Since Nickelodeon's launch in 1977, their schedule had only incorporated animated television shows produced by other companies. They had not invested in their own cartoon series until 1989 when then-Nickelodeon president Geraldine Laybourne greenlit three pitches for full animated series: "Doug", "Rugrats", and "The Ren & Stimpy Show". On August 11th, 1991, the first episodes of these three series premiered as part of a 90-minute block, and became the first branded Nicktoons. Upon the new show debuts, they had all become financial successes, convincing Viacom to produce their own animated shows for MTV. Before 1998, Nickelodeon's animation division operated out of a rented space in Studio City, California, but moved to their own individual building on March 4th, 1998. The first show to be produced at this new location was "SpongeBob SquarePants", which by 2004 became Nickelodeon's most profitable program.
