Lorimar’s Loss in Period Grows to $45.3 Million

Continuing to write its results in red ink, television producer Lorimar Telepictures reported Friday a $45.3-million net loss for its fiscal first quarter ended June 30, compared to a $7-million loss a year earlier.

The Culver City firm is to be merged next month into the entertainment giant Warner Communications. Lorimar, which reported an $86.6-million loss for all of fiscal 1988, said the merger is “proceeding on schedule.”

The firm attributed the latest quarterly loss primarily to increased interest costs, writedowns on various theatrical film and television projects, and operating losses and costs involved in closing its theatrical film distribution and home-video divisions.

Lorimar has nine series in the fall network lineups, including “A.L.F.,” a Bernie Brillstein production in which Lorimar has an equity interest, as well as its long-running “Dallas,” “Knots Landing” and “Falcon Crest.”

Revenue in the first quarter dipped 7% to $106.8 million from $114.4 million.

Although the company did not offer specific details on the writedowns, it said they involved pilot programs produced for the fall television season as well as “certain released theatrical motion pictures and other television product.”

A spokeswoman noted that Lorimar had completed six pilots and that deficits were recorded on all of them, including those sold to the networks.

She said the theatrical movie writedowns reflected “revised estimates on our films that we’ve made over the last year,” rather than new releases.

The firm’s new 10-Q quarterly earnings report to the Securities and Exchange Commission noted that film and TV writedowns were “due to a downward revision in projected future revenues.”

The company last June reported total writedowns of $49 million from its ill-fated motion picture division, including the fourth-quarter release “Action Jackson.”

Lorimar said interest expense for the latest quarter rose to $17.7 million from $10.7 million because of increased borrowings under its revolving credit agreement and issuance of commercial paper.

The company also reported $10.6 million for “severance and writeoff of good will,” largely in connection with closing down its theatrical distribution and home-video operations. The writeoff of good will--an accounting charge on an asset that has been purchased for more than its book value--specifically was for the home-video division.