Four series of fully aromatic thermotropic liquid crystalline polycarbonates were prepared by melt polycondensation from various novel phenylene diphenyl dicarbonates with monomers, such as hydroquinone, methylhydroquinone, chlorohydroquinone, resorcinol, bisphenol A, 4,4'-dihydroxydiphenylsulfone, or phenylhydroquinone, respectively. The thermotropic liquid crystalline properties were studied by polarizing microscope with a heating stage, differential scanning calorimeter (DSC), and wide-angle x-ray diffraction (WAXD). It was found that the nonlinearity of the carbonate group was compensated by resorcinol (1,3-phenylene unit), a bent shape unit. Nematic melts were found for the resulting polycarbonates. (C) 1993 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.