| |
|
It was launched in 1986, a year after News Corporation purchased TFC Holdings, the parent company of the 20th Century Fox movie studio. The seed Fox stations were a chain of television stations purchased by News Corp. from John Kluge and his Metromedia Inc in mid-1986. Metromedia's television stations in turn derived from the stations owned by the long-defunct DuMont television network.
The network did not have a significant market share until the 1990s when News Corp. bought more TV station groups, including New World Communications, Chris-Craft Industries, BHC Communications and United Television, making it the largest owner of television stations in the country.
The Fox network is home to the longest-running animated series in history, The Simpsons. It is also credited with launching the careers of such Hollywood stars as Jim Carrey, Ben Stiller and David Duchovny.