 The Warners bought the Brunswick label in 1930, but the collapse of the record market during the Great Depression cost the studio heavily and the label was sold to the American Record Company at the end of 1931 for a fraction of its former value.As a result, Warner Bros. had shied away from any involvement in the record business for the next 25 years.According to music historian Fred Goodman, Semenenko had a strong interest in the entertainment business.