Ruby-Spears Enterprises

Ruby-Spears Enterprises
Founded	1977
President
Notable Works	The Puppy Who Wanted a Boy, Alvin and the Chipmunks, Heathcliff

Ruby-Spears Enterprises is a production company founded by Joe Ruby and Ken Spears, both of whom previously worked with Hanna-Barbera Productions. Their work consists mostly of animated TV specials and series. Some of their best-known work include The Puppy Who Wanted a Boy and its subsequent specials and series as well as the Alvin and the Chipmunks series and a couple related specials.

The company started in 1977, when Joe Ruby and Ken Spears decided to start their own production company after working with Hanna-Barbera. Some of their work there included writing for shows like Space Ghost and Dino Boy and The Herculoids before going on to create Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!. Their work as their own studio began immediately, when they got a commitment from ABC for a special and a series before they even opened their doors, a first for an animation company. They went on to produce many specials and series over the next few decades for ABC, NBC, CBS and FOX as well as in syndication.

Ruby-Spears, which was originally owned by Filmways Television, was purchased in 1981 by Taft Broadcasting and became a sister company to Hanna-Barbera. Both companies were purchased by Turner Broadcasting in 1990, which in turn was purchased by Time Warner in 1996. Most shows in the Ruby-Spears library are now distributed by Warner Bros. Television.