Turner Classic Movies’ motto: Don’t mess with success

It was a simple plan 15 years ago: show classic films uncut and without any commercials.

And, with Ted Turner flicking a makeshift switch in Times Square to start rolling “Gone with the Wind,” Turner Classic Movies got started.

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AJC file

TCM host Robert Osborne, on the set.

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Many of the other networks at Atlanta-based Turner Broadcasting System — TBS, TNT, TruTV and Cartoon Network — have gone through a major makeover recently. At TCM, executives just stuck with the original script of showing high-quality films and putting them in context for serious viewers — but they have ad libbed here and there with the help of modern technology.

“The blessing of the network is the brand is crystal clear, and we can leverage it to keep building the business,” said Steve Koonin, president of Turner Entertainment Networks.

The classic movies were the core. From that, TCM created a Web site that includes a robust movie database and the ability for people to order rare titles on DVD. A new class at Emory University’s Center for Lifelong Learning, TCM Film School Essentials, looks at classic films and the art of filmmaking. The class is taught by filmmaker and DVD producer Bret Wood.

Koonin considers the brand to be like a cult — comparable to Harley-Davidson or Jimmy Buffett’s Parrotheads. And the network is one of a kind in another way: There’s very little direct competition since AMC, formerly known as American Movie Classics, has changed its strategy to include original programming.

Turner Broadcasting agreed to form TCM in 1993. The network grew quickly mostly from licensing deals with Paramount and Warner Bros. But it was company founder Ted Turner’s 1986 purchase of MGM/UA Entertainment that helped provide the rich library for TCM, as well as for its sister networks.

One would think a network that shows classic movies wouldn’t cause a stir. But it’s happened a lot, said Charles Tabesh, TCM’s senior vice president of programming.

The network’s series “Race and Hollywood,” which has focused on Hollywood’s portrayal of blacks, Asians — and in May, Latinos — has led to the occasional flurry of e-mails or discussion on the Web site’s message board.

“I don’t want to overstate the controversy because it’s never been horrible,” Tabesh said.

For TCM’s anniversary this week, the network tapped 15 fans to introduce their favorite movies. They spent time on the set taping last year with TCM host Robert Osborne.

“They are like groupies, ambassadors,” said Osborne, who was in Atlanta last week to tape introductions for May’s lineup for films.