How Too Much Debt Killed Hollywood’s Century-Old Color Machine

There are few companies as closely identified with Hollywood’s moviemaking magic as Technicolor. Its stylized name introduced storied films such as Gone with the Wind and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, as well as the Saturday morning antics of Bugs Bunny and friends. When Gene Kelly, newly in love and singing in the rain, swings from a lamppost, he pops off the screen thanks to Technicolor’s novel three-strip colorizing process. When Dorothy steps out of her grayscale Kansas and into the vibrant land of Oz, she sees the world for the first time not just in color—but in Technicolor.

Once ...