Universal Pictures

Universal City Studios LLC (doing business as Universal Pictures), commonly known as Universal Studios or simply Universal, is an American film production and distribution company headquartered at the Universal Studios complex in Universal City, California. It serves as the flagship studio of Universal Filmed Entertainment Group, the film studio arm of NBCUniversal, which is a subsidiary of Comcast. Founded on April 30, 1912, by Carl Laemmle, Mark Dintenfass, Charles O. Baumann, Adam Kessel, Pat Powers, William Swanson, David Horsley, Robert H. Cochrane, and Jules Brulatour, Universal is the oldest surviving film studio in the United States and the fifth oldest globally after Gaumont, Pathé, Titanus and Nordisk Film, and is one of the "Big Five" film studios. Universal Pictures is a member of the Motion Picture Association (MPA), and was one of the "Little Three" majors during Hollywood's golden age. It is currently one of eight film studios of the Universal Filmed Entertainment Group, alongside Focus Features, a 20% stake in Amblin Partners, a 50% stake in United International Pictures, Working Title Films, Universal Animation Studios, Illumination, and DreamWorks Animation. Woody Woodpecker, a cartoon character created by Walter Lantz, serves as the company's mascot.