BurbankRecords.com to Pull Plug
SAN JOSE - BurbankRecords.com, the online subsidiary of the defunct Laswell Studios Organization, and the last remaining wing of the Burbank Records Corporation, announced Wednesday that it will be suspending operations at the end of October. Due to accounting inaccuracies and misunderstood business focals, the long embattled company will be pulling the plug on its web-based community, as it has failed to meet investor expectations of becoming a multi-billion dollar establishment by year's end. 

After the demise of the Laswell Studio branch in late 2001, the net worth of the Burbank Records Corporation was limited to the value of its online division. Initially this value was reported to be in the neighborhood of seventeen million dollars. However, after an internal audit performed on Monday, it was determined that the value of the website and its associated resources is closer to the range of six dollars. When asked to elaborate on how such an inconsistency could arise, BurbankRecords.com officials offered no comment, only to say that the truth would come out in the courtroom. 

Analysts attribute the demise of the site to a partnership formed with Albany, Oregon's E-Grocerynet.com Inc., a deal which has reportedly left BurbankRecords.com holding the short end of a twenty million dollar debt. 

In the 2-years that BurbankRecords.com has been in operation, the site has consistently pushed its way to the forefront of web community-based businesses, targeting top positions held by companies such as E-Bay and Amazon.com. BurbankRecords.com soon became notorious for hard driving management practices such as time limits on office foosball playing, and providing free beer only on Fridays. Advocating a minimalist approach to workforce principles, Burbank Inc. operated at times, with only one employee. When economic times changed, and other businesses started cutting expenditures, BurbankRecords expanded rapidly, adding featurettes on the the wildy successful Movie Night and Gambling Night festivities (which continued to operate through this year as intellectual property of the Laswell Studios Organization). 

Despite these attempts to stay at the top of the pile, interest in Burbank Records slumped dramatically after the loss of the Laswell property, and the court battle which ensued. The struggling E-Grocerynet.com added to the bad sentiment aimed at the company, as free grocery's were tainted by outrageous delivery fees; an attempt to keep both companies afloat. 

In an effort to save the image of Burbank Records, E-Grocerynet.com Inc. attempted to distance itself from the Burbank division by declaring bankruptcy in January.  Unfortunately, however, due to contractual obligations, the E-Grocerynet advertisements were left on the Burbank website, counteracting most of the distancing efforts. 

Finally, after an intense round of discussions on Wednesday, BurbankRecords.com and Laswell Studios founders and Board Members decided to pull the plug on the remaining division. 

On the decision to forgo the renewal of the BurbankRecords.com domain, Michael Elliott stated: 

"This is a difficult decision, but I must admit, it seems sensible at this point to acknowledge what we already now - Burbank Records was a dream - for a short while, a waking dream, but a dream nonetheless. With that in mind, perhaps would should lay www.burbankrecords.com to rest. As much as it represents that final chapter for the Burbank Records organization, it also opens the door to new possibilities. Those possibilities will undoubtedly require their own websites, which we can deal with at another time. But for now, a moment for nostalgia - for what might have been - for the dream that was, for a brief few months, a reality. As the great Winston Churchill once said (although, in reference to a certain point during the second world war)- "I do not see this as the beginning of the end. But, perhaps, it is the end of the beginning."  more...

September 2000- Demolission and construction begins on the Laswell Studios.

October 2000 - BurbankRecords.com is launched to document and promote the construction of the studio complex at 526 Laswell, in San Jose's Burbank Neighborhood.

February 24, 2001- Night of the Open Studio Party commemorating the completion of Laswell Studios.

June 2001 - Laswell Studios initiates Movie Night, projecting DVD movies onto a 60-foot outdoor screen, amid sparkling lights and gorgeous mid-summer evening sky.  

October 2001- Gambling Nights begin.

December, 2001- The Laswell property is repossessed.  The Laswell Studios are surrendered to the landlord, and closed for good.