General Tire
The General Tire and Rubber Company is a former American conglomerate. The company in 1915 as a car tire manufacturer in Akron, Ohio was founded by William F. O'Neil.
In 1943, General Tire expanded its operations from the original core business of the company and bought the Yankee Network and the radio stations owned by it from the company 's Boston Shepard Stores. In the following years General Tire expanded its broadcasting business further and bought with Don Lee Broadcasting System, a successful radio network on the West Coast of the United States. In addition, KHJ -AM -FM and KFRC -AM -FM were acquired and in 1952 finally WOR -AM -FM - TV in New York. Thereupon General Tire merged all of its broadcasting activities to the new corporate division General Tele Radio.
One last step into the entertainment business made General Tire in July 1955 with the purchase of RKO Radio Pictures from Howard Hughes for about 25 million U.S. dollars. The merger of RKO General and RKO subsidiary Tele Radio Tele Radio Pictures, which until early 1957 still continued by the new owners halfheartedly as a film studio was born. The interest was the extensive movie library by RKO, the one recovered for the own television program. The two RKO studio in Hollywood Land and Culver City, however, was sold in 1957 for more than 6 million dollars to Desilu Productions. Remaining, yet unreleased films from RKO been submitted for cinema distribution to other companies; after the last publication of an RKO movie in March 1959, the broadcasting subsidiary was renamed RKO General in.
RKO General was in the following years to General Tires sub-holding company for all non-core businesses, which at times included, among other things, bottling, hotel companies and a stake in Frontier Airlines. However, most important pillar remained the broadcasting business, a leader in North America in particular were the radio station. The entire business in a bad light but moved in 1965 first raised allegations that General Tire to reserve its independent tire representations required advertising time at RKO TV stations. Although the FCC introduced in 1969 determined that the allegations correspond to the facts, the broadcasting licenses for terrestrial TV broadcastings, but still extended in three cases due, accompanied by years of hearings and investigations.
Irregularities in the accounting department led the SEC in 1976 to a depth business audit, which led to a complaint of corruption and running a reptile fund in July 1977. Due to the failings of General Tire, and the retention of incriminating evidence and falsification of accounts by RKO General, the FCC ruled in June 1980 that RKO General was unacceptable as a station owner of and is to withdraw the broadcasting license for the television station WNAC. In two appeals the view of the FCC was supported, in the last instance by the Supreme Court in April 1982.
1981 General Tire achieved worldwide annual sales of 885 million dollars and had a global market share of 2.9 percent. In October 1982, the Company completed a cooperation agreement with the German tire manufacturer Continental AG, which provided for the annual production of 500,000 tires in the USA.
In February 1983, the FCC General Tire began to urge specifically to the task of broadcasting business. For all stations competing applications have been accepted for a broadcasting license. The pressure of the Regulierungebehörde met General Tire with a restructuring. New holding GenCorp in 1984 with General Tire and RKO General as equivalent subsidiaries without joint business relationship.
New CEO of GenCorp in 1985, Bill Reynolds, who continued the restructuring started and sold the loss-making 45 % stake in Frontier Airlines. The television station WOR in 1986 advertised for sale in November - sold to MCA - after approval by the FCC. The money was used immediately for share buybacks in order to prevent an impending hostile takeover. Directly related to the management decision was made in the future to focus on the aerospace division of Aerojet and General Tire in summary, original core business to sell. For 660 million dollars General Tire went in 1987 to Continental, bringing GenCorp also got rid of the intended hostile takeover by two investment companies.
The name General Tire is still used as a regional brand for car tires in the United States, the former General Tire Company, however, operates as Continental Tire North America. Since the closure of plants in Mayfield, KN (2004 ) and Charlotte, NC (2006) The plant in Mount Vernon, IL is the only remaining Continental tire plant in North America.