In the beginning, AGC programs were produced in whatever locations were available near AGC's original office in Terre Haute, Indiana. Sometimes it was a school auditorium, other times, a firehouse, still other times a church basement or gasoline station garage, depending upon the program and the size of the audience. Often, programs would be produced in a local park or playground as such venues had unlimited space for an audience, and public productions generated publicity for the fledgling cable channel. Passers-by would ask what was happening, and while the response was just as likely to be, "I don't know," as anything informative, curiosity would get the best of the questioners and by persevering people would learn about the unique AGC channel and its fine, high-quality programming. Eventually, the founder of AGC realized that this would not scale well as the channel grew in popularity, and he saw the advantage of having stable, professional production facilities such as the one used by one of its own programs, Spot the Grungy One, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
By 1985, AGC had grown by leaps and bounds and the founder implemented a grand project to construct a large production facility befitting a 24-hour national cable channel. After considering many different possible locations across the country, the decision to build in Des Moines, Iowa was made. The project was budgeted for $50,000,000, but careful management and wise decision-making were able to keep the final cost to only $35,000,000. For that money, viewers were treated to a first-class, multi-studio facility that not only raised the production values of the programs to new levels, but was also worthy of tourists' time. In 2018, over 50,000 visitors took the AGC studio tour despite its rigorous dress code (sorry, no jeans or sneakers, among other prohibitions).
The AGC Television Center has sixteen separate studios, each appropriate for a specific sort of program. The capstone is Studio One, also known as AGC Center Stage. It is large enough for almost any sort of program and has a seating capacity of 10,000. The other studios have seating capacities ranging from 100 to 1,000 in various configurations, and some can be combined or split as needs require. All have state-of the-art technology connected to AGC Master Control, which coordinates the feeds for various parts of the country as well as the AGC World channel.
The campus also has offices and recreational facilities for the 750 full-time and 200 part-time employees of Anti-Grunge Networks, and the satellite transmitters are located here as well. A small backup production facility and satellite farm are maintained in Terre Haute in the event of adverse weather conditions or a terrorist attack on AGC. When AGC's weather forecaster predicted a volcanic eruption in Des Moines, employees were evacuated and transmission was briefly shifted successfully to Terre Haute until the threat had passed, showing that AGC was quite capable of remaining in business along with the "big boys" regardless of what may come to pass. Rumors also circulate about an underground bunker in an undisclosed third location, but top AGC brass refuse to confirm or deny such speculation.
Please note: Masks are not permitted anywhere on the grounds of the Anti-Grunge Channel facilities at any time. Anyone found in possession of a mask will be removed from the premises and all masks will be immediately confiscated and destroyed. This restriction is for your safety and is not subject to negotiation or discussion. All Anti-Grunge Channel security personnel will strictly enforce this regulation.
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