Legend has it that the iconic star-crested mountain logo of Paramount Pictures was born in 1914 from a simple napkin doodle by co-founder W.W. Hodkinson, inspired by his childhood memories of the majestic peaks in Utah.
The fledgling company’s name, the story goes, was taken from a sign on the side of an apartment building. From such humble origins, the oldest film studio in Hollywood would come to be known as the Mountain. In recent years, this once-grand peak has seen more than its share of erosion, as Paramount has fallen behind its studio rivals and struggled to adapt to the advent of streaming.
Still, with a historic lot in the heart of Los Angeles and a stable of hit franchises, including “Mission: Impossible,” “Transformers” and “Star Trek,” the Mountain remains a vital piece of Hollywood real estate worth billions, part of a media empire that also includes CBS and such cable networks as MTV and Nickelodeon. In an era of increasing consolidation, the question was not so much whether Paramount would be sold but when and to whom. With the newly announced acquisition of Shari Redstone’s holding company National Amusements Inc.
by tech scion David Ellison ‘s Skydance Media in a $8.4-billion deal, the Mountain is coming under new management. Now, Paramount Pictures will embark on the next chapter in its storied history at a time of deep existential anxiety and uncertainty for the movie business as a whole.
“Given the changes in the industry, we want to f.
