SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 8-K
CURRENT REPORT
PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE
SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
Date of report (Date of earliest event reported) April 15, 1997
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KING WORLD PRODUCTIONS, INC.
_____________________________________________________
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Charter)
Delaware 1-9244 13-2565808
___________________________________________________________________
(State or Other Jurisdiction (Commission (I.R.S. Employer
of Incorporation) File Number) Identification No.)
1700 Broadway, New York, New York 10019
___________________________________________________________________
(Address of Principal Executive Offices) (Zip Code)
Registrant's telephone number, including area code (212) 315-4000
______________
___________________________________________________________________
(Former Name or Former Address, if Changed Since Last Report)
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Item 5. Other Events.
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On April 15, 1997, the Company announced that the Board of
Directors had approved a program to repurchase up to 5,000,000 shares of
its Common Stock and had declared a special dividend distribution of $2.00
per share.
Under the share repurchase program, the Company may from time to
time purchase shares of Common Stock in the open market and in privately
negotiated transactions, at such prices and times as it deems advantageous.
Purchases under the share repurchase program will be financed out of the
Company's available cash and liquid investments. If the Company were to
repurchase all shares authorized to be repurchased at an average price
equal to the closing price of the Common Stock on the New York Stock
Exchange on April 11, 1997 ($35.50 per share), approximately $177.5 million
of the Company's cash reserves would be used in the share repurchase
program.
The special dividend will be payable on May 16, 1997 to stock-
holders of record on April 25, 1997 and will be financed out of the
Company's available cash and liquid investments. Approximately $75 million
of the Company's cash reserves will be used to pay the special dividend.
Item 7. Financial Statements, Pro Forma Financial Information and Exhib-
its. ________________________________________________________________
____
(c) Exhibits.
99.1 Press Release dated April 15, 1997 captioned "King
World Declares Special Dividend."
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SIGNATURE
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf
by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
KING WORLD PRODUCTIONS, INC.,
By: /s/Michael King
Name: Michael King
Title: President and Chief
Executive Officer
Date: April 15, 1997
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INDEX TO EXHIBITS
Exhibit Description
_______ ___________
10.1 Press Release dated April 15, 1997 captioned "King World
Declares Special Dividend."
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EXHIBIT 99.1
KING WORLD DECLARES SPECIAL DIVIDEND
Authorizes Share Repurchase Program
NEW YORK, N.Y., April 15, 1997 -- King World Productions, Inc. (NYSE:
KWP) today announced today that its Board of Directors has declared a
special dividend of $2.00 per common share. The dividend will be payable
on May 16, 1997 to shareholders of record on April 25, 1997. King World
also announced today that it has authorized a share repurchase program that
will allow the Company to purchase up to 5,000,000 shares of King World's
common stock, representing approximately 13% of shares outstanding.
Michael King, King World's President and Chief Executive Officer,
said. "King World's first priority is and always will be the creation of
value for its shareholders. We consider our shareholders to be our
partners and appreciate the longstanding support we have received from
them. We believe this is the right time to reward our shareholders for
their confidence and patience. To that end, we are pleased to announce
this special dividend. Going forward, we anticipate that our cash balance
will be used for acquisitions and to fund production of new and existing
programs.
"The stock repurchase program, in addition to being accretive to
earnings per share, underscores management's belief in the future of
the Company. King World is poised for growth, and we truly believe there is no
better investment available today than King World common stock. With some
of the most impressive franchises in the history of television as well as a
pristine balance sheet, King World is well positioned for the future. As
we implement our strategy over the next several months, we are confident
that our results will corroborate the confidence we have shown today."
Under the 5 million share repurchase program announced today, shares
will be purchased from time to time in the open market and in privately
negotiated transactions. The new buyback program follows the recent
completion of a four year buyback under which King World purchased 2.0
million shares for a total cost of $71 million. The purchased shares
will be used for general corporate purposes.
King World is the leading worldwide distributor of first-run program-
ming, including WHEEL OF FORTUNE, JEOPARDY! and THE OPRAH WINFREY SHOW, the
three highest-rated, first-run strips in syndication. The Company produces
and distributes INSIDE EDITION and AMERICAN JOURNAL, and distributes THE
GERALDO RIVERA SHOW, the MR. FOOD insert and a library of feature films and
television programs. The Company's barter subsidiary, Camelot Entertain-
ment Sales, Inc., sells national advertising time in King World and other
TV programming. Another subsidiary, King World Direct, is a worldwide,
full-service, direct marketing company. WHEEL OF FORTUNE and JEOPARDY! are
produced by Califon Productions, Inc. and Jeopardy Productions, Inc., which
are wholly-owned subsidiaries of Columbia TriStar Television, a Sony
Pictures Entertainment company. THE OPRAH WINFREY SHOW is produced by
HARPO Productions, Inc. THE GERALDO RIVERA SHOW is produced by Tribune
Entertainment.
For further information, contact: Arthur Sando
King World Productions
(212) 315-4000
Adam Miller/Rob Lerner
The Abernathy MacGregor Group, Inc.
(212) 371-5999
