Century Communications Corporation

Administrative History

Century Communications Corporation, a major provider of cable television services, was founded by Leonard Tow in 1973. Century Communication's first acquisition was four lagging cable TV markets in California, which were owned by Cablecom General. During the late 1980s, the company acquired new markets and improved its existing operations. Its cable subscribership ballooned to 721 million in 1988 as company revenues soared past $160 million.

Century's regional subsidiary in Southern California was named Century Cable Southwest. Century Cable Southwest produced hundreds of public affairs programs for its cable access channels. As senior vice president of Century Cable, a show producer, and on-air host, Bill Rosendahl was a major driving force behind the development of these programs.

In 1999, Adelphia Communications Corporation purchased Century, acquiring Century’s assets, including its local cable access programming.

John Rigas established The Adelphia Communications Corporation in 1952. Before filing for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy in 2002, Adelphia was one of the largest cable television providers in the United States. Adelphia Communications Corporation also provided services in high-speed internet access, long distance telephone service, and home security.

The company’s headquarters were located in Coudersport, Pennsylvania. Its cable operations were located in 31 states, with significant clusters in Los Angeles, New England, Western New York, West Palm Beach, Cleveland, Western Pennsylvania, Northern Virginia and Colorado Springs.

Despite becoming a public firm in 1986, the company remained a family-run business. Founder John Rigas was the CEO and chairman of the board. His sons, Tim (CFO), Michael (VP of Operations), and James (VP of Strategic Planning), solidified the family stronghold within the company. In May 2002, Adelphia disclosed that federal grand juries from New York and central Pennsylvania were probing into the company's finances. Adelphia also released details showing that the Rigas family used the company’s assets for personal use.

The company filed for bankruptcy in June 2002. In July 2002, John, Michael, and Timothy Rigas were arrested and charged with conspiracy to commit securities fraud, wire fraud, and bank fraud.

In 2005, the majority of Adelphia’s assets were acquired by Time Warner Cable and Comcast. The company officially dissolved after an auction sold off Adelphia's remaining assets on July 31, 2006.

In the Southern California region, Adelphia Communications Corporation purchased Century Southwest Cable, a regional operator of Century Communications in 1999. With this purchase, Adelphia Communications became the largest cable provider in the Los Angeles area. The regional offices of Adelphia operated out of Santa Monica and produced thousands of public cable access television programs, primarily focused on local public affairs coverage. Bill Rosendahl also joined Adelphia as regional vice president in 1999. Rosendahl was a mainstay in Adelphia's cable access public affairs programming from 1999 to 2003. In 2001, Rosendahl's position has reshuffled to director of the firm’s political affairs. His heightened success on-screen and in the producer’s seat made it difficult to manage Adelphia's services in Southern California.

Adelphia and Rosendahl offered a high level of professionalism to public affairs programming. Rosendahl's election specials and interviews with policy makers filled an important gap in broadcast journalism in Los Angeles by featuring in-depth coverage of local and state campaigns that was virtually non-existent on commercial outlets. He strove to use television as a means to foster greater participation in the electoral process.

Biography

Bill Rosendahl, Regional Vice President of Adelphia, television program producer, and donor of this collection, was born in 1945 and raised in Englewood, New Jersey. Rosendahl became active in politics as a student in the 1960s involved in the civil rights movement. As a graduate student, Rosendahl took a leave of absence from his studies to work for the 1968 presidential campaign of Robert F. Kennedy. In 1979, President Jimmy Carter brought Rosendahl into his administration to be chief of operations in the trade and development program. When Carter was defeated by Ronald Reagan in 1980, Rosendahl relocated to Los Angeles and entered broadcasting. Before signing on with Century Cable, Rosendahl worked for Westinghouse Broadcasting Company.

Rosendahl began hosting and producing public affairs televisions shows in December 1987 for Century Cable Southwest’s cable access channel in Los Angeles. Rosendahl also served as Chief Operating Officer and as Vice President of Corporate Affairs for the system's parent company, Century Communications Corporation.

When Century was purchased by Adelphia in 1999, Rosendahl remained a cable executive and television journalist. He became vice president of operations for Adelphia Communication Corporation’s Southern California region and continued to produce and moderate a number of public affairs television shows.

His television show “Week in Review” became a staple in the lineups at Century and Adelphia. Some of the other shows that he hosted included "Beyond the Beltway," "Local Talk," "The God Squad," "Mideast Perspective," and "Personal Best." During his 16 years in cable, he produced over 3,000 programs.

Rosendahl was honored with numerous awards, including a Cable Ace Award, The Diamond Award, the Freedom of Information Award, the Los Angeles League of Women Voters Public Service Award and the Beacon Award for Cable's Free Air Time Project.

In 2005, Rosendahl was elected to the Los Angeles City Council, representing the 11th District, which includes the communities of Brentwood, Del Rey, Mar Vista, Marina del Rey, Pacific Palisades, Palms, Playa del Rey, Playa Vista, Venice, West LA and Westchester.

Chronology

• 1945: William (Bill) J. Rosendahl born.
• 1952: John Rigas establishes Adelphia Communications Corporation.
• 1987: Rosendahl begins hosting and producing public affairs programs for Century Cable.
• 1999: Adelphia Communications Corporation purchases Century Cable Communications.
• 2003: Rosendahl leaves Adelphia.
• 2006: Adelphia Communications Corporation dissolves.

From the guide to the Bill Rosendahl-Adelphia Communications Corporation Collection of Public Affairs Television Programs, 1987-2006, (Loyola Marymount University. Library. Department of Archives and Special Collections.)