ABSTRACT
Although Loew’s Inc., the parent company of MGM, had been in business since 1924, it wasn’t until 1945 that they hired industry veteran Frank Walker to start a record label. The label debuted in March 1947, headquartered in New York. Although planned as a full-line label, MGM depended on soundtracks from its parent company (Gigi, Ben Hur, etc.). EMI issued MGM recordings in the U.K. under exclusive license beginning in 1949. Walker’s major acquisition was country singer Hank Williams. After Walker’s retirement in 1956, his successor, Arnold Maxin, signed Connie Francis, Roy Orbison, and several British Invasion bands, including the Animals and Herman’s Hermits. MGM also acquired Norman Granz’s jazz label, Verve, in 1961; concluded a distribution pact with Germany’s Deutsche Grammophon classical label; and opened a Nashville office in 1965. After the parent corporation ran into financial difficulties, MGM Records was sold to Deutsche Grammophon’s Polydor division in April 1972, although the soundtracks were excluded from the purchase. Polydor ceased using the MGM Records trademark in 1976.
