Universal then merged with International Pictures in the 1940s, and then was bought out by the U.S. It was during this period that Universal churned up a number of hits such as Show Boat, All Quiet on the Western Front, and the creation of the Universal Horror series, which gave Universal a near-monopoly on the horror film genre.ĭuring The Great Depression, the studio fell into a crisis and narrowly avoided bankruptcy in the 1930s, which caused the Laemmles to cede control of the studio to creditors. After his son, Carl Laemmle Jr., took over from his father in 1928, the studio underwent a major overhaul in order to compete with the other studios in Hollywood. Unlike many other studio heads, Laemmle took a cautious role in film-making, choosing not to open a theater chain and financing the movies himself without putting the studio in debt. Laemmle, along with a number of film producers in Hollywood, formed the studio with the intent to capitalize on the system. The studio was the brainchild of Carl Laemmle Sr., a German-born Jewish immigrant who played a crucial role in the creation of the star system of film-making.

The studio is symbolized by an image of a globe, which has undergone many changes, the most recent being in 2012 for its 100th anniversary.

Universal's headquarters, Universal City, was one of the first purpose-built studio lots ever built, and is now a major tourist attraction as well as a working studio. Universal Pictures (aka Universal or Universal Studios) is one of the five major American movie studios, and the longest-lived Hollywood studio, dating all the way back to 1912 (predating Paramount Pictures by just over a week).

Universal pictures films produced