Turner kept MGM's pre-May 1986 and pre-merger film and television library. Turner Entertainment Co. was established in August 1986 to oversee film and television properties owned by Turner in a deal with Kerkorian.

Having acquired MGM's back library of 2,200 films that were made before 1986, Turner syndicated them to television stations across the country. When broadcasting some older films originally filmed in black-and-white, he aired colorized versions