Company Town : The Melodrama of Time Warner

If you make a TV miniseries of the antics of Time Warner in the past five years, this what is might look like:

The pitch: OK, we got a story here with everything. Swelling debt load! Enhanced revenue! Due Diligence! Swear words! And maybe even Higher Earnings Per Share! Think of it as “Four Weddings and a Funeral” without a couple of the weddings. Or “The Godfather” on nouvelle cuisine. Trust us, if it’s half as great onscreen as it has been in real life, we’ve got a winner. Here’s the way to do it as a five-part mini-series and we’ll guarantee some sequels:

I. The wedding: Our story begins with a 1989 wedding. Parking garage magnate Steve Ross happily gives the hand of his precious Warner Communications Inc., to East Coast brahmin Time Inc. Ceremony is briefly interrupted by one Martin Davis, who wants Time to join his Paramount family and dangles a huge dowry. Time family sends Davis packing.

II. The funeral: Flash-forward three years or so. Patriarch Ross has died and is greatly mourned. One of his lieutenants, the bookish Gerald M. Levin, has wrested control of the combined Time Warner and deep-sixed Ross cronies. But, with a towering $16 billion debt, the family is forced to seek financial aid from Japanese friends and others.

III. The troubles: Big $%&!in’ troubles! Wall Street scoffs at Levin’s vision of a 500-channel cable future as Uncle Sam puts a lid on cable rates. Meanwhile, conservative townsfolk are upset because Time Warner kids have taken up with a foul-mouthed crew of gangsta rappers led by Snoop Doggy Dog.

IV. The redemption: “Batman,” back for last summer’s boffo second sequel, helps save the family’s stock price from an uncertain fate. Meanwhile, despite squabbling, the money continues to roll in at Warner Music Group. Even better, the feds, once worried about high cable rates, may allow the Time Warner family to once again raise fees.

V. Another wedding: The clan plans another union. But get ready for sparks. Critics carp at Levin while the father of the bride, Southern plutocrat Ted Turner, prepares to move in.

... TO BE CONTINUED ...

THE VILLAIN

Long-term debt load (in billions):

1989: $10.8

1990: $11.2

1991: $8.7

1992: $10.1

1993: $9.3

1994: $8.8

THE RESTLESS AUDIENCE

Time Warner stock price (quarterly except latest):

Monday: 39.875

Source: Company reports, TradeLine. Researched by JENNIFER OLDHAM / Los Angeles Times