fell into decline and some were acquired or diversified. UA prospered while winning 11 Academy Awards, including five for Best Picture,<ref name="fu"/> adding relationships with the [[Mirisch Company|Mirisch brothers]], [[Billy Wilder]], [[Joseph E. Levine]] and others. In 1961, United Artists released ''[[West Side Story (1961 film)|West Side Story]]'', which won ten [[Academy Award]]s (including [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]]).

In 1960, UA purchased [[Ziv Television Programs]]. [[United Artists Television|UA's television division]] was responsible for shows such as ''[[Gilligan's Island]],'' ''[[The Fugitive (1963 TV series)|The Fugitive]]'', ''[[The Outer Limits (1963 TV series)|Outer Limits]]'', and ''[[The Patty Duke Show]]''. The television unit had begun to build up a profitable rental library, including [[Associated Artists Productions]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://archive.org/details/mediahistory&tab=collection?and%5B%5D=subject%3A%22Motion%20pictures%20--%20Catalogues%22 |title=Movies from a.a.p.: Programs of quality from quality studios, Warner Bros. features and cartoons, Popeye cartoons |year=1957 |access-date=October 1, 2017}}</ref> owners of [[Warner Bros.]] pre-1950<ref name="Schickel">{{cite book| last1=Schickel| first1=Richard| last2=Perry| first2=George| title=You Must Remember This: The Warner Bros. Story| date=September 9, 2008| publisher=Running Press| location=Philadelphia.|isbn=9780762434183| page=255| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mN0sLgAACAAJ| access-date=2 September 2017| language=en}}</ref>{{efn|WB retained a pair of features from 1949 that they merely distributed, and all short subjects released on or after September 1, 1948, in addition to all cartoons released in August 1948.}} features, shorts and cartoons and 231 ''[[Popeye the Sailor (animated cartoons)|Popeye]]'' cartoon shorts purchased from [[Paramount Pictures]] in 1958, becoming [[United Artists Associated]], its distribution division.

In 1963, UA released two Stanley Kramer films, ''[[It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World]]'' and ''[[A&nbsp;Child Is Waiting]]''. In 1964, UA introduced U.S. film audiences to [[the Beatles]] by releasing ''[[A Hard Day's Night (film)|A Hard Day's Night]]'' (1964) and ''[[Help! (film)|Help!]]'' (1965).

At the same time, it backed two expatriate North Americans in Britain, who had acquired screen rights to [[Ian Fleming]]'s [[James Bond]] novels. For $1&nbsp;million, UA backed [[Harry Saltzman]] and [[Albert Broccoli]]'s ''[[Dr. No (film)|Dr. No]]'' in 1963 and launched the [[James Bond (film series)|James Bond franchise]].<ref name=VF>{{cite magazine| last1=Kamp| first1=David| title=Fifty Years of Bond, James Bond: The Greatest Film Franchise's Biggest Birthday| magazine=[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]| date=October 2012| url=https://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2012/10/fifty-years-of-james-bond| access-date=October 1, 2017| quote=In 1961, Broccoli worked his connections to secure a meeting in New York with Arthur Krim, the head of United Artists. Krim agreed to a budget of just over a million dollars for a James Bond movie.| archive-date=May 17, 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170517221556/http://www.vanityfair.com/culture/2012/10/fifty-years-of-james-bond| url-status=live}}</ref> The franchise outlived UA's time as a major studio, continuing half a century later. Other successful projects backed in this period included the ''[[The Pink Panther (film series)|Pink Panther]]'' series, which began in 1964, and [[Spaghetti Western]]s, which made a star of [[Clint Eastwood]] in the films of ''[[A Fistful of Dollars]]'', ''[[For a Few Dollars More]]'' and ''[[The Good, The Bad and The Ugly]]''.

In 1964, the French subsidiary, Les Productions Artistes Associés, released its first production ''[[That Man from Rio]]''.

In 1965, UA released the anticipated George Stevens' production of ''[[The Greatest Story Ever Told]]'' and was at the time, the most expensive film which was budgeted at $20 million. Max Von Sydow, in the role of Jesus Christ, led an all-star cast which included Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowell, Martin Landau, Dorothy McGuire, Sal Mineo, Ina Balin, Joanna Dunham, David McCallum, Nehemiah Persoff, Donald Pleasence, José Ferrer and Ed Wynn. The film did not make back its budget and was released to mixed critical receptions. But it has since been acclaimed as a classic by audiences around the world for being admirably inspired in its attempt to be faithful to the four books of the New Testament in the Holy Bible as well as the book of the same name by [[Fulton Oursler]] and the [[The Greatest Story Ever Told (radio program)|radio program]] which ran from 1947 to 1956. ''The Greatest Story Ever Told'' received five Academy Award nominations in 1965 and was also listed among the "Top 10 Films of the Year" by the [[National Board of Review]].

===Transamerica subsidiary===
[[File:United Artists logo 1975.svg|thumb|United Artists' second logo, used during the company's sale to Transamerica from 1967 until 1982|class=skin-invert]]
On the basis of its film and television hits, in 1967, [[Transamerica Corporation]] purchased 98% of UA's stock. Transamerica selected [[David V. Picker|David]] and [[Arnold Picker]] to lead its studio.<ref name="fu"/> UA debuted a new logo incorporating the parent company's striped T emblem and the tagline "Entertainment from Transamerica Corporation". This wording was later shortened to "A Transamerica Company". The following year, in 1968, United Artists Associated was reincorporated as United Artists Television Distribution. In 1970, UA lost $35&nbsp;million, and the Pickers were pushed aside for the return of Krim and Benjamin.<ref name="fu"/>

UA released another Best Picture Oscar winner in 1967, ''[[In the Heat of the Night (film)|In the Heat of the Night]]'' and a nominee for Best Picture, ''[[The Graduate]]'', an [[Embassy Pictures|Embassy]] production that UA distributed overseas.

Other successful pictures included the [[Fiddler on the Roof (film)|1971 screen version]] of ''[[Fiddler on the Roof]]''. However, [[Man of La Mancha (film)|the 1972 film version of ''Man of La Mancha'']] was a failure. New talent was encouraged, including [[Woody Allen]], [[Robert Altman]], [[Sylvester Stallone]], [[Saul Zaentz]], [[Miloš Forman]], and [[Brian De Palma]]. With UA being the distributor for Woody Allen's ''[[Bananas (film)|Bananas]]'' (1971),<ref>{{Cite web |title=AFI{{!}}Catalog |url=https://catalog.afi.com/Catalog/moviedetails/54031 |access-date=2023-10-09 |website=catalog.afi.com}}</ref> it started as the distributor for a series of Woody Allen films. With the James Bond, Pink Panther, and Woody Allen films, UA had a series of films based on well known characters in the 1970s.

In 1973, United Artists took over the sales and distribution of [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer|MGM]]'s films in [[Anglo-America]]. [[Cinema International Corporation]] assumed international distribution rights for MGM's films and carried on to United International Pictures (made from CIC and UA's International assets being owned by partner MGM) in the 1980s. As part of the deal, UA acquired MGM's music publishing operation, Robbins, Feist, Miller.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LwkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA3 |title=Big 3 Sold to UA; Plus 1/2 Can. Co. |newspaper=Billboard Magazine |date=October 27, 1973 |page=3 |access-date=September 1, 2019 |archive-date=March 7, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307172223/https://books.google.com/books?id=LwkEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA3 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1975, Harry Saltzman sold UA his 50% stake in [[Danjaq]], the holding-company for the Bond films.

UA released ''[[One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest (film)|One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest]]'' in 1975, which won the Best Picture Academy Award and was UA's highest-grossing film, with a gross of $163&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=November 17, 1976|page=3|title=Hi-Flying 'Cuckoo' At $163,250,000; Best Ever of UA}}</ref> UA followed with the next two years' Best Picture Oscar winners, ''[[Rocky]]'' and ''[[Annie Hall]]'', becoming the first studio to win the award for three years running and also to become the studio with the most Best Picture winners at that time, with 11.<ref name="fu"/><ref>{{cite magazine|magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=April 12, 1978|page=31|title=UA: 11 Times With, Best Pic'}}</ref>

However, Transamerica was not pleased with UA's releases such as ''[[Midnight Cowboy]]'' and ''[[Last Tango in Paris]]'' that were [[X rating|rated&nbsp;X]] by the [[MPAA|Motion Picture Association of America]]. In these instances, Transamerica demanded the byline "A&nbsp;Transamerica Company" be removed on the prints and in all advertising. At one point, the parent company expressed its desire to phase out the UA name and replace it with Transamerica Films. Krim tried to convince Transamerica to spin off United Artists, but he and Transamerica's chairman could not come to an agreement.<ref name="Medavoy">{{cite book| last1=Medavoy| first1=Mike| last2=Young| first2=Josh| title=You're Only as Good as Your Next One: 100 Great Films, 100 Good Films, and 100 for Which I Should Be Shot| date=June 25, 2013| publisher=Simon and Schuster| location=New York|isbn=9781439118139| pages=85–86| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=GQe4nFeemPMC&q=krim+transamerica| access-date=October 1, 2017}}</ref> Finally in 1978, following a dispute with Transamerica chief [[John R. Beckett]]<ref name="fu"/> over administrative expenses,{{citation needed|date=December 2014}} UA's top executives, including chairman Krim, president [[Eric Pleskow]], Benjamin and other key officers walked out. Within days they announced the formation of [[Orion Pictures]],<ref name="fu"/> with backing from [[Warner Bros. Pictures|Warner Bros]]. The departures concerned several Hollywood figures enough that they took out an ad in a trade paper warning Transamerica that it had made a fatal mistake in letting them go.{{Citation needed|date=September 2017}} Later that year, it entered into a partnership with [[Lorimar Television|Lorimar Productions]], whereas United Artists would distribute Lorimar's feature films theatrically, while Lorimar was planning to produce television series and miniseries adaptations from UA's feature film library.<ref>{{Cite news |date=October 16, 1978 |title=Lorimar, UA pact |pages=44 |work=[[Broadcasting & Cable|Broadcasting Magazine]] |url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/78-OCR/1978-10-16-BC-OCR-Page-0044.pdf |access-date=September 8, 2023}}</ref>

Transamerica inserted Andy Albeck as UA's president. United had its most successful year with four hits in 1979: ''[[Rocky II]]'', ''[[Manhattan (1979 film)|Manhattan]]'', ''[[Moonraker (film)|Moonraker]]'', and ''[[The Black Stallion (film)|The Black Stallion]]''.<ref name="fu"/>

The new leadership agreed to back ''[[Heaven's Gate (film)|Heaven's Gate]]'', a project of director [[Michael Cimino]], which vastly overran its budget and cost $44&nbsp;million. This led to the resignation of Albeck, who was replaced by Norbert Auerbach.<ref name="fu"/> United Artists recorded a major loss for the year due almost entirely to the box-office failure of ''Heaven's Gate''.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Welkos |first1=Robert W. |title='Heaven's Gate': The film flop that reshaped Hollywood |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-heavens-gate-flop-archive-20040612-snap-story.html |access-date=25 December 2018 |work=Los Angeles Times |archive-date=December 25, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181225175430/https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-et-mn-heavens-gate-flop-archive-20040612-snap-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> It destroyed UA's reputation with Transamerica and the greater Hollywood community. However, it may have saved the United Artists name; UA's final head before the sale, [[Steven Bach]], wrote in his book ''Final Cut'' that there had been talk about renaming United Artists to Transamerica Pictures.

In 1980, Transamerica decided to exit the film making business, and put United Artists on the market. [[Kirk Kerkorian]]'s Tracinda Corp. purchased the company in 1981.<ref>{{cite news |last=Cole |first=Robert J. |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1981/05/16/world/m-g-m-is-reported-purchasing-united-artists-for-350-million.html |title=M-G-M is Reported Purchasing United Artists for $350 Million |newspaper=The New York Times |date=May 16, 1981 |access-date=August 17, 2015 |archive-date=September 8, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160908011627/http://www.nytimes.com/1981/05/16/world/m-g-m-is-reported-purchasing-united-artists-for-350-million.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Fleming">{{cite news| last1=Fleming| first1=Mike Jr| last2=Busch| first2=Anita| title=MGM Buys 55% Of Roma Downey And Mark Burnett's Empire; Relaunches United Artists| url=https://deadline.com/2014/09/mgm-roma-downey-and-mark-burnetts-united-artists-838595/| access-date=November 4, 2014| website=[[Deadline Hollywood]]| date=September 22, 2014| archive-date=October 21, 2014| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141021200446/http://deadline.com/2014/09/mgm-roma-downey-and-mark-burnetts-united-artists-838595/| url-status=live}}</ref> Tracinda also owned Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.<ref name=nyt>{{cite news |last1=Fabrikant |first1=Geraldine |title=Turner Acquiring MGM Movie Empire |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/08/business/turner-acquiring-mgm-movie-empire.html |access-date=November 4, 2014 |work=The New York Times |date=August 8, 1985 |archive-date=October 11, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141011124244/http://www.nytimes.com/1985/08/08/business/turner-acquiring-mgm-movie-empire.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

====United Artists Classics====
In 1981, United Artists Classics, which formerly re-released library titles, was turned into a first-run [[art film]] distributor by Nathaniel T. Kwit, Jr. [[Tom Bernard]] was hired as the division director, as well as handling theatrical sales, and [[Ira Deutchman]]<ref>{{cite news| title=Handle With Care| newspaper=[[American Film (magazine)|American Film]]| date=Winter 1980}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| last=Siskel| first=Gene| author-link=Gene Siskel| title=Hellow, Sweet Art: Small Films Big Success in Chicago| newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]]| page=141| url=http://chicagotribune.newspapers.com/search/#query=Hello%2C+Sweet+Art%3A+Small+Films+Big+Success+in+Chicago&ymd=1982-05-16| date=May 16, 1982| url-access=subscription| access-date=October 2, 2017| archive-date=October 2, 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171002120630/http://chicagotribune.newspapers.com/search/#query=Hello%2C+Sweet+Art%3A+Small+Films+Big+Success+in+Chicago&ymd=1982-05-16| url-status=live}}</ref> was hired as head of marketing. Later the division added [[Michael Barker (film distributor)|Michael Barker]] and [[Donna Gigliotti]]. Deutchman left to form [[Cinecom]], and Barker and Bernard formed [[Orion Classics]] and [[Sony Pictures Classics]]. The label mostly released foreign and independent films such as ''[[Cutter's Way]]'', ''[[Ticket to Heaven]]'' and ''[[The Grey Fox]]'', and occasional first-run reissues from the UA library, such as director's cuts of ''[[Head Over Heels (1979 film)|Head Over Heels]]''. When Barker and Bernard left to form Orion Classics, the label was briefly rechristened in 1984 as MGM/UA Classics before it ceased operating in the late 1980s.<ref>{{Cite news|date=1984-02-22|title=UA Classics Heads West, Alters Logo|page=26|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref>
[[File:United Artists logo 1982.svg|thumb|class=skin-invert|Logo used from 1982 to 1987]]

===MGM/UA Entertainment Company===
The merged studios became known as the MGM/UA Entertainment Company and in 1982 began launching new subsidiaries: the [[MGM Home Entertainment|MGM/UA Home Entertainment Group]], MGM/UA Classics and [[MGM Television|MGM/UA Television Group]]. Kerkorian also bid for the remaining, outstanding public stock, but dropped his bid, facing lawsuits and vocal opposition.<ref name="fu"/>

In 1981, [[Fred Silverman]] and George Reeves via InterMedia Entertainment struck a deal with the studio to produce films and television shows.<ref>{{Cite news|date=1981-10-19|title=Silverman strikes deal with UA-MGM|work=[[Broadcasting & Cable|Broadcasting]]|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/81-OCR/1981-10-19-BC-OCR-Page-0063.pdf|access-date=2021-08-18|archive-date=August 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210818024029/https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/81-OCR/1981-10-19-BC-OCR-Page-0063.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=1981-11-02|title=Monitor|work=[[Broadcasting & Cable|Broadcasting]]|url=https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/81-OCR/1981-11-02-BC-OCR-Page-0052.pdf|access-date=2021-08-18|archive-date=August 18, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210818024023/https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Magazines/Archive-BC-IDX/81-OCR/1981-11-02-BC-OCR-Page-0052.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref>

After the purchase, [[David Begelman]]'s duties were transferred from MGM to MGM/UA. Under Begelman, MGM/UA produced unsuccessful films and he was fired in July 1982. Of the 11 films he put into production, by the time of his termination only ''[[Poltergeist (film series)|Poltergeist]]'' proved to be a hit.<ref>{{cite news| last1=Harmetz| first1=Aljean| title=Begelman Removed as Chief of United Artists| url=https://www.nytimes.com/1982/07/13/business/begelman-removed-as-chief-of-united-artists.html| access-date=October 1, 2017| newspaper=The New York Times| date=July 13, 1982| archive-date=March 6, 2016| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306182920/http://www.nytimes.com/1982/07/13/business/begelman-removed-as-chief-of-united-artists.html| url-status=live}}</ref>

As part of the consolidation, in 1983, MGM closed United Artists' long time headquarters at 729 Seventh Avenue in New York City.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/03/31/nyregion/700-bankers-trust-workers-to-be-shifted-to-jersey-city.html |title=700 Bankers Trust Workers To Be Shifted to Jersey City |newspaper=The New York Times |date=March 31, 1983 |access-date=August 17, 2015 |archive-date=May 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150524143429/http://www.nytimes.com/1983/03/31/nyregion/700-bankers-trust-workers-to-be-shifted-to-jersey-city.html |url-status=live }}</ref> MGM/UA sold the former UA music publishing division to [[SBK Records|CBS Songs]] in 1983.<ref>{{Cite magazine| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=PSQEAAAAMBAJ&q=CBS+Songs+Grows+With+MGM%2FUA+Deal&pg=PT2| last = Irv Lichtman| title = CBS Songs Grows With MGM/UA Deal| magazine = Billboard| date = 1983-01-08| access-date = October 29, 2020| archive-date = March 7, 2023| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230307172226/https://books.google.com/books?id=PSQEAAAAMBAJ&q=CBS+Songs+Grows+With+MGM/UA+Deal&pg=PT2| url-status = live}}</ref>

''[[WarGames]]'' and ''[[Octopussy]]'' made substantial profits for the new MGM/UA in 1983, but were not sufficient for Kerkorian. It did not help tha''t WarGames'' was briefly caught in a legal dispute with [[EMI Films]] concerning the film's funding and international rights.<ref>{{Cite news|date=1983-03-02|title=EMI Sues UA Over 'War Games' Distrib Rights, Territories|page=7|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref> A 1985-restructuring led to independent MGM and UA production units with the combined studio leaders each placed in charge of a single unit. Speculation from analysts was that one of the studios, most likely UA, would be sold to fund the other's (MGM) stock buy-back to take that studio private. However, soon afterwards, one unit's chief was fired and the remaining executive, [[Alan Ladd, Jr.]], took charge of both.<ref name="fu" />

====Turner====
On August 7, 1985, [[Ted Turner]] announced that his [[Turner Broadcasting System]] would buy MGM/UA. As film licensing to television became more complicated, Turner saw the value of acquiring MGM's film library for his superstation [[TBS (TV network)|WTBS]].<ref name="Prince">{{cite book| last1=Prince| first1=Stephen| title=A New Pot of Gold: Hollywood Under the Electronic Rainbow, 1980 1989| date=2000| publisher=University of California Press| location=Berkeley| isbn=9780520232662| pages=14–16| edition=Paperback| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_M3nR4wI99AC| access-date=September 2, 2017| archive-date=March 7, 2023| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307172243/https://books.google.com/books?id=_M3nR4wI99AC| url-status=live}}</ref> Under the terms of the deal, Turner would immediately sell United Artists back to Kerkorian.<ref name=nyt/>

In anticipation, Kerkorian installed film producer [[Jerry Weintraub]] as the chairman and chief executive of United Artists Corporation in November 1985; former [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]] executive [[Anthony Thomopoulos]] was recruited as UA's president.<ref>{{cite news| last1=Dellugach| first1=Al| title=Weintraub Is New Chief of United Artists| url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-11-12-fi-5079-story.html| access-date=November 4, 2014| work=Los Angeles Times| date=November 12, 1985| archive-date=October 13, 2014| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141013062646/http://articles.latimes.com/1985-11-12/business/fi-5079_1_united-artists| url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1985/11/20/arts/new-head-for-united-artists.html |title=New Head For United Artists |newspaper=The New York Times |date=November 20, 1985 |access-date=January 26, 2015 |archive-date=August 31, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180831072059/https://www.nytimes.com/1985/11/20/arts/new-head-for-united-artists.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Weintraub's tenure at UA was brief; he left the studio in April 1986, replaced by former [[Lorimar Television|Lorimar]] executive [[Lee Rich]].<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-04-29-fi-2389-story.html |title=Rich Resigns From Lorimar to Become Chairman of UA |work=Los Angeles Times |date=April 29, 1986 |access-date=January 26, 2015 |first=Kathryn |last=Harris |archive-date=October 13, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141013065026/http://articles.latimes.com/1986-04-29/business/fi-2389_1_united-artists |url-status=live }}</ref> In anticipation, during the split, SLM Production Group moved its distribution deal to United Artists, after having left MGM/UA temporarily for 20th Century Fox.<ref>{{Cite news|date=1986-01-22|title=SLM Distribution Pact Will Shift to UA After Split|page=3|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref>

On March 25, 1986, Turner finalized his acquisition of MGM/UA in a cash-stock deal for $1.5&nbsp;billion and renamed it MGM Entertainment Co.<ref name="Prince"/><ref name="Bart">{{cite book| last1=Bart| first1=Peter| title=Fade Out: The Calamitous Final Days of MGM| date=May 1990| publisher=Morrow| location=New York| isbn=9780671710606| pages=236–238| edition=1st| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UKVZAAAAYAAJ| access-date=September 2, 2017|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref name="Turner">{{cite book| last1=Parsons| first1=Patrick R.| title=Blue Skies: A History of Cable Television| date=April 5, 2008| publisher=Temple University Press| location=Philadelphia| isbn=9781592137060| page=507| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NIFS_EqkOvYC| access-date=1 October 2017|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{cite book| last1=Stefoff| first1=Rebecca| title=Ted Turner, Television's Triumphant Tiger| date=1992| publisher=Garrett Educational Corp.| location=Ada, Oklahoma| isbn=9781560740247| page=55| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=osj3Dmmidt8C| access-date=October 1, 2017|url-access=subscription}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/24900226.html?dids=24900226:24900226&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=May+07%2C+1986&author=Charles+Storch&pub=Chicago+Tribune+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&desc=TURNER+MAY+SELL+EQUITY+IN+COMPANY&pqatl=google |title=Turner May Sell Equity In Company |publisher=Pqasb.pqarchiver.com |date=May 7, 1986 |access-date=December 15, 2011 |first=Charles |last=Storch |newspaper=Chicago Tribune |archive-date=January 11, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120111191625/http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/24900226.html?dids=24900226:24900226&FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:FT&type=current&date=May+07%2C+1986&author=Charles+Storch&pub=Chicago+Tribune+(pre-1997+Fulltext)&desc=TURNER+MAY+SELL+EQUITY+IN+COMPANY&pqatl=google |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-06-07-ca-10151-story.html |title=Turner Sells The Studio, Holds on to the Dream |newspaper=Los Angeles Times |date=June 7, 1986 |access-date=December 15, 2011 |first=Morgan |last=Gendel |archive-date=February 13, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220213144359/https://www.latimes.com/archives |url-status=live }}</ref> Kerkorian then repurchased most of United Artists' assets for roughly $480&nbsp;million.<ref name="Bart"/><ref name="Turner"/> As a result of this transaction, the original United Artists ceased to exist. Kerkorian, for all intents and purposes, created an entirely new company implementing the inherited assets; thus, the present day UA is not the legal successor to the original incarnation, though it shares similar assets.<ref name="Balio">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9EeK5s3aw44C&q=united+artists+legal+successor&pg=PA343|title=United Artists, Volume 2, 1951–1978: The Company That Changed the Film Industry|last1=Balio|first1=Tino|date=March 2, 2009|publisher=University of Wisconsin Press|isbn=9780299230135|location=Madison, Wisconsin|page=343|language=en|access-date=2 September 2017|archive-date=March 7, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230307172219/https://books.google.com/books?id=9EeK5s3aw44C&q=united+artists+legal+successor&pg=PA343|url-status=live}}</ref> United Artists announced plans to launch its new headquarters on [[Beverly Hills, California|Beverly Hills]], which was set to take effect on November 1, 1985, shortly before the Turner deal was finalized.<ref>{{Cite news|date=1985-10-16|title=UA To Headquarter In Beverly Hills|page=5|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref> On April 23, 1986, United Artists and [[Hoyts]], the Australian cinema chain and distribution company, signed a three-picture deal to co-produce films.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Galbraith|first=Jane|date=1986-04-23|title=UA, Oz's Hoyts Ink Coproduction Accord|page=7|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref>

===MGM/UA Communications Company===
[[File:United Artists 1987.svg|thumb|Logo used from 1987 to 1994.|class=skin-invert|160x160px]]
Due to financial community concerns over his debt load, Ted Turner was forced to sell MGM's production and distribution assets to United Artists for $300&nbsp;million on August 26, 1986.<ref name="Bart"/><ref name="Turner"/><ref name="Fabrikant">{{cite news |last=Fabrikant |first=Geraldine |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/06/07/business/turner-to-sell-mgm-assets.html |title=Turner To Sell Mgm Assets |newspaper=The New York Times |date=June 7, 1986 |access-date=January 26, 2015 |archive-date=February 15, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215030846/http://www.nytimes.com/1986/06/07/business/turner-to-sell-mgm-assets.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.orlandosentinel.com/1986/08/27/turner-united-artists-close-deal/ |title=Turner, United Artists Close Deal |work=[[Orlando Sentinel]] |agency=[[United Press International]] |date=August 27, 1986 |access-date=September 20, 2013 |archive-date=September 21, 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921055612/http://articles.orlandosentinel.com/1986-08-27/business/0250090069_1_united-artists-turner-mgm |url-status=live }}</ref> The MGM lot and lab facilities were sold to [[Lorimar-Telepictures]].<ref name="Fabrikant"/> Turner kept the pre-May 1986 MGM film and television library, along with the [[Associated Artists Productions]] library, and the RKO Pictures films that United Artists had previously purchased.<ref name="Fabrikant"/> On August 21, 1986, United Artists announced its re-entry into film production; ''[[Baby Boom (film)|Baby Boom]]'' and ''[[Real Men (film)|Real Men]]'' were the first new films to commence production, with a slate of 26 films to follow in development.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Galbraith|first=Jane|date=1986-08-27|title=Following A Year In Upheaval, UA Is Ready to Resume Production|page=4|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref>

United Artists was renamed [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer|MGM/UA Communications Company]] and organized into three main units: one television production and two film units. David Gerber headed up the television unit with Anthony Thomopoulous at United Artists, and Alan Ladd, Jr. at MGM. Despite a resurgence at the box office in 1987 with ''[[Spaceballs]]'', ''[[The Living Daylights]]'', and ''[[Moonstruck]]'', MGM/UA lost $88&nbsp;million.<ref name="fu"/> That November, [[Hoyts]] and United Artists decided to end their co-production partnership.<ref>{{Cite news|date=1986-11-05|title=Hoyts & United Artists Pull Plug On Deal To Coproduce Features|page=29|work=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]}}</ref>

In April 1988, Kerkorian's 82 percent of MGM/UA was up for sale; MGM and UA were split by July. Eventually, 25 percent of MGM was offered to [[Burt Sugarman]], and producers [[Jon Peters]] and [[Peter Guber]], but the plan later fell through. Rich, Ladd, Thomopoulous and other executives grew tired of Kerkorian's antics and began to leave.<ref name="fu"/> By summer 1988, the mass exodus of executives started to affect productions, with many film cancellations. The 1989 sale of MGM/UA to the Australian company [[Qintex]]/[[Seven Network|Australian Television Network]] (owners of the Hal Roach library, which both MGM and United Artists had distributed in the 1930s) also fell through, due to the company's bankruptcy later that year; Ted Turner attempted to buy the assets again but failed.<ref>{{cite news| title=Turner Buying MGM/UA| url=https://www.nytimes.com/1989/11/29/business/the-media-business-turner-broadcasting-seen-in-talks-to-buy-mgm-ua.html| date=November 29, 1989| work=The New York Times| access-date=October 2, 2014| first=Geraldine| last=Fabrikant| archive-date=October 6, 2014| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006092940/http://www.nytimes.com/1989/11/29/business/the-media-business-turner-broadcasting-seen-in-talks-to-buy-mgm-ua.html| url-status=live}}</ref> UA was essentially dormant after 1990 and released no films for several years.

===The 1990s===
In November 1990, Italian financier [[Giancarlo Parretti]] purchased MGM/UA. He'd previously purchased [[The Cannon Group, Inc.|Cannon Films]] and renamed it Pathé Communications, anticipating a successful purchase of [[Pathé]], the famed French film company. But his attempt failed – largely from the French government looking into Parretti's shady past – and instead he merged MGM/UA with his former company, resulting in [[MGM-Pathé Communications]] Co. During the transaction, Parretti overstated his own financial condition and obtained a loan under false pretenses; this was a harbinger of the chaos the studio fell into under his ownership. Debts went unpaid, forcing the delay of several films, as Parretti looted the company, fired most of the financial staff and feuded with Alan Ladd Jr. over control. To prevent any further damage (and in part to prevent their own financial misdeeds from coming to light), [[Crédit Lyonnais]], Parretti's primary lender, foreclosed on the studio in 1992.<ref>{{Cite web |title=THE PREDATOR HOW AN ITALIAN THUG LOOTED MGM, BROUGHT CREDIT LYONNAIS TO ITS KNEES, AND MADE THE POPE CRY. – July 8, 1996 |url=https://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/1996/07/08/214344/ |access-date=2023-08-14 |website=money.cnn.com}}</ref><ref name=PBart>{{cite news| title=MGM: Sometimes a Roaring Silence Is Best| url=https://variety.com/2013/biz/news/mgm-sometimes-a-roaring-silence-is-best-1200341378/| last=Bart| first=Peter| date=April 10, 2013| newspaper=Variety| access-date=October 1, 2017| archive-date=September 21, 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170921204225/http://variety.com/2013/biz/news/mgm-sometimes-a-roaring-silence-is-best-1200341378/| url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Fleming"/> This resulted in Parretti defaulting on his loans and subsequently being convicted of securities fraud. On July 2, 1992, MGM-Pathé Communications was again named [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer|Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, Inc.]] In an effort to make MGM/UA saleable, Credit Lyonnais ramped up production and convinced [[John Calley]] to run UA.  Under his supervision, Calley revived the ''Pink Panther'' and ''James Bond'' franchises and highlighted UA's past by giving the widest release ever to a film with an NC-17 rating, ''[[Showgirls]]''. Credit Lyonnais sold MGM in 1996, again to Kirk Kerkorian's Tracinda, leading to Calley's departure.<ref name="Fleming"/>

In 1999, filmmaker [[Francis Ford Coppola]] attempted to buy UA from Kerkorian who rejected the offer. Coppola signed a production deal with the studio instead.<ref name="Medavoy"/>

===The 2000s to the 2020s===
[[File:United-Artists-Logo.svg|thumb|left|Logo used from 2000 to 2010.|class=skin-invert|200px]]
In 1999, UA was re-positioned as a specialty studio. MGM had just acquired [[The Samuel Goldwyn Company]], which had been a leading distributor of arthouse films. After that name was retired, MGM folded UA into Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures. G2 Films, the renamed Goldwyn Company and MGM's specialty London operations, was renamed United Artists International.<ref>{{cite news |author=<!--Start Byline--><!--End Byline--> |url=https://money.cnn.com/1999/06/07/bizbuzz/mgm/ |title=United Artists restructuring by MGM |work=[[CNNMoney]] |date=June 7, 1999 |access-date=2015-01-26 |archive-date=September 7, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210907024545/https://money.cnn.com/1999/06/07/bizbuzz/mgm/ |url-status=live }}</ref> The distributorship, branding, and copyrights for two of UA's main franchises (''Pink Panther'', and ''Rocky'') were moved to MGM, although select MGM releases (notably the James Bond franchise co-held with [[Danjaq|Danjaq, LLC]] and the ''[[The Amityville Horror (2005 film)|Amityville Horror]]'' remake) carry a United Artists copyright. The first arthouse film to bear the UA name was ''[[Things You Can Tell Just by Looking at Her]]''.

United Artists hired [[Bingham Ray]] to run the company on September 1, 2001.<ref name="Fleming"/>  Under his supervision, the company produced and distributed many art films, including ''[[Bowling for Columbine]]'', 2002's ''[[Nicholas Nickleby (2002 film)|Nicholas Nickleby]]'', and the winner of that year's [[Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film]], ''[[No Man's Land (2001 film)|No Man's Land]]''; and 2004's ''[[Undertow (2004 film)|Undertow]]'', and ''[[Hotel Rwanda]]'', a co-production of UA and [[Lions Gate Entertainment]], and made deals with companies like [[American Zoetrope]] and [[Revolution Films]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.indiewire.com/biz/biz_010806_briefs.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20051212133127/http://www.indiewire.com/biz/biz_010806_briefs.html |url-status=dead |title=DAILY NEWS **UPDATE**: Bingham Ray and Chris McGurk on the New UA; Solondz and Lipsky Stir "Storytelling" Rating Buzz |date=August 6, 2001 |archive-date=December 12, 2005 |website=IndieWire |access-date=April 7, 2019}}</ref> Ray stepped down from the company in 2004.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.indiewire.com/2004/01/shakeup-at-united-artists-bingham-ray-exits-company-79226/ |title=Shakeup at United Artists; Bingham Ray Exits Company |last=Hernandez |first=Eugene |date=January 9, 2001 |website=[[IndieWire]] |access-date=April 7, 2019 |archive-date=April 7, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190407232956/https://www.indiewire.com/2004/01/shakeup-at-united-artists-bingham-ray-exits-company-79226/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2005, a partnership of [[Comcast]], [[Sony]] and several merchant banks bought United Artists and its parent, MGM, for $4.8&nbsp;billion.<ref name="Fleming"/> Though only a minority investor, Sony closed MGM's distribution system and folded most of its staff into its own studio. The movies UA had completed and planned for release—''[[Capote (film)|Capote]]'', ''[[Art School Confidential (film)|Art School Confidential]]'', ''[[The Woods (2006 film)|The Woods]]'', and ''[[Romance and Cigarettes]]'' {{citation needed|date=November 2014}}—were reassigned to [[Sony Pictures Classics]].<ref name="Fleming"/>

In March 2006, MGM announced that it would return again as a domestic distribution company. Striking distribution deals with [[The Weinstein Company]] (TWC), [[Lakeshore Entertainment]], Bauer Martinez Entertainment, and other independent studios, MGM distributed films from these companies. MGM continued funding and co-producing projects released in conjunction with Sony's [[Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group|Columbia TriStar Motion Picture Group]] on a limited basis and produced [[Tent-pole (entertainment)|tent-poles]] for its own distribution company, MGM Distribution.

Sony had a minority stake in MGM, but otherwise MGM and UA operated under the direction of Stephen Cooper (CEO and minority owner of MGM).

====United Artists Entertainment====
On November 2, 2006, MGM announced that [[Tom Cruise]] and his long-time production partner [[Paula Wagner]] were resurrecting UA.<ref>{{cite news| title=MGM Puts Cruise in Charge of New United Artists| url=http://www.zap2it.com/movies/news/zap-cruisewagnerunitedartists,0,3331510.story?coll=zap-movies-headlines| work=[[USA Today]]| date=November 2, 2006| access-date=May 20, 2010| archive-date=May 22, 2011| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110522043145/http://www.zap2it.com/movies/news/zap-cruisewagnerunitedartists,0,3331510.story?coll=zap-movies-headlines| url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite news| title=Tom Cruise, producing partner cut a deal with United Artists| url=https://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2006-11-02-cruise-ua_x.htm| work=[[Screener (website)|Zap2it]]| date=November 2, 2006| access-date=October 1, 2017| first1=Laura| last1=Petrecca| first2=David| last2=Lieberman| archive-date=May 24, 2011| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110524035154/http://www.usatoday.com/life/movies/news/2006-11-02-cruise-ua_x.htm| url-status=live}}</ref> This announcement came after the duo were released from a fourteen-year production relationship at [[Viacom (2005–present)|Viacom]]-owned Paramount Pictures. Cruise, Wagner and [[MGM Studios]] created United Artists Entertainment LLC and the producer/actor and his partner owned a 30% stake in the studio,<ref name="Fritz">{{cite news| first=Ben| last=Fritz| url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/movies/la-fi-ct-mgm-quarter-20120323,0,1843162.story| title=MGM regains full control of United Artists| newspaper=Los Angeles Times| date=March 23, 2012| access-date=January 26, 2015| archive-date=March 25, 2012| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120325092530/http://www.latimes.com/entertainment/news/movies/la-fi-ct-mgm-quarter-20120323,0,1843162.story| url-status=live}}</ref> with the approval by MGM's consortium of owners. The deal gave them control over production and development. Wagner was named CEO, and was allotted an annual slate of four films with varying budget ranges, while Cruise served as a producer for the revamped studio and the occasional star.

UA became the first motion picture studio granted a [[Writers Guild of America, West]] (WGA) waiver in January 2008 during the [[2007–08 Writers Guild of America strike|Writers' Strike]].<ref>{{cite news| title=SHOCKER! WGA To Announce Side Deal With Tom Cruise's United Artists; Now Studio Moguls Mad at MGM's Sloan| url=https://deadline.com/2008/01/shocker-wga-will-announce-side-deal-with-united-artists-this-weekend-4646/| work=Deadline Hollywood| date=January 4, 2008| access-date=May 20, 2010| archive-date=March 28, 2012| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120328111358/http://www.deadline.com/2008/01/shocker-wga-will-announce-side-deal-with-united-artists-this-weekend/| url-status=live}}</ref>

On August 14, 2008, MGM announced that Wagner would leave UA to produce films independently.<ref name="Fleming2">{{cite news| last1=Fleming| first1=Michael| title=Paula Wagner leaves UA| url=https://www.variety.com/VR1117990504.html| newspaper=Variety| access-date=14 August 2008| date=13 August 2008| archive-date=March 2, 2009| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090302024952/http://www.variety.com/VR1117990504.html| url-status=live}}</ref> Her output as head of UA was two films, both starring Cruise, ''[[Lions for Lambs]]''<ref>{{cite news| url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/23/movies/23cruis.html?8dpc| title=The Nazi Plot That's Haunting Tom Cruise and United Artists| work=The New York Times| access-date=April 29, 2008| date=April 23, 2008| last=Cieply| first=Michael| archive-date=September 3, 2017| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170903080820/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/23/movies/23cruis.html?8dpc| url-status=live}}</ref> and ''[[Valkyrie (film)|Valkyrie]]''.<ref name="bom">{{cite web| url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=valkyrie.htm| title=Valkyrie (2008)| work=[[Box Office Mojo]]| access-date=April 13, 2009| archive-date=April 11, 2009| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090411231638/http://www.boxofficemojo.com/movies/?id=valkyrie.htm| url-status=live}}</ref> Wagner's departure led to speculation that a UA overhaul was imminent.<ref name="Fleming2"/>

Since then, UA has served as a co-producer with MGM for two releases: the 2009 remake of ''[[Fame (2009 film)|Fame]]'' and ''[[Hot Tub Time Machine]]''—these are the last original films to date to bear the UA banner.

A 2011 financial report revealed that MGM reacquired its 100% stake in United Artists.<ref name="Fritz"/> MGM stated that it might continue to make new films under the UA brand.<ref name="Fritz"/> Currently, however, UA itself functions in-name-only, although it occasionally re-releases (via MGM) most of its films theatrically under the UA banner.

====United Artists Media Group and United Artists Digital Studios====
On September 22, 2014, MGM acquired a 55% interest in One Three Media and Lightworkers Media, both operated by Mark Burnett and Roma Downey and partly owned by [[Hearst Corporation|Hearst Entertainment]]. The two companies were consolidated into a new television company, United Artists Media Group (UAMG), a revival of the UA brand. Burnett became UAMG's CEO and Downey became president of Lightworkers Media, the UAMG family and faith division. UAMG became the distributing studio for Mark Burnett Productions programming such as ''[[Survivor (American TV series)|Survivor]]''. UAMG was to form an [[over-the-top content|over-the-top]] faith-based channel.<ref name="Fleming"/><ref>{{cite magazine| last=Highfill| first=Samantha| title=MGM is launching the United Artists Media Group (again)| date=17 January 2015| magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]| url=https://www.ew.com/article/2014/09/22/mgm-united-artists-media-group| access-date=May 11, 2015| archive-date=May 18, 2015| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518081806/http://www.ew.com/article/2014/09/22/mgm-united-artists-media-group| url-status=live}}</ref>

On December 14, 2015, MGM announced that it had acquired the remaining 45% stake of UAMG it did not already own and folded UAMG into its own television division. Hearst, Downey and Burnett received stakes in MGM collectively valued at $233&nbsp;million. Additionally, Burnett was promoted to president for MGM Television, replacing the outgoing [[Roma Khanna]]. The planned over-the-top faith service (later to be branded as a combined OTT/[[digital subchannel]] service known as Light TV, now the [[TheGrio]]) became a separate entity owned by MGM, Burnett, Downey and Hearst.<ref name="MGMTV" />

On August 14, 2018, [[The Hollywood Reporter]] reported that MGM revived the brand as United Artists Digital Studios for the ''[[Stargate Origins]]'' web series as part of an attempted relaunch of [[Stargate (franchise)|its ''Stargate'' franchise]] which also included a dedicated [[streaming media]] platform known as ''Stargate Command'', thus following in the footsteps of [[Paramount Global]]'s ''CBS All Access'' platform (now [[Paramount+]]).<ref>{{cite web|last=Bond|first=Paul|date=August 14, 2018|title=MGM's Revenue on the Rise, But Net Income Struggles |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/mgms-revenue-rise-but-net-income-struggles-1134873|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180913185221/https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/mgms-revenue-rise-but-net-income-struggles-1134873|archive-date=September 13, 2018|website=[[The Hollywood Reporter]]|access-date=September 13, 2018|quote=MGM recently formed United Artists Digital Studios...}}</ref>

====2024–present: Revival====

In July 2024, it was reported that [[Scott Stuber]] was nearing a deal to revive the United Artists label under Amazon MGM Studios for the first time in over a decade. Amazon confirmed the news shortly after in a press release, announcing that Stuber had entered a multi-year first look deal with the company. Under this deal, Stuber will produce films for the newly revived banner under his own company either for a theatrical release or streaming release through [[Amazon Prime Video]]. Stuber will also be involved with every film released under the United Artists banner.<ref name="revival">{{cite web|title=Scott Stuber Closes Deal To Revive United Artists|website=[[Deadline Hollywood]]|first=Mike Jr|last=Fleming|date=26 July 2024|access-date=26 July 2024|url=https://deadline.com/2024/07/scott-stuber-closing-deal-to-revive-united-artists-1236023229/}}</ref>