Wometco Enterprises
Wometco Enterprises is a Florida-based entertainment and media company whose historic businesses included cinemas, television stations, subscription television, cable systems, food service, bottling, and the Miami Seaquarium.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Wometco Enterprises is an American entertainment and media company headquartered in Coral Gables, Florida. It began in Miami in 1925 as the Wolfson-Meyer Theater Company, established by brothers-in-law Mitchell Wolfson and Sidney Meyer. The venture initially focused on operating and developing movie theaters, beginning with the Capitol Theater in downtown Miami in 1926. Over the following decades, the company became the largest cinema operator in South Florida and expanded its theater presence to Puerto Rico. The company adopted the shortened Wometco name during the 1950s and broadened its activities beyond exhibition. In 1949 it entered broadcasting by launching WTVJ in Miami, the first television station in Florida. WTVJ initially operated from facilities inside the renovated Capitol Theater. Wometco later acquired or invested in television stations in Wisconsin, North Carolina, Washington, New Jersey, Michigan, and Florida. Its broadcast portfolio included WLOS-AM-FM-TV in Asheville, KVOS-TV in Bellingham, WTVG in Newark, and WZZM-TV in Grand Rapids. It also held an ownership interest in WFGA-TV in Jacksonville, later known as WTLV. Wometco pursued a diversified entertainment strategy. In 1955 it opened the Miami Seaquarium, which became one of its best-known attractions. In 1966 the company acquired the Blue Circle hamburger chain, although that business was sold in 1974. Other holdings included bottling and soft-drink operations, vending machines, cable television systems, and the Citrus Tower. Wometco was also one of the major Coca-Cola bottlers in the United States. In 1977 it launched Wometco Home Theater, a nationwide over-the-air subscription television service using WTVG as its flagship station. The company entered a decisive transition after Mitchell Wolfson died in January 1983. The absence of a clear succession plan and concerns about the future of the diversified enterprise contributed to the sale of Wometco to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. on September 21, 1983. The approximately $1 billion leveraged buyout was described in contemporary accounts as the largest corporate transaction in Florida history at the time and a record-setting leveraged buyout. Wometco was taken private and divided into a broadcast-focused entity and a second entity containing theaters, attractions, cable systems, bottling, vending, and other non-broadcast holdings. KKR-appointed management subsequently pursued a broad asset-sale program. The theater and non-broadcast entertainment assets were sold or transferred, while individual television stations and cable systems were divested over time. WTVJ ultimately became an NBC-owned station after an earlier proposed sale to Lorimar-Telepictures did not close. The Wometco cinema chain was acquired by Cobb Theatres in 1994, and Cobb later became part of Regal Entertainment Group. The Miami Seaquarium remained associated with Wometco until its sale to Palace Entertainment in March 2014. The company has also been associated with Baskin-Robbins and Dunkin' Donuts franchise operations in Miami, Puerto Rico, and the Caribbean. Wometco is therefore best understood as a historic regional entertainment conglomerate whose original media and leisure empire was largely dismantled through post-1983 divestitures while some franchise activity continued.
History
Wometco Enterprises originated in Miami in 1925 as the Wolfson-Meyer Theater Company. Its founders, Mitchell Wolfson and Sidney Meyer, were brothers-in-law who built the business around movie exhibition. The company's first theater was Miami's Capitol Theater, opened in 1926. Wometco gradually developed the largest theater chain in South Florida and also operated cinemas in Puerto Rico. During the 1950s, the business adopted the Wometco name, a shortened form that became associated with its expanding portfolio. The company's first major move into media came in 1949, when it launched WTVJ in Miami. The station was Florida's first television station and initially broadcast from studios located within the remodeled Capitol Theater. Wometco subsequently built a multi-market broadcasting group. It took a majority interest in WMTV in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1957 but disposed of that interest the following year. In 1958 it acquired control of WLOS-AM-FM-TV in Asheville, North Carolina. KVOS-TV in Bellingham, Washington, joined the portfolio in 1961. Wometco later acquired WTVG in Newark, New Jersey, in 1976 and WZZM-TV in Grand Rapids, Michigan, in 1978. The company was also a founding investor in Jacksonville station WFGA-TV, later WTLV, although its ownership share declined before the station was sold in 1975. Wometco's strategy was not limited to theaters and television. It opened the Miami Seaquarium in 1955, adding a major visitor attraction to its entertainment operations. In 1966 it purchased the Blue Circle hamburger chain, based in Knoxville, Tennessee, and sold the business in 1974. The company also assembled interests in vending, bottling, soft drinks, and cable television. Its bottling division became one of the largest Coca-Cola bottling operations in the country. In 1977 Wometco introduced Wometco Home Theater, an over-the-air pay-television service distributed through broadcast stations and led by WTVG. The death of Mitchell Wolfson on January 28, 1983, marked the beginning of Wometco's corporate break-up. Although Wolfson had publicly referred to a plan intended to prevent a sale, no effective succession arrangement was identified in his will. The family and board agreed to sell the company to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. on September 21, 1983, in an approximately $1 billion leveraged buyout. The deal was regarded at the time as an exceptionally large Florida corporate transaction and a landmark leveraged acquisition. After taking Wometco private, KKR and its appointed managers separated the assets into a broadcasting group and a broader entertainment and services group. The latter contained the movie theaters, Miami Seaquarium, Citrus Tower, vending and bottling operations, cable systems, and other holdings. Management announced plans to sell assets regarded as weak performers. Arthur Hertz, then Wometco's chief operating officer, acquired most of the theater and non-broadcast entertainment assets in April 1985, while bottling operations were handled separately. The broadcast portfolio was also progressively dismantled. WLOS-FM was sold in 1984, WZZM was sold in 1985, and Wometco's cable properties were divested. WTVJ was proposed for sale to Lorimar-Telepictures in 1986, but that transaction did not close. General Electric, through NBC, acquired WTVJ in January 1987. The transfer contributed to a later realignment of network affiliations in the Miami and West Palm Beach television markets. Other stations associated with the Wometco Home Theater structure were also sold, including a transaction involving Home Shopping Network. The Wometco theater chain remained under the broader divestiture process and was acquired by Cobb Theatres in 1994; Cobb later became part of Regal Entertainment Group. Wometco retained an association with franchise operations, including Baskin-Robbins and Dunkin' Donuts stores in Miami, Puerto Rico, and the Caribbean. The Miami Seaquarium continued as the company's most visible legacy attraction until Palace Entertainment purchased it in March 2014. Wometco's history consequently spans the transformation of a local Miami cinema operator into a diversified entertainment conglomerate and its subsequent decomposition after the 1983 leveraged buyout.
- 2014
Miami Seaquarium sold
[1]Palace Entertainment acquired the Miami Seaquarium from Wometco.
- 1994
Cinema chain acquired by Cobb Theatres
[1]Cobb Theatres purchased Wometco's movie theater chain.
- 1987
WTVJ sold to NBC
[1]General Electric acquired WTVJ for NBC after an earlier proposed transaction with Lorimar-Telepictures failed to close.
- 1985
Non-broadcast assets begin major divestiture
[1]Arthur Hertz acquired most of the theater and non-broadcast entertainment assets, while bottling assets were sold separately.
- 1983
Company sold to KKR
[1]Following Mitchell Wolfson's death, Wometco was taken private through an approximately $1 billion leveraged buyout.
- 1978
WZZM-TV acquired
[1]Wometco expanded its broadcast group with the acquisition of WZZM-TV in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
- 1977
Wometco Home Theater launched
[1]The company introduced a nationwide over-the-air subscription television service.
- 1976
WTVG acquired
[1]Wometco purchased WTVG in Newark, New Jersey.
- 1974
Blue Circle sold
[1]Wometco exited the Blue Circle hamburger business.
- 1966
Blue Circle acquired
[1]Wometco entered the hamburger business by purchasing the Blue Circle chain.
Products and positioning
Historically positioned as a diversified regional entertainment company combining cinemas, broadcast media, subscription television, cable systems, attractions, food service, and beverage operations, with a strong base in Florida and additional interests across the United States, Puerto Rico, and the Caribbean.
Cinema exhibition · 1926
Wometco movie theaters
Wometco's original and historically largest business was movie exhibition. The company built a substantial theater network in South Florida and also operated theaters in Puerto Rico. The Capitol Theater in downtown Miami was its first venue and later became important to the company's broadcasting history because WTVJ initially used facilities inside the renovated theater. The chain was ultimately sold to Cobb Theatres in 1994.
Broadcast television · 1949
WTVJ
WTVJ was Wometco's flagship broadcast property and the first television station in Florida. It began broadcasting from Miami in 1949 and helped anchor the company's later expansion into a multi-market television group. The station was eventually sold to General Electric for NBC in 1987 after a proposed Lorimar-Telepictures transaction failed to close.
Subscription television · 1977
Wometco Home Theater
Wometco Home Theater was an over-the-air subscription television service launched nationally in 1977. It used broadcast infrastructure rather than a conventional wired subscription network and designated WTVG as its flagship station. The service formed part of Wometco's broader attempt to combine its television-station assets with emerging pay-television distribution.
Marine attraction · 1955
Miami Seaquarium
Opened by Wometco in 1955, the Miami Seaquarium was a major visitor attraction and one of the company's most recognizable non-media holdings. It represented Wometco's strategy of pairing entertainment venues with cinema and broadcasting operations. The attraction remained associated with the company for decades before being sold to Palace Entertainment in March 2014.
Quick-service restaurants · 1966
Blue Circle
Blue Circle was a Knoxville-based hamburger chain acquired by Wometco in 1966. The purchase extended the company's diversification into food service, but the business was sold in 1974. It was separate from Wometco's later association with Baskin-Robbins and Dunkin' Donuts franchise stores.
Franchised food service
Baskin-Robbins and Dunkin' Donuts franchises
Wometco has been associated with franchise operations for Baskin-Robbins and Dunkin' Donuts in Miami, Puerto Rico, and the Caribbean. These stores represent the company's continuing connection to consumer-facing food service after most of its historic theater, broadcasting, cable, and attraction assets had been sold.
Brand decisions
2014
Sale of the Miami SeaquariumM&ABackground
The Seaquarium was one of the last prominent assets associated with Wometco's historic entertainment portfolio.
Action taken
Wometco sold the Miami Seaquarium to Palace Entertainment.
Aftermath
The transaction ended Wometco's ownership of the attraction while the company remained associated with franchise food-service operations.
1994
Sale of the movie theater chainM&ABackground
The theater business remained part of the assets being separated and sold after the 1983 leveraged buyout.
Action taken
Cobb Theatres acquired Wometco's cinema chain.
Aftermath
Cobb later merged into Regal Entertainment Group, further removing the historic Wometco theater identity from the market.
1987
Sale of WTVJ to NBCM&ABackground
A proposed sale of WTVJ to Lorimar-Telepictures did not close, leaving the station subject to a subsequent transaction.
Action taken
General Electric, then NBC's parent company, acquired WTVJ for $270 million.
Aftermath
The acquisition contributed to a major network-affiliation realignment in the Miami and West Palm Beach television markets in 1989.
Sale price. $270 million (January 16, 1987)
1985
Post-buyout asset separation and divestitureStrategyBackground
KKR-appointed management considered the theaters and several non-broadcast entertainment holdings to be financial underperformers after the leveraged acquisition.
Action taken
The assets were separated from the broadcast group, and most theater and non-broadcast entertainment properties were sold to Arthur Hertz; bottling operations were sold separately.
Aftermath
Wometco's diversified conglomerate structure was progressively dismantled, with further sales of stations and cable systems during the following years.
1983
Leveraged buyout by Kohlberg Kravis RobertsM&ABackground
Mitchell Wolfson's death left Wometco without a clearly designated succession plan, while the company controlled a broad and financially complex collection of assets.
Action taken
The family and board sold Wometco to Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. in an approximately $1 billion leveraged buyout and took the company private.
Aftermath
KKR divided the business into broadcast and non-broadcast groupings and began selling theaters, attractions, bottling, cable systems, and individual stations.
Transaction value. $1 billion (September 21, 1983)
1977
Launch of Wometco Home TheaterProduct launchBackground
Wometco sought to extend its broadcast portfolio into subscription television by using over-the-air distribution and a flagship station.
Action taken
The company introduced Wometco Home Theater as a nationwide over-the-air pay-television service, centered on WTVG.
Aftermath
The service became part of Wometco's broadcast and entertainment structure but was later affected by the company's post-1983 asset divestitures.
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