Page "Golden Age of American animation" Paragraph 58

Walter Lantz Studio closed at the end of 1948 due to financial problems.

It opened again in 1950 with a downsized staff, mainly because Lantz was able to sign a deal with Universal ( by this time now known as Universal-International ) for more Woody Woodpecker cartoons, starting with 1951's Puny Express.

The character would continue to appear in theatrical shorts until 1972, when Lantz finally closed his studio.

Luckily for Lantz Woody Woodpecker's survival was lengthened when he started appearing in The Woody Woodpecker Show from 1957 to 1958, from which it entered syndication until 1966.

NBC revived the show twice — in 1970 and 1976, and finally in 1985 Lantz sold all of the Woody Woodpecker shorts to Universal, then part of MCA.