Tribune Entertainment is set to perform major surgery on Hollywood's legendary KTLA-Los Angeles studio lot, building there the first all-digital production facility in the U.S.
The digital complex, to be named Tribune Studios, will be comprised of six sound stages, covering more than 70,000 square feet, featuring Sony digital cameras, recording facilities and control rooms. Dick Askin, president and CEO of Tribune Entertainment, will oversee the high-tech venture, at the same site where the world's first talkie film, the very low-tech The Jazz Singer, was made. The installation of some of the equipment should happen by this fall, with Tribune Studios expected to be completely finished in about two years.
Also as part of the renovation, Tribune Entertainment will remodel "Tara," Los Angeles' historic Warner Bros. Pictures building that will eventually serve as Tribune's corporate headquarters. No word yet on which Tribune projects, currently including the action hour Andromeda, will be the first to take advantage of the new studio. Currently, the KTLA lot is home to certain series outside of the Tribune family, including Paramount's Judge Judy. - Susanne Ault
