First-Run Syndication and Unwired Networks in the 1980s: Viacom's Superboy and Buena Vista TV's DuckTales

This article historically examines the boom in US first-run syndication during the 1980s. At this time, Hollywood-based major distributors eagerly entered this market, thanks to regulatory and industrial changes, in an effort to create competing unwired television networks. The article presents a contextual history to describe these changes and uses two sustained case studies-Viacom's Superboy and Buena Vista TV's DuckTales-to more closely examine these syndicators. Through these case studies, the article demonstrates the shared industrial strategies of these distributors in exploiting pre-sold brands, globalized labor, and package deals for programing.