1989-1994: Founding, contracts with ABC Television, and BMG Kidz In 1989, the father of American actresses
Mary-Kate Olsen and
Ashley Olsen, David Olsen retained
Robert Thorne, a partner at the law firm
Loeb & Loeb, to help re-negotiate their contracts for the series
Full House. Impressed with Thorne's work, Olsen hired Thorne to
manage his daughters' careers in 1990, when they were only 4-years old. The sisters were cast in the co-creator of
Full House, Jeff Franklin's TV movie, ''
To Grandmother's House We Go'', which filmed in Vancouver, Canada beginning in May 1992, with a planned release of that December. After filming had finished on the movie, the sisters were signed to the record label
BMG Kidz in July, and recorded their debut album
Brother for Sale that same month. The album was released on October 30, to a tepid reception, with reviewers calling it, "...so self-consciously cute... it's painful. Makes your fillings ache." Despite the album's poor reception among adults, it was well received among its target demographic. Alternatively, the film was very well received across demographics, and was the tenth most watched program across all channels for the week November 30 - December 6. The sales success of the album, and the film's success gave Thorne justified negotiating power when discussing future plans with ABC. with Thorne serving as the
Chief executive officer. A month after Dualstar's creation, it was announced
ABC Television Network and Dualstar had entered into a production agreement. Dualstar was to produce a 13-episode television series to star the Olsen twins following the final season of
Full House, and a TV-movie for ABC, in addition to developing other programming. Mary-Kate and Ashley didn't actually hire the writer and director, as the executive producer would normally do. Instead, the move was the first step in "empowering" the Olsens and their company, Thorne explained. To coincide with the impending releases, Dualstar launched Mary-Kate and Ashley's Fun Club, the official Olsen fan club.
Our First Video premiered at the 1993
Video Software Dealers Association (VSDA) convention, with the video and the album hitting stores on September 28, 1993. To promote the new album and video, the sisters appeared on an hour-long
QVC special, and in what Zoom Express/BMG Kidz executives referred to as a "first-of-its-kind deal"
Capital Cities/ABC supplemented the advertising campaign with
prime time commercials which would air on six first-run episodes of
Full House. The second foray into music was a massive success, as
Our First Video surprised the world when it shot to the top spot of Billboard's Top Music Videos chart the second week it was released.
I Am The Cute One also sold very well, and peaked at #149 on the
Billboard 200. When
Billboard introduced the
Kid Albums chart in 1995, the album was still selling enough copies to peak at #25.
1994–1998: The Adventures of and ''You're Invited'' Series Following the massive success of
Our First Video, on March 8, 1994, it was announced Dualstar and BMG Kidz would be renegotiating the original Olsen record contract. The new contract would be a multi-album, multi-video deal with BMG Kidz, with one or two albums, and three to four videos, expected to be produced in the first year. In connection with the deal, Dualstar formed the subsidiaries
Dualstar Records, and
Dualstar Videos to produce the albums and videos which would then be distributed by BMG Kidz. The company was reportedly being run by six attorneys at this time. The new BMG Kidz and Dualstar contract was finalized, and the video concepts were decided upon by July 1994. The new deal gave the Olsens $5 million to $7 million over the next year, and would involve an upfront expenditure by
Bertelsmann Music Group in excess of $15 million. According to reports, 15,000 people lined up in 105-degree temperatures at the theme park just to have the chance to walk past the Olsens. On September 12, the day before the release of
The Adventures of Mary-Kate & Ashley, Dualstar and
American Online presented a press conference hosted by Mary-Kate and Ashley at 5 pm. Following the
Full House episode which aired on September 13, ABC aired
The Adventures of Mary-Kate & Ashley theme song as a music video to advertise the release. To further promote the series, on September 17, ABC aired a behind-the-scenes look at
The Adventures of Mary-Kate & Ashley. The first two videos were a smash hit, and premiered on Billboard's Top Kid Video sales chart. In January 1995, a segment for the next
"Adventures" film was shot at
SeaWorld Orlando. The next two installments in the series would be heavily promoted through a tie-in with Sea World, including with a personal meet and greet with the Olsens at
SeaWorld San Diego, on April 8 and April 9. The third and fourth films in the
Adventures series
"The Case of the Sea World Adventure", and
"The Case of the Mystery Cruise" released in April to more sales success. Both titles debuted on the Billboard Kid Video chart at #14 and #13 respectively. To promote the tapes, ABC aired the TV-special
The Adventures of Mary-Kate & Ashley: Mystery on the High Seas. In addition to the film, Warner Bros. conveyed their interest in obtaining the home video distribution rights to
The Adventures of Mary-Kate & Ashley. On April 14,
WarnerVision Entertainment took over control of five prerecorded titles on the market, while proceeding with the production of up to 10 additional released over the next two years. Each sister was paid $1.6 million for their roles in the film.
Me and My Shadow was retitled
It Takes Two, and premiered at the
Heartland International Film Festival on November 9, 1995, and released domestically to theaters on November 17, 1995.
It Takes Two was generally well received, with The Los Angeles Times saying, "as for the Olsen twins, they're perky, precocious types, throwbacks to an earlier Hollywood in which children tended to perform rather than act..." The $14 million film only made $19.5 million at the box office, but made a hefty $75 million in home video sales. Ashley and Mary-Kate were involved in the writing of each book. "We meet with the editors and tell them things we like to do," says Mary-Kate. "I like to horseback ride, so there is a horseback riding adventure. We both like to surf, so there's a surfing book. And Ashley likes ballet, so we did a ballet story." Since one of the Olsen family's favorite vacation spots was Hawaii, in 1996 Dualstar decided to send the family to the island. While they were there, from June to July, Mary-Kate and Ashley filmed four videos ''You're Invited to Mary-Kate & Ashley's Hawaiian Beach Party
, The Case of the Hotel Who-Done-It
, The Case of the Volcano Mystery
, and The Case of the U.S. Navy Adventure
. Afterwards, the Olsens were sent to film The Case of the U.S. Space Camp Mission
, at a Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama. Despite being filmed after the Hawaiian videos, The Case of the U.S. Space Camp Mission'' would be released first. For the videos, Thorne would come up with story ideas and work with the writers. One day he found himself thinking, "let's put them on Jet Skis," which inspired the ''You're Invited To Mary-Kate and Ashley's Hawaiian Beach Party'' video. With the Olsens in high demand, Thorne and Dualstar had to start limiting the projects taken on. "
Rosie O'Donnell's been after me for weeks," Thorne said they aren't doing TV interviews right now. "We don't do the electronic media anymore, it's overkill," Thorne continued. "After a while, the word 'ubiquitous' was cropping up too much... The family wanted them to take some time off, step back, and come back fresh." Thorne explained Dualstar turned down merchandising and licensing bonanzas from "Lunchboxes to horrible network specials... That's exploitative. It doesn't build a career." started coming together, with
Miller-Boyett, the production company behind
Full House, teaming up with Dualstar. While the specifics were being settled for the show, in July 1998 Dualstar started shooting their next direct to video film,
Billboard Dad. The show, retitled
Two of a Kind, was filmed at
Warner Bros. Studios Burbank, in front of a live-studio audience. The show premiered September 25, 1998.
Two of a Kind fell flat with critics,
Howard Rosenberg of the Los Angeles Times said, "What neither of the Olsens is, at this stage, is a budding thespian. Not that the writing here helps them out." Despite the reviews,
Two of a Kind premiered with a first-place finish in the 8 PM time slot once occupied by
Full House. By the time,
Two of a Kind premiered, the Olsen's
Adventures and ''You're Invited'' serials had brought in $250 million in sales, and the accompanying books sold 6 million copies.
1999-2004: Expansion and global era The new year brought more growth for Dualstar and the merchandising potential of the Olsen brand. On January 20, it was revealed Mary-Kate and Ashley signed a deal with
Mattel to launch the following year, their own line of dolls in their likenesses. In February, continuing the prior success with books, Dualstar published the first two books in a new series inspired by
Two of a Kind, with a new installment planned every month. In March 1999, Dualstar signed a deal with then-
Disney-owned animation studio
DIC Entertainment to produce an animated series starring Mary-Kate and Ashley based on their Trenchcoat Twins personas. Shortly after that announcement, it was revealed Dualstar would be producing the soccer themed movie
Switching Goals for
The Wonderful World of Disney. Not everything was going according to plan though, changes to the ABC line up made people star wondering if
Two of a Kind could be at risk of cancelation. By April 5, it was confirmed that ABC would be ending the series after its first season. For their 13th birthday, on June 11,
FOX Family Channel aired a 13 hour long marathon of Olsen television. After celebrating with their family, Mary-Kate and Ashley flew to France to work on their next Dualstar film,
Passport to Paris, which would be released November 9, 1999.
Passport to Paris was shot in Paris, France, over a period of three weeks, starting in June. The series finale of
Two of a Kind aired on Friday, July 9, 1999. In September 1999, plans were announced for a partnership between Dualstar and
Acclaim Entertainment to produce Olsen video games. The first game was made to target girls aged 5 to 12, with a release date expected towards the end of November 1999. "There's this whole base of females who are dying to be part of the interactive experience," said Steve Lux, Acclaim's vice-president of marketing. "It's just a matter of writing the write software for that audience. Upon the November 9, release of
Passport to Paris it debuted at #12 on the Billboard chart Top Kid Videos. That same week,
Billboard Dad held the fourth spot, and ''You're Invited to Mary-Kate & Ashley's Fashion Party'' was in the 8th spot. Recording of the Olsen's next album
Cool Yule took place over four days. Upon its release it was met with poor reviews, Mitch Schafer of The Tampa Tribune said, "Most of the singing is done by no-name hired hands, with the Olsens dropping in every now and then to fulfill their contract." He went on to say, "Adults will be nauseated, kids will be bored."
Switching Goals was scheduled to air on October 24, but was pushed to December 12. The film was released on VHS and DVD on April 11, 2000. In January 2000, The Beanstalk Group reached an agreement to license Mary-Kate and Ashley from Dualstar, for a line of clothing, accessories, and cosmetics tentatively called "MK&A". The Beanstalk Group would work as a middle man, obtaining a license, and approaching retailers to carry products utilizing the license. Beanstalk co-chairman Michael Stone said the Olsens interested him because their empire is built on the solid foundation of books. "For an entertainment property to be successful over the long term, we believe it has to consistently deliver a fantasy to the core audience. Mary-Kate and Ashley fulfill for girls the fantasy. Girls want to be like Mary-Kate and Ashley." In April it was announced a Mary-Kate and Ashley clothing line geared towards girls 6 to 12, would premiere at
Walmart stores that spring. The line of apparel and accessories would be stocked at 2,500 stores across America. In October 2000, it was announced Dualstar would be producing a lifestyle magazine geared towards teenagers, with Mary-Kate and Ashley sharing the job as editors in chief. In December 2000, the upcoming animated series based on Mary-Kate and Ashley was initially named as
Action Girls and would now feature the twins as globe-trotting movie stars. DIC would produce the series as a co-production with French broadcaster
Canal J. The cartoon was subsequently picked up by ABC in 2001 for
Disney's One Saturday Morning block and would be produced by DIC under a newly-formed Dualstar Animation label. The series, officially titled
Mary-Kate and Ashley in Action! premiered in November 2001 and was pre-sold by DIC internationally. In 2002, the Olsens signed a 10-year contract of partnership at the age of 16, with Thorne. Also that year, upon their 18th birthday, the Olsens took control of the Dualstar studio. On May 7, 2004, the company released
New York Minute, the Olsen twins' last and only theatrical film since 1995's
It Takes Two. The film did not do well at the box office, and suffered negative critical reception. Since then, Dualstar and the Olsens have neither produced nor starred in another film. "There is every intention to continue to nurture and celebrate the young customer base, and safely pursue the teen and young adult customer," Dualstar CEO Robert Thorne said. "Just as The Walt Disney Company produces feature films under the Disney and Touchstone labels respectively. Different audiences for us. But all positive values."
2005-present: Entertainment production decline, and pivot to fashion In January 2005, the Olsens parted ways with Robert Thorne, and hired Diane Reichenberger. In September 2005, Dualstar partnered with
Dylan and Cole Sprouse, the twin brothers from
Disney's The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. Dualstar launched a boys division, and signed the Sprouse twins to be the face of the division. The Sprouse family created their own company, which would bear their name as D.C. Sprouse, which would then work and license with Dualstar. The division produced
Code, a magazine geared toward a young male demographic. Expanding into furniture and home décor lines, in January 2006 Mary-Kate and Ashley announced a new signature furniture line geared towards girls 4 to 18. By 2008, A clothing line for D.C. Sprouse was produced and sold online. "These are clothes they wear," said Tori Matt, Dualstar's marketing director. "They've been known to sit down with a Sharpie and actually doodle a graphic for a T-shirt." In April 2015, Mary-Kate and Ashley reached a deal with Viacom-owned
Nickelodeon to license the entire library. ==Company units==