Wikipedia

American International Pictures

For the unrelated film production company set up by Samuel Z. Arkoff, see Arkoff International Pictures.

American International Pictures LLC[1] (AIP or American International Productions) is an American film production company owned by Amazon MGM Studios. In its original operating period, AIP was an independent film production and distribution company known for producing and releasing films from 1955 until 1980, a year after its acquisition by Filmways in 1979.

American International Pictures LLC
FormerlyAmerican Releasing Corporation
(1954–1956)
Company typeLabel
IndustryFilm
FoundedApril 2, 1954; 70 years ago (1954-04-02) (original)
October 7, 2020; 4 years ago (2020-10-07) (relaunch; under the American International Pictures label)
Founders
DefunctAugust 4, 1980; 44 years ago (1980-08-04) (original)
FateAcquired by and folded into Filmways (original)
SuccessorFilmways Pictures (original)
Headquarters
Beverly Hills, California
,
U.S.
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Eric Hohl (president)
ProductsMotion pictures
Parent

It was formed on April 2, 1954, as American Releasing Corporation (ARC) by former Realart Pictures Inc. sales manager James H. Nicholson and entertainment lawyer Samuel Z. Arkoff[2] and their first release was the 1953 UK documentary film Operation Malaya. It was dedicated to releasing low-budget films packaged as double features, primarily of interest to the teenagers of the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s.

The company eventually became a part of Orion Pictures, which in turn, became a division of Amazon MGM Studios. On October 7, 2020, four decades after the original closure, MGM revived AIP as a label for acquired films for digital and theatrical releases, with MGM overseeing across streaming platforms and United Artists Releasing handling theatrical distribution in North America until 2023 when Amazon MGM Studios took over.

AIP personnel

edit

Nicholson and Arkoff served as executive producers while Roger Corman and Alex Gordon were the principal film producers and, sometimes, directors. Writer Charles B. Griffith wrote many of the early films, along with Arkoff's brother-in-law, Lou Rusoff, who later produced many of the films he had written. Other writers included Ray Russell, Richard Matheson and Charles Beaumont. Floyd Crosby, A.S.C. famous for his camera work on a number of exotic documentaries and the Oscar winner, High Noon, was chief cinematographer. His innovative use of surreal color and odd lenses and angles gave AIP films a signature look. The early rubber monster suits and miniatures of Paul Blaisdell were used in AIP's science fiction films. The company also hired Les Baxter[3] and Ronald Stein to compose many of its film scores.

In the 1950s, the company had a number of actors under contract, including John Ashley, Fay Spain and Steve Terrell.

Emphasis on teenagers

edit

When many of ARC/AIP's first releases failed to earn a profit, Arkoff quizzed film exhibitors who told him of the value of the teenage market as adults were watching television.[4][5] AIP stopped making Westerns with Arkoff explaining: "To compete with television westerns you have to have color, big stars and $2,000,000".[6]: 126 

AIP was the first company to use focus groups,[7] polling American teenagers about what they would like to see and using their responses to determine titles, stars, and story content. AIP would question their exhibitors (who often provided 20% of AIP's financing[6]: 35 ) what they thought of the success of a title, then would have a writer create a script for it.[6]: 156  A sequence of tasks in a typical production involved creating a great title, getting an artist such as Albert Kallis who supervised all AIP artwork from 1955 to 1973[8] to create a dynamic, eye-catching poster, then raising the cash, and finally writing and casting the film.

According to Filmink, "AIP ran on basic principles: keep overheads down (i.e. no permanent studio space), keep all costs down, use fading stars (eg Ray Milland) or its own up-and-coming names (eg John Ashley), use cheap directors, go for genre (horror, sci fi, action, peplum), follow the trends, abandon the trends when audience enthusiasm lessens, give audiences something they can’t get from a regular studio picture, build your own franchises."[9]

The ARKOFF formula

edit

Samuel Z. Arkoff related his tried-and-true "ARKOFF formula" for producing a successful low-budget movie years later, during a 1980s talk show appearance. His ideas for a movie included:

  • Action (exciting, entertaining drama)
  • Revolution (novel or controversial themes and ideas)
  • Killing (a modicum of violence)
  • Oratory (notable dialogue and speeches)
  • Fantasy (acted-out fantasies common to the audience)
  • Fornication (sex appeal for young adults)

Later, the AIP publicity department devised a strategy called "the Peter Pan Syndrome":

a) a younger child will watch anything an older child will watch;
b) an older child will not watch anything a younger child will watch;
c) a girl will watch anything a boy will watch;
d) a boy will not watch anything a girl will watch;
therefore:
to catch your greatest audience you zero in on the 19-year-old male.[10]

History

edit
 
Roger Corman's The Raven (1963)

American Releasing Corporation

edit

AIP began as the American Releasing Corporation, a new distribution company formed in 1954 by James H. Nicholson and Samuel Z. Arkoff.

Roger Corman

edit

They were interested in distributing a car chase movie produced by Roger Corman for his Palo Alto Productions, The Fast and the Furious (1955). Corman had received offers from other companies for the film, but ARC offered to advance money to enable Corman to make two other films. Corman agreed, The Fast and the Furious performed well at the box office and the company was launched.[citation needed]

Corman's next two films for the company were a Western, Five Guns West (1955), which Corman directed, and a science fiction film, The Beast with a Million Eyes (1955). The title from the latter had come from Nicholson.

ARC also distributed the Western Outlaw Treasure (1955) starring Johnny Carpenter.

Alex Gordon

edit

ARC got Corman to direct another Western and science fiction double bill Apache Woman (1955) and Day the World Ended (1955). Both scripts were written by Arkoff's brother-in-law Lou Rusoff, who would become the company's leading writer in its early days. Apache Woman was produced by Alex Gordon, an associate of Arkoff's, Day was produced by Corman. Both were made by Golden State Productions, ARC's production arm.[11][12]

Normally, B movies were made for the second part of a bill and received a flat rate. As television was encroaching on the B movie market, Nicholson and Arkoff felt it would be more profitable to make two low budget films and distribute them together on a double feature. Nicholson came up with a title for a film to support Day the World Ended, The Phantom from 10,000 Leagues (1955), but lacked the money to make both films. They split the costs with Dan and Jack Milner, film editors who wanted to get into production. The resulting double bill was very successful at the box office.[11]

Gordon also produced The Oklahoma Woman (1955), a Western by Corman, made through Sunset Productions. It was put on a double feature with Female Jungle (1955), a film noir.

Other films released under the ARC banner include a British documentary Operation Malaya (1955) and Corman's Gunslinger (1956).

American International in the 1950s

edit

Arkoff and Nicholson had always wanted to name their company "American International Pictures", but the name was unavailable. When the name became available, they changed over.

There were three main production arms at AIP in the late 1950s: Roger Corman, Alex Gordon & Lou Rusoff, and Herman Cohen. Arkoff and Nicholson would buy films from other filmmakers as well, and import films from outside America.

Roger Corman

edit

Corman continued to be an important member of AIP (though he also worked for Allied Artists and his own Filmgroup company during this period). He had a big hit for the company with the science fiction film It Conquered the World (1956) from a script by Rusoff that was rewritten by Charles B. Griffith.

His films included Rock All Night (1956); Naked Paradise (1957), in which Arkoff had a small role; The Undead; Sorority Girl; The Saga of the Viking Women and Their Voyage to the Waters of the Great Sea Serpent (1957); Machine Gun Kelly with Charles Bronson; and Teenage Caveman (1958), with Robert Vaughn.

AIP also distributed films Corman helped finance, such as Night of the Blood Beast, She Gods of Shark Reef and The Brain Eaters (all released in 1958).

Alex Gordon and Lou Rusoff

edit

The other key producer for AIP was Alex Gordon who mostly made films though his Golden State Productions outfit, usually written by Lou Rusoff. He made Girls in Prison (1956), with director Edward L. Cahn who would become one of AIP's most prolific directors. AIP released it on a double bill with Hot Rod Girl (1956).

Cahn also directed the following for Gordon: The She-Creature (released as a double feature with It Conquered the World); Flesh and the Spur, the last Western made by AIP; Shake, Rattle & Rock!, a rock musical with Mike Connors; Runaway Daughters (1956); Voodoo Woman; Dragstrip Girl (1957), with John Ashley; Motorcycle Gang (1957), again with Ashley; Jet Attack and Submarine Seahawk (1958). Most of these were written by Rusoff and directed by Edward L. Cahn.

Gordon left AIP and Rusoff alone produced Hot Rod Gang (1958) and Ghost of Dragstrip Hollow (1959).

Herman Cohen

edit
 
Drive-in advertisement for the double feature, I Was a Teenage Werewolf and Invasion of the Saucer Men. AIP double features were popular on the drive-in circuit.[13]

Another key producer for AIP was Herman Cohen, who had a huge hit with I Was a Teenage Werewolf (1957) starring Michael Landon. He followed it with I Was a Teenage Frankenstein, Blood of Dracula (both also in 1957 as a double feature), How to Make a Monster (1958), The Headless Ghost and Horrors of the Black Museum (both in 1959).

Other producers

edit

Other key collaborators who worked for AIP in the late 1950s included:

Pickups

edit

AIP would flesh out their distribution schedule by buying films made by outside producers. These included The Astounding She-Monster, the documentary Naked Africa, The Screaming Skull (1957), The Cool and the Crazy, Daddy-O, Dragstrip Riot and Tank Battalion (1958).

Anglo-Amalgamated

edit

AIP developed a mutual relationship with Britain's Anglo-Amalgamated who would distribute AIP's product in the UK. In return, AIP would distribute their films in the U.S., such as The Tommy Steele Story (1957) and Cat Girl (1957).

AIP also imported The White Huntress (1954, England), Pulgarcito (1958, Mexico) and The Sky Calls (1959, Russia).

Late 1950s crisis

edit

AIP became a victim of its own success when other companies started copying its double feature strategy. Costs were rising and were not compensated by increased box office grosses. AIP shut down most of their production arms and focused on distributing films from Italy, while they decided what to do next.

In October 1959 AIP announced it had secured finance from Colonial Bank (who had financed three of their films to date) for ten films over the next 12 months. The remaining 14 to 20 projects planned were paid by Pathe Laboratories. The ten films were Diary of a High School Bride, Drag Race, The Haunted House of Usher, End of the World, World Without Women, Bombs Away, Blood Hill,Take Me To Your Leader, She and Eve and the Dragon. Not all of these would be made.[14]

AIP's 1960s output

edit

The company moved into rented office space at the former Chaplin Studios.

Imports

edit

In the late 1950s, AIP kept their company afloat by importing films from Italy. These included Sheba and the Gladiator (1959), Goliath and the Barbarians (1959) and Black Sunday (1960); the latter film proved to be one of the company's early successes.

There was also Atomic Agent (1959, France), The Angry Red Planet (1959, Denmark), Tiger of Bengal (1959) and The Indian Tomb (1960) from Fritz Lang in Germany, edited together as Journey to the Lost City, Portrait of a Sinner (1959, West Germany), The Professionals (1960, Great Britain), and Escape to Paradise (1960, the Philippines).

They also bought Why Must I Die? and The Jailbreakers (1960).

The Corman-Poe cycle

edit

In the early 1960s, AIP gained kudos by combining Roger Corman, Vincent Price and the stories of Edgar Allan Poe into a series of horror films, with scripts by Richard Matheson, Charles Beaumont, Ray Russell, R. Wright Campbell and Robert Towne.

The original idea, usually credited[who?] to Corman and Lou Rusoff, was to take Poe's story "The Fall of the House of Usher", which had both a high name-recognition value and the merit of being in the public domain, and thus royalty-free, and expand it into a feature film. Corman convinced the studio to give him a larger budget than the typical AIP film so he could film the movie in widescreen and color, and use it to create lavish sets as well.[15]

The success of House of Usher led AIP to finance further films based on Poe's stories. The sets and special effects were often reused in subsequent movies (for example, the burning roof of the Usher mansion reappears in most of the other films as stock footage), making the series quite cost-effective. All the films in the series were directed by Roger Corman, and they all starred Price except The Premature Burial, which featured Ray Milland in the lead. It was originally produced for another studio, but AIP acquired the rights to it.[15]

As the series progressed, Corman made attempts to change the formula. Later films added more humor to the stories, especially The Raven, which takes Poe's poem as an inspiration and develops it into an all-out farce starring Price, Boris Karloff and Peter Lorre; Karloff had starred in a 1935 film with the same title. Corman also adapted H. P. Lovecraft's short novel The Case of Charles Dexter Ward in an attempt to get away from Poe, but AIP changed the title to that of an obscure Poe poem, The Haunted Palace, and marketed it as yet another movie in the series. The last two films in the series, The Masque of the Red Death and The Tomb of Ligeia, were filmed in England with an unusually long schedule for Corman and AIP.

Although Corman and Rusoff are generally credited with coming up with the idea for the Poe series, in an interview on the Anchor Bay DVD of Mario Bava's Black Sabbath, Mark Damon claims that he first suggested the idea to Corman. Damon also says that Corman let him direct The Pit and the Pendulum uncredited. Corman's commentary for Pit mentions nothing of this and all existing production stills of the film show Corman directing.

List of Corman-Poe films

edit

During the early 1960s, AIP produced a series of horror films inspired by the Poe cycle. Of eight films, seven feature stories that are actually based on the works of Poe.

  1. House of Usher (1960) – based on the short story "The Fall of the House of Usher"
  2. The Pit and the Pendulum (1961) – based on the title of the short story of the same name
  3. The Premature Burial (1962) – based on the short story of the same name
  4. Tales of Terror (1962) – based on the short stories "Morella", "The Black Cat", "The Cask of Amontillado" and "The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar"
  5. The Raven (1963) – based on the poem of the same name
  6. The Haunted Palace (1963) – plot based on H. P. Lovecraft's novella The Case of Charles Dexter Ward, using the title from Poe's 1839 poem
  7. The Masque of the Red Death (1964) – based on the short story of the same name with another Poe short story, "Hop-Frog", used as a subplot
  8. The Tomb of Ligeia (1964) – based on the short story "Ligeia"

Seven of the films, with the exception of The Premature Burial, featured Vincent Price as the star. Occasionally, Corman's 1963 film The Terror (produced immediately after The Raven) is recognized as being part of the Corman-Poe cycle, although the film's story and title are not based on any literary work of Poe.

Some Poe films announced by AIP but not made include The Gold Bug, The Thousand and Second Tale of Scheherazade, and The Angel of the Odd.[16]

In 1962, Arkoff said AIP was in a position similar to Columbia Pictures just before they made Submarine and Dirigible:

Before that they were on poverty row. Our better position will enable us to obtain more important writers, perhaps more important producers as well. We're a privately owned company at the moment but perhaps within two or three years we will become a public company.[17]

Beach Party era

edit

Beginning with 1963's Beach Party, AIP created a new genre of beach party films featuring Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon. The original idea and the first script were Rusoff's. The highly successful and often imitated series ended in 1966 with the seventh film, The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini. Many actors from the beach films also appeared in AIP's spy-spoofs, such as Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine (1965) and car racing films like Fireball 500 (1966) and Thunder Alley. During this time, AIP also produced or distributed most of Corman's horror films, such as X: The Man with the X-ray Eyes.

In 1966, the studio released The Wild Angels starring Peter Fonda, based loosely on the real-life exploits of the Hells Angels motorcycle gang. This film ushered in AIP's most successful year and kicked off a subgenre of motorcycle gang films that lasted almost 10 years and included Devil's Angels, The Glory Stompers with Dennis Hopper, and The Born Losers—the film that introduced the Billy Jack character.

 
Drive-in advertisement for Psych-Out, 1968

In 1968, AIP launched a $22 million film programme.[18] The psychedelic and hippie scenes of the late '60s were also exploited with films like The Trip, also with Fonda, Riot on Sunset Strip, Wild in the Streets, Maryjane, Gas-s-s-s and Psych-Out with Jack Nicholson. These "social protest" films were also highly successful. Horror movies also enjoyed a revival of popularity in the late 60s.[19]

International American International

edit

In the UK, AIP struck up a film making partnership with Nat Cohen and Stuart Levy's Anglo-Amalgamated. Anglo eventually released over 140 AIP-made or owned movies in the UK, mainly on double bills. The arrangement also saw Anglo Amalgamated's British-made films distributed in the US by AIP. AIP's co-productions with Anglo included Cat Girl, Circus of Horrors and The Masque of the Red Death. AIP also had co-production arrangements with Tigon British Film Productions, Hammer Film Productions and Amicus Productions. Amongst the movies made under these arrangements were Witchfinder General, The Vampire Lovers and Scream and Scream Again. AIP maintained a production office in London until 1973 before it was closed down. Nevertheless, the company remained active in making and financing British films, including Hennessy and The People that Time Forgot. They were also, briefly, involved in setting up two Hammer projects- Vampirella and To the Devil a Daughter (AIP distributed the latter on its initial US run.)

On a trip to Italy, Arkoff met Fulvio Lucisano, an Italian screenwriter and producer who eventually headed Italian International Film,[citation needed] which co-produced 25 films in Italy for AIP.[20] Due to importing completed productions from other foreign countries being cheaper and simpler than producing their own in-house studio films in America, AIP had released many giallo, peplum, Eurospy and Macaroni Combat war films featuring many American stars and Italian stars such as the comedy team of Franco and Ciccio. However, AIP released only two Spaghetti Westerns (Massacre Time retitled The Brute and the Beast and God Forgives... I Don't!), perhaps recalling their failure with Westerns in the 1950s. Many of these films were edited, rewritten with different (dubbed English) dialogue, usually by Arkoff's nephew Ted Rusoff, and sometimes re-scored by Les Baxter.

AIP, through Henry G. Saperstein, is known for being the major U.S. distributor for Toho's Godzilla and Daiei's Gamera (kaiju) films of the 1960s and 1970s. AIP also distributed other Japanese science fiction films like Frankenstein Conquers the World, Monster from a Prehistoric Planet, The X from Outer Space and the South Korean production Yongary, Monster from the Deep, as well as two Japanese animated features from Toei Animation, Alakazam the Great and Jack and the Witch.

AIP also released a pair of Japanese spy thrillers re-dubbed as a comedy co-written by Woody Allen called What's Up Tiger Lily?.[21]

The studio also released edited and English-dubbed versions of several Eastern Bloc science fiction films that had the dialogue rewritten for the American market and in some cases had additional scenes filmed with American and British actors. These include the Soviet film Planeta Bur (Planet of Storms) which was released by AIP in two different English-dubbed versions, as Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet and Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women and the highly regarded 1963 Czech science fiction film Ikarie XB-1, which was re-titled Voyage to the End of the Universe.

A few years later, AIP backed a British Poe film directed by Gordon Hessler: The Oblong Box (1969) based on the short story of the same name.

AIP-TV

edit
American International Television
Company typeDivision
Industry
Founded1964
Defunct1980
FateAcquired by Filmways and became Filmways Television
Successor
ProductsTelevision shows

In 1964, AIP became one of the last film studios to start its own television production company, American International Productions Television (a.k.a. American-International Television or AIP-TV).[22] AIP-TV at first released many of their 1950s films to American television stations, then filmed unsuccessful television pilots for Beach Party and Sergeant Deadhead. The company then made several color sci-fi/horror television films by Larry Buchanan that were remakes of black-and-white AIP films, and sold packages of many English-dubbed European, Japanese and Mexican films (the last type were produced by K. Gordon Murray) and foreign-made live-action and animated TV series (including Prince Planet). The best known animated series AIP-TV distributed was Sinbad Jr. and his Magic Belt.

In order to allay the fears of cinema owners who feared current releases would soon end up being shown on television, AIP issued a statement retroactive to 1963 that the company would not release any of their films to television until five years after cinema release, unless the film had not made back its original negative costs.[23] AIP-TV also filmed specials for promotion of AIP films, such as The Wild Weird World of Dr. Goldfoot (1965, ABC) and An Evening of Edgar Allan Poe (1972, syndication), both with Vincent Price.

In 1978, AIP-TV distributed the pop music series Twiggy's Jukebox. For several years around this time, AIP-TV also distributed several British TV series, including The Avengers, to U.S. stations.

AIP Records

edit

AIP started their own record label, American International Records, in 1959[24] to release music used in their films. There were a number of soundtrack albums as well.[25]

AIP Records was once distributed by MGM Records,[26] the record label owned by AIP's successor-in-interest MGM.

Going Public and Departure of Nicholson

edit

In 1969, AIP went public to raise extra capital, issuing 300,000 shares.[27][28]

In 1970, they entered into an agreement with Commonwealth United Entertainment to issue their films.[29] In 1971 they released 31 films, their greatest number to date, and were seen as one of the most stable companies in Hollywood.[30] Despite their exploitation roots, they did not concentrate on R- or X-rated filmmaking during this period.[31]

In 1972, James H. Nicholson resigned from AIP to set up his own production company working out of 20th Century Fox, called Academy Pictures Corporation; its only two releases were The Legend of Hell House and Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry.[32][33] AIP bought out over 100,000 of Nicholson's shares.[34] He died shortly thereafter of a cancerous brain tumor.[35]

Around this time Roger Corman stopped making films for AIP, focusing on his company, New World Pictures. According to Filmink "Corman leaving AIP coincided with Nicholson and Arkoff splitting up – they were like two parents who decide to get divorced when their eldest child finally moves out of home."[36]

Arkoff alone

edit

Arkoff continued on at AIP as president until the end of the decade. Heads of production during the 1970s included Larry Gordon (from January 1972 until early 1974)[37] and Jere Henshaw (from 1977 until the demise of the company).

By the early 1970s, AIP felt the horror movie cycle was in decline and so switched to other genres, such as kung fu and gangsters.[38] Notably, they produced some of that decade's blaxploitation films, like Blacula and Foxy Brown. In a throwback to the old "studio days", the company is credited with making Pam Grier a household name, as the majority of her early '70s films were made under contract to American International.

In the mid- to late 1970s, AIP began to produce more mainstream films, such as Bunny O'Hare, Cooley High, The Great Scout & Cathouse Thursday, The Amityville Horror, Love at First Bite, Meteor, Force 10 from Navarone, Shout at the Devil, The Island of Dr. Moreau and C.H.O.M.P.S.[39] The increased spending on these projects, though they did make some money, contributed to the company's downfall. In the meantime, the studio imported and released its final foreign film, an Australian film, Mad Max, dubbed into American English.

James Nicholson's first wife Sylvia was still a major shareholder of the company. She sued AIP for mismanagement, but this was resolved in 1978 when AIP bought out her shares.[40]

Merger with Filmways

edit

By the late 1970s, filmmaking costs continued to rise, AIP's tactic of moving into bigger budgeted quality pictures was not paying off at the box office, and Arkoff began to think of merging the company. "We've been the Woolworths of the movie business but Woolworths is being out priced", said Arkoff.[41] Talks began with Filmways, Incorporated. Negotiations stalled for a while,[42] but resumed a number of months later.[43] In 1979, AIP was sold to Filmways for $30 million and became a subsidiary production unit thereof, renamed Filmways Pictures in 1980.[44][45]

Arkoff was unhappy with the direction of the company and resigned to set up his own production company, receiving a pay out worth $1.4 million.[46][47]

AIP-TV was absorbed as the wholly owned program syndication arm of Filmways Television. Filmways was later bought by Orion Pictures Company in 1982 and Filmways was later renamed Orion Pictures Corporation, but retained the distribution arm. This allowed Orion to establish its own distribution, after utilizing Warner Bros. for distribution. Warner Bros. still has distribution rights to Orion films which were originally distributed by this company. Today, a majority of the AIP library is owned by Amazon MGM Studios (via Orion Pictures). The American International name is still a registered trademark owned by Amazon MGM Studios's Orion Pictures unit.[48][49]

Relaunch

edit

On October 7, 2020, it was announced that Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer relaunched AIP as a label for films that the studio will acquire for digital and limited theatrical releases. An MGM executive, Eric Hohl, was accepted as a president of the studio. MGM will oversee AIP's new films across all streaming platforms and the theatrical releases of them will be handled by its joint distribution venture United Artists Releasing. The first film from the relaunched AIP was Breaking News in Yuba County, directed by Tate Taylor and starring Allison Janney, which was released on February 12, 2021.[50]

On May 17, 2021, technology company Amazon entered negotiations to acquire MGM and even made a bid for about $9 billion. The negotiations are made with Anchorage Capital Kevin Ulrich.[51][52] On May 26, 2021, it was officially announced that MGM will be acquired by Amazon for $8.45 billion, subject to regulatory approvals and other routine closing conditions; with the studio continuing to operate as a label under the new parent company, which includes AIP and its titles.[citation needed] The merger was finalized on March 17, 2022.[53] On March 4, 2023, Amazon shut down UAR's operations and folded them into MGM.[54] In May 2023, Amazon Studios created Amazon MGM Studios Distribution, an international film and television distribution unit for both MGM and Amazon projects, which will include new projects and acquisitions from AIP.[55]

Legacy

edit

In 2005, less than four years after the death of Arkoff, filmmaker and Troublemaker Studios co-founder Robert Rodriguez founded a horror genre film and television company called Rodriguez International Pictures, which is a homage to the company.

Film library

edit

1950s

edit
Release date Title Genre Director
as American Releasing Corporation
1955 Operation Malaya Documentary David MacDonald
February 15, 1955 The Fast and the Furious Crime John Ireland
April 15, 1955 Five Guns West Western Roger Corman
May 15, 1955 Outlaw Treasure Western Oliver Drake
June 15, 1955 The Beast with a Million Eyes Sci-fi David Kramarsky
Lou Place
Uncredited:
Roger Corman
September 15, 1955 Apache Woman Western Roger Corman
December 1955 Day the World Ended Sci-fi Roger Corman
The Phantom from 10,000 Leagues Sci-fi Dan Milner
June 15, 1956 The Oklahoma Woman Western Roger Corman
Female Jungle Crime Bruno VeSota
June 1956 Gunslinger Western Roger Corman
as American International Pictures
July 15, 1956 It Conquered the World Sci-fi Roger Corman
The She-Creature Horror Edward L. Cahn
July 1956 Girls in Prison Crime Edward L. Cahn
Hot Rod Girl Action Lew Landers
July 15, 1956 Runaway Daughters Crime Edward L. Cahn
Shake, Rattle & Rock! Musical Edward L. Cahn
January 1957 Naked Paradise Crime Roger Corman
Flesh and the Spur Western Edward L. Cahn
March 1, 1957 Voodoo Woman Horror Edward L. Cahn
The Undead Horror Roger Corman
April 24, 1957 Dragstrip Girl Action Edward L. Cahn
Rock All Night Crime Roger Corman
June 19, 1957 I Was a Teenage Werewolf Horror Gene Fowler Jr.
Invasion of the Saucer Men Sci-fi Edward L. Cahn
August 1957 Naked Africa Documentary Ray Phoenix
The White Huntress Adventure George P. Breakston
August 1957 Reform School Girl Crime Edward Bernds
Rock Around the World Musical Gerard Bryant
October 22, 1957 Motorcycle Gang Outlaw biker Edward L. Cahn
Sorority Girl Drama Roger Corman
October 25, 1957 The Amazing Colossal Man Sci-fi Bert I. Gordon
Cat Girl Horror Alfred Shaughnessy
November 23, 1957 I Was a Teenage Frankenstein Horror Herbert L. Strock
Blood of Dracula Horror Herbert L. Strock
December 1957 The Saga of the Viking Women and Their Voyage to the Waters of the Great Sea Serpent Adventure Roger Corman
The Astounding She-Monster Sci-fi horror Ronald V. Ashcroft
January 1958 The Screaming Skull Horror Alex Nicol
Terror from the Year 5000 Sci-fi Robert J. Gurney Jr.
February 1958 Jet Attack War Edward L. Cahn
Suicide Battalion War Edward L. Cahn
March 1958 The Cool and the Crazy Drama William Witney
Dragstrip Riot Drama David Bradley
May 28, 1958 The Bonnie Parker Story Crime William Witney
Machine-Gun Kelly Action Roger Corman
June 1958 High School Hellcats Crime Edward Bernds
Hot Rod Gang Drama Lew Landers
July 1, 1958 How to Make a Monster Horror Herbert L. Strock
Teenage Caveman Sci-fi Roger Corman
July 30, 1958 War of the Colossal Beast Sci-fi Bert I. Gordon
Attack of the Puppet People Sci-fi Bert I. Gordon
July 1958 Hell Squad War Burt Topper
Tank Battalion War Sherman A. Rose
August 1958 Night of the Blood Beast Sci-fi horror Bernard L. Kowalski
She Gods of Shark Reef Adventure Roger Corman
September 1958 The Brain Eaters Sci-fi horror Bruno VeSota
Earth vs. the Spider Sci-fi Bert I. Gordon
December 1958 Submarine Seahawk War Spencer Gordon Bennet
Paratroop Command War William Witney
March 1959 Roadracers Action Arthur Swerdloff
Daddy-O Crime Lou Place
March 1959 Tank Commandos War Burt Topper
Operation Dames War Louis Clyde Stoumen
April 29, 1959 The Headless Ghost Horror Peter Graham Scott
Horrors of the Black Museum Horror Arthur Crabtree
July 1959 Diary of a High School Bride Romance Burt Topper
Ghost of Dragstrip Hollow Horror William J. Hole Jr.
September 23, 1959 Sheba and the Gladiator Sword-and-sandal Guido Brignone
Goliath and the Barbarians Sword-and-sandal Carlo Campogalliani
October 21, 1959 A Bucket of Blood Horror Roger Corman
Attack of the Giant Leeches Sci-fi horror Bernard L. Kowalski

1960s

edit
Release date Title Genre Director
June 22, 1960 House of Usher Horror Roger Corman
June 1960 The Jailbreakers Crime Alex Grasshoff
Why Must I Die? Crime Roy Del Ruth
July 1960 The Amazing Transparent Man Sci-fi Edgar G. Ulmer
Beyond the Time Barrier Sci-fi Edgar G. Ulmer
August 31, 1960 Circus of Horrors Horror Sidney Hayers
The Angry Red Planet Sci-fi Sidney W. Pink
October 1960 Journey to the Lost City combined film of The Indian Tomb and The Tiger of Eschnapur Fritz Lang
November 1960 Goliath and the Dragon Sword-and-sandal Vittorio Cottafavi
February 15, 1961 Black Sunday Horror Mario Bava
March 22, 1961 The Hand Crime Henry Cass
Beware of Children Comedy Gerald Thomas
May 3, 1961 Konga Horror John Lemont
Master of the World Sci-fi William Witney
July 14, 1961 Alakazam the Great Anime Taiji Yabushita
Daisaku Shirakawa
August 12, 1961 The Pit and the Pendulum Horror Roger Corman
October 1961 Jekyll's Inferno Horror Terence Fisher
December 6, 1961 Portrait of a Sinner Drama Robert Siodmak
December 12, 1961 The Continental Twist Musical William J. Hole
December 13, 1961 Assignment Outer Space Sci-fi Antonio Margheriti
The Phantom Planet Sci-fi William Marshall
December 28, 1961 Flight of the Lost Balloon Sci-fi adventure Nathan Juran
January 1962 Guns of the Black Witch Adventure Domenico Paolella
Lost Battalion War Eddie Romero
1962 Battle Beyond the Sun Sci-fi Mikhail Karyukov
Aleksandr Kozyr
Night Tide Horror Curtis Harrington
March 7, 1962 The Premature Burial Horror Roger Corman
March 10, 1962 Journey to the Seventh Planet Sci-fi Sidney W. Pink
April 21, 1962 Duel of Fire Adventure Umberto Lenzi
April 25, 1962 Burn, Witch, Burn Horror Sidney Hayers
June 1962 The Prisoner of the Iron Mask Adventure Francesco De Feo
June 6, 1962 A House of Sand Drama Robert Darwin
July 4, 1962 Tales of Terror Horror Roger Corman
Panic in Year Zero! Nuclear war thriller Ray Milland
August 10, 1962 The Brain That Wouldn't Die Sci-fi Joseph Green
Invasion of the Star Creatures Sci-fi comedy Bruno VeSota
August 1962 Marco Polo Adventure Piero Pierotti
September 1962 White Slave Ship Adventure Silvio Amadio
November 18, 1962 A Story of David Biblical Bob McNaught
December 1962 Samson and the Seven Miracles of the World Sword-and-sandal Riccardo Freda
December 1962 Warriors Five! War Leopoldo Savona
January 20, 1963 Reptilicus Sci-fi horror Sidney W. Pink
January 25, 1963 The Raven Horror Roger Corman
March 3, 1963 California Western Hamil Petroff
March 26, 1963 Operation Bikini War Anthony Carras
April 24, 1963 Free, White and 21 Drama Larry Buchanan
May 1, 1963 The Mind Benders Spy Basil Dearden
June 12, 1963 Erik the Conqueror Adventure Mario Bava
June 17, 1963 The Terror Horror Roger Corman
August 7, 1963 Beach Party Beach party William Asher
August 28, 1963 The Haunted Palace Horror Roger Corman
September 18, 1963 X: The Man with the X-ray Eyes Horror Roger Corman
September 25, 1963 Dementia 13 Horror Francis Coppola
December 18, 1963 Samson and the Slave Queen Sword-and-sandal Umberto Lenzi
December 25, 1963 Goliath and the Sins of Babylon Sword-and-sandal Michele Lupo
1964 Hercules and the Tyrants of Babylon Sword-and-sandal Domenico Paolella
January 22, 1964 The Comedy of Terrors Comedy horror Jacques Tourneur
January 22, 1964 Pyro... The Thing Without a Face Horror Julio Coll
March 12, 1964 Summer Holiday Beach party Peter Yates
March 25, 1964 Muscle Beach Party Beach party William Asher
March 1964 Under Age Drama Larry Buchanan
April 1, 1964 Commando War Frank Wisbar
Torpedo Bay War Charles Frend
Bruno Vailati
April 1964 Unearthly Stranger Sci-fi John Krish
April 1964 Goliath and the Vampires Horror Sergio Corbucci
Giacomo Gentilomo
May 6, 1964 Black Sabbath Horror anthology Mario Bava
The Last Man on Earth Horror Ubaldo Ragona
Sidney Salkow
May 20, 1964 The Evil Eye Giallo Mario Bava
June 24, 1964 The Masque of the Red Death Horror Roger Corman
June 1964 Some People Musical Clive Donner
July 2, 1964 Swingers' Paradise Musical Sidney J. Furie
July 22, 1964 Bikini Beach Beach party William Asher
September 17, 1964 Godzilla vs. the Thing Sci-fi Ishirō Honda
September 1964 Diary of a Bachelor Comedy Sandy Howard
October 29, 1964 The Time Travelers Sci-fi Ib Melchior
November 11, 1964 Pajama Party Beach party Don Weis
November 25, 1964 Navajo Run Western Johnny Seven
November 25, 1964 Voyage to the End of the Universe Sci-fi Jindřich Polák
December 16, 1964 The Umbrellas of Cherbourg Drama Jacques Demy
December 29, 1964 T.A.M.I. Show Concert documentary Steve Binder
1965 The Eye Creatures Sci-fi Larry Buchanan
January 20, 1965 The Tomb of Ligeia Horror Roger Corman
January 27, 1965 Operation Snafu War comedy Cyril Frankel
March 3, 1965 The Lost World of Sinbad Adventure Senkichi Taniguchi
March 11, 1965 Atragon J-Horror Ishirō Honda
March 1965 Rome Against Rome Sword-and-sandal Giuseppe Vari
April 14, 1965 Beach Blanket Bingo Beach party William Asher
April 20, 1965 The Pawnbroker Drama Sidney Lumet
April 28, 1965 The Fool Killer Adventure drama Servando González
April 1965 Taboos of the World Shockumentary Romolo Marcellini
May 19, 1965 Go Go Mania Musical Frederic Goode
May 26, 1965 War-Gods of the Deep Horror Jacques Tourneur
June 30, 1965 Ski Party Beach party Alan Rafkin
July 8, 1966 Frankenstein Conquers the World Sci-fi Ishirō Honda
July 14, 1965 How to Stuff a Wild Bikini Beach party William Asher
August 1, 1965 Voyage to the Prehistoric Planet Sci-fi Curtis Harrington
August 18, 1965 Sergeant Deadhead Comedy Norman Taurog
October 27, 1965 Die, Monster, Die! Horror Daniel Haller
Planet of the Vampires Sci-fi Mario Bava
November 6, 1965 Dr. Goldfoot and the Bikini Machine Comedy Norman Taurog
November 30, 1965 King & Country Drama Joseph Losey
January 1, 1966 Nashville Rebel Comedy Jay Sheridan
1966 Zontar, the Thing from Venus Sci-fi Larry Buchanan
1966 Curse of the Swamp Creature Sci-fi Larry Buchanan
January 12, 1966 Secret Agent Fireball Eurospy Luciano Martino
Spy in Your Eye Eurospy Vittorio Sala
January 1966 The Big T.N.T. Show Concert documentary Larry Peerce
January 1966 Conquered City War Joseph Anthony
March 2, 1966 Queen of Blood Sci-fi Curtis Harrington
Blood Bath Horror Jack Hill
April 12, 1966 The Girl-Getters Drama Michael Winner
April 13, 1966 The Dirty Game Eurospy anthology Christian-Jaque
Werner Klingler
Carlo Lizzani
Terence Young
April 1966 Man from Cocody Action Christian-Jaque
April 1966 What's Up, Tiger Lily? Spy comedy film Woody Allen
Senkichi Taniguchi
April 1966 The Ghost in the Invisible Bikini Beach party Don Weis
May 1966 The Great Spy Chase Eurospy Georges Lautner
May 1966 Our Man in Marrakesh Action Don Sharp
June 7, 1966 Fireball 500 Car racing film William Asher
July 1966 Tarzan and the Valley of Gold Adventure Robert Day
July 20, 1966 The Wild Angels Outlaw biker Roger Corman
November 9, 1966 Dr. Goldfoot and the Girl Bombs Eurospy comedy Mario Bava
November 1966 Door to Door Maniac Crime Bill Karn
December 28, 1966 Trunk to Cairo Spy Menahem Golan
1967 Mars Needs Women Sci-fi Larry Buchanan
1967 In the Year 2889 Sci-fi Larry Buchanan
1967 Creature of Destruction Sci-fi Larry Buchanan
January 18, 1967 War Italian Style War comedy Luigi Scattini
March 18, 1967 Riot on Sunset Strip Drama Arthur Dreifuss
March 22, 1967 Thunder Alley Car racing film Richard Rush
April 1967 Devil's Angels Outlaw biker film Daniel Haller
May 17, 1967 The Million Eyes of Sumuru Action Lindsay Shonteff
June 1967 Love Is a Woman Mystery Frederic Goode
August 23, 1967 The Trip Drama Roger Corman
November 1967 The House of 1,000 Dolls Crime Jeremy Summers
November 22, 1967 The Glory Stompers Outlaw biker Anthony M. Lanza
1968 Voyage to the Planet of Prehistoric Women Sci-fi Peter Bogdanovich
January 18, 1968 The Born Losers Outlaw biker T. C. Frank
January 24, 1968 Maryjane Drama Maury Dexter
January 24, 1968 The Wild Racers Racing car film Daniel Haller
March 28, 1968 The Road Hustlers Action Larry E. Jackson
May 1968 The Mini-Skirt Mob Outlaw biker Maury Dexter
May 1968 The Savage Seven Outlaw biker Richard Rush
May 15, 1968 Witchfinder General Horror Michael Reeves
May 29, 1968 Wild in the Streets Comedy-drama Barry Shear
September 22, 1968 Psych-Out Drama Richard Rush
October 1968 The Young Animals Drama Maury Dexter
November 1968 Killers Three Crime Bruce Kessler
December 4, 1968 The Brute and the Beast Spaghetti Western Lucio Fulci
December 20, 1968 Three in the Attic Comedy-drama Richard Wilson
1969 'It's Alive!' Horror Larry Buchanan
March 18, 1969 The Wonderful World of Puss 'n Boots Anime Kimio Yabuki
April 16, 1969 Hell's Belles Outlaw biker Maury Dexter
May 1969 God Forgives... I Don't! Spaghetti Western Giuseppe Colizzi
May 14, 1969 The Devil's 8 Moonshine Action Burt Topper
May 23, 1969 Destroy All Monsters Sci-fi Ishirō Honda
June 11, 1969 The Oblong Box Horror Gordon Hessler
June 20, 1969 Carry on Camping Comedy Gerald Thomas
July 23, 1969 Spirits of the Dead Horror anthology Roger Vadim
Louis Malle
Federico Fellini
August 19, 1969 Angel, Angel, Down We Go Crime Robert Thom
August 27, 1969 De Sade Drama Cy Endfield
Uncredited:
Roger Corman
Gordon Hessler
September 8, 1969 The Honeymoon Killers Crime Leonard Kastle
September 10, 1969 Hell's Angels '69 Outlaw biker Lee Madden
Conny Van Dyke
October 7, 1969 Battle of Neretva War film Veljko Bulajić

1970s

edit
Release date Title Genre Director Notes
1970 Pacific Vibrations Documentary John Severson
January 1970 The Savage Wild Documentary Gordon Eastman
January 1970 Scream and Scream Again Sci-fi thriller Gordon Hessler
January 14, 1970 The Dunwich Horror Horror Daniel Haller
March 24, 1970 Bloody Mama Drama Roger Corman
April 15, 1970 The Haunted House of Horror Slasher Michael Armstrong
April 15, 1970 The Crimson Cult Horror Vernon Sewell
May 8, 1970 Lola Romantic comedy-drama Richard Donner
June 1970 A Bullet for Pretty Boy Action Larry Buchanan
June 10, 1970 Count Yorga, Vampire Horror Bob Kelljan
July 22, 1970 Cry of the Banshee Horror Gordon Hessler
September 2, 1970 Angel Unchained Outlaw biker Lee Madden
September 9, 1970 Venus in Furs Erotic thriller Jesús Franco
October 22, 1970 The Vampire Lovers Horror Roy Ward Baker
November 1970 Bora Bora Drama Ugo Liberatore
February 3, 1971 Julius Caesar Drama Stuart Burge
February 17, 1971 Gas-s-s-s Sci-fi comedy-drama Roger Corman
February 18, 1971 Wuthering Heights Romance Robert Fuest
March 17, 1971 Blood and Lace Horror Philip S. Gilbert
April 22, 1971 The Hard Ride Outlaw biker Burt Topper
April 28, 1971 The Incredible 2-Headed Transplant Sci-fi horror Anthony Lanza
May 18, 1971 The Abominable Dr. Phibes Comedy horror Robert Fuest
August 20, 1971 Swedish Fly Girls Drama Jack O'Connell
September 29, 1971 Chrome and Hot Leather Outlaw biker Lee Frost
October 6, 1971 Murders in the Rue Morgue Horror Gordon Hessler
October 13, 1971 A Lizard in a Woman's Skin Giallo Lucio Fulci
October 18, 1971 Bunny O'Hare Comedy Gerd Oswald
October 27, 1971 Some of My Best Friends Are... Drama Mervyn Nelson
October 1971 1000 Convicts and a Woman Drama Ray Austin
December 22, 1971 Kidnapped Adventure Delbert Mann
January 19, 1972 Together Mockumentary Sean S. Cunningham
February 2, 1972 The Return of Count Yorga Horror Bob Kelljan
February 1972 Godzilla vs. the Smog Monster Kaiju Yoshimitsu Banno
March 10, 1972 Frogs Horror George McCowan
March 15, 1972 Whoever Slew Auntie Roo? Horror Curtis Harrington
April 1972 Dr. Jekyll and Sister Hyde Sci-fi horror Roy Ward Baker
May 3, 1972 A Bay of Blood Horror Mario Bava
May 17, 1972 Blood from the Mummy's Tomb Horror Seth Holt
May 1972 Pickup on 101 Drama John Florea
Wild in the Sky Action comedy William T. Naud
The Bloody Judge Horror Jesús Franco
June 14, 1972 Boxcar Bertha Crime Martin Scorsese
July 19, 1972 The Thing with Two Heads Sci-fi Lee Frost
July 21, 1972 F.T.A. Documentary Francine Parker
July 1972 Dr. Phibes Rises Again Horror Robert Fuest
August 16, 1972 Slaughter Blaxploitation Jack Starrett
August 25, 1972 Blacula Blaxploitation William Crain
August 1972 Deathmaster Horror Ray Danton
The Sandpit Generals Drama Hall Bartlett
September 1972 Tam-Lin Horror Roddy McDowall
October 10, 1972 Baron Blood Horror Mario Bava
November 1972 The Dirt Gang Action drama Jerry Jameson
November 10, 1972 Unholy Rollers Action comedy Vernon Zimmerman
November 22, 1972 Prison Girls Crime Thomas De Simone
January 19, 1973 Black Mama White Mama Women in prison Eddie Romero
January 1973 Manson Documentary Robert Hendrickson and Laurence Merrick
February 7, 1973 Black Caesar Blaxploitation Larry Cohen
March 27, 1973 Sisters Horror Brian De Palma
April 1973 Cannibal Girls Comedy horror Ivan Reitman
May 4, 1973 Deep Thrust Action Huang Feng
June 13, 1973 Coffy Blaxploitation Jack Hill
June 27, 1973 Scream, Blacula, Scream Blaxploitation Bob Kelljan
June 1973 Little Cigars Crime comedy Chris Christenberry
July 20, 1973 Dillinger Crime John Milius
August 8, 1973 Heavy Traffic Animated comedy-drama Ralph Bakshi
August 31, 1973 Slaughter's Big Rip-Off Blaxploitation Gordon Douglas
September 1973 Death Line Horror Gary Sherman
October 31, 1973 The Italian Connection Action Fernando di Leo
October 1973 The Screaming Tiger Action Lung Chien
November 21, 1973 Battle of the Amazons Sword-and-sandal Alfonso Brescia
December 1973 Hell Up in Harlem Blaxploitation Larry Cohen
December 31, 1973 School for Unclaimed Girls Drama Robert Hartford-Davis
January 30, 1974 The Bat People Horror Jerry Jameson
February 13, 1974 Bamboo Gods and Iron Men Blaxploitation comedy Cesar Gallardo
February 1974 Secret Life of a Schoolgirl Wife Comedy-drama Leon Capetanos
March 6, 1974 Deranged Horror Alan Ormsby
March 20, 1974 Sugar Hill Blaxploitation horror Paul Maslansky
April 5, 1974 Foxy Brown Blaxploitation Jack Hill
May 15, 1974 Truck Stop Women Action Mark L. Lester
May 24, 1974 Madhouse Horror Jim Clark
June 5, 1974 Thriller: A Cruel Picture Rape and revenge Alex Fridolinski
Dirty O'Neil Crime thriller Leon Capetanos
Lewis Teague
June 26, 1974 The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat Animated comedy Robert Taylor
Truck Turner Blaxploitation Jonathan Kaplan
July 17, 1974 Golden Needles Action Robert Clouse
July 1974 Savage Sisters Women in prison Eddie Romero
August 8, 1974 Macon County Line Action Richard Compton
August 18, 1974 Act of Vengeance Horror Bob Kelljan
October 1974 Hangup Action Henry Hathaway
November 22, 1974 Sunday in the Country Crime thriller John Trent
December 25, 1974 Abby Blaxploitation horror William Girdler
1975 Vampira Comedy horror Clive Donner
February 1975 Super Stooges vs. the Wonder Women Superhero comedy Alfonso Brescia
March 26, 1975 Sheba, Baby Blaxploitation William Girdler
March 1975 House of Whipcord Horror Pete Walker
War Goddess Adventure Terence Young
The Wild Party Comedy-drama James Ivory
April 25, 1975 The Reincarnation of Peter Proud Mystery horror J. Lee Thompson
May 21, 1975 Cornbread, Earl and Me Drama Joseph Manduke
The Wild McCullochs Drama Max Baer Jr.
May 1975 What Have You Done to Solange? Giallo Massimo Dallamano
June 11, 1975 Murph the Surf Biographical crime comedy Marvin J. Chomsky
June 25, 1975 Cooley High Comedy-drama Michael Schultz Inducted into the National Film Registry in 2021
July 2, 1975 Bucktown Blaxploitation Arthur Marks
July 31, 1975 Hennessy Thriller Don Sharp
August 13, 1975 The Land That Time Forgot Adventure fantasy Kevin Connor
September 3, 1975 Return to Macon County Drama Richard Compton
September 28, 1975 Walking Tall Part 2 Crime Earl Bellamy
December 17, 1975 Sixpack Annie Action comedy Graydon F. David
December 25, 1975 Friday Foster Blaxploitation Arthur Marks
January 14, 1976 Killer Force Thriller Val Guest
March 1976 Bobbie Jo and the Outlaw Crime drama Mark L. Lester
One Summer Love Romantic drama Gilbert Cates
April 21, 1976 Crime and Passion Crime Ivan Passer
May 1976 Annie Drama Massimo Dallamano
June 18, 1976 The Food of the Gods Sci-fi thriller Bert I. Gordon
June 23, 1976 The Great Scout & Cathouse Thursday Comedy Don Taylor
I Don't Want to Be Born Horror Peter Sasdy
July 9, 1976 A Small Town in Texas Crime Jack Starrett
July 30, 1976 Squirm Horror Jeff Lieberman
July 1976 At the Earth's Core Sci-fi fantasy Kevin Connor
Special Delivery Crime comedy Paul Wendkos
August 13, 1976 Futureworld Sci-fi thriller Richard T. Heffron
August 25, 1976 J.D.'s Revenge Blaxploitation Arthur Marks
September 17, 1976 Street People Action Maurizio Lucidi
October 7, 1976 A Matter of Time Musical Vincente Minnelli
October 8, 1976 Scorchy Crime Howard Avedis
November 24, 1976 Shout at the Devil War Peter R. Hunt
December 24, 1976 The Monkey Hustle Blaxploitation Arthur Marks
The Town That Dreaded Sundown Horror Charles B. Pierce
December 1976 Escape from Angola Adventure Leslie H. Martinson
January 23, 1977 The Day That Shook the World Historical drama Veljko Bulajić
February 2, 1977 Chatterbox Sex comedy Tom DeSimone
February 11, 1977 Strange Shadows in an Empty Room Crime Alberto De Martino
March 4, 1977 Death Weekend Horror William Fruet
April 1, 1977 Breaker! Breaker! Action Don Hulette
June 15, 1977 Tentacles Horror Ovidio G. Assonitis
June 29, 1977 Empire of the Ants Sci-fi horror Bert I. Gordon
July 6, 1977 The People That Time Forgot Adventure fantasy Kevin Connor
July 13, 1977 The Island of Dr. Moreau Sci-fi fantasy horror Don Taylor
August 10, 1977 The Little Girl Who Lives Down the Lane Mystery thriller Nicolas Gessner
August 17, 1977 Joyride Adventure crime comedy Joseph Ruben
August 31, 1977 Walking Tall: Final Chapter Crime Jack Starrett
October 14, 1977 Rolling Thunder Neo-noir John Flynn
December 28, 1977 Grayeagle Western adventure Charles B. Pierce
December 1977 The Incredible Melting Man Sci-fi horror William Sachs
The Private Files of J. Edgar Hoover Biographical drama Larry Cohen
February 1978 Record City Comedy Dennis Steinmetz
March 1978 Last Cannibal World Horror Ruggero Deodato
April 19, 1978 Holocaust 2000 Horror Alberto De Martino
May 13, 1978 Jennifer Horror Brice Mack
May 24, 1978 Youngblood Action Noel Nosseck
May 26, 1978 Here Come the Tigers Sports comedy Sean S. Cunningham
High-Ballin' Action comedy Peter Carter
May 1978 Our Winning Season Drama Joseph Ruben
June 6, 1978 Cracking Up Comedy Rowby Goren
Chuck Staley
June 22, 1978 Matilda Comedy Daniel Mann
June 1978 Who Can Kill a Child? Spanish horror Narciso Ibáñez Serrador
July 14, 1978 Mean Dog Blues Drama Mel Stuart
October 5, 1978 The Norsemen Adventure Charles B. Pierce
December 8, 1978 Force 10 from Navarone War Guy Hamilton
April 18, 1979 The Evictors Crime horror Charles B. Pierce
April 27, 1979 Love at First Bite Comedy horror Stan Dragoti
June 1, 1979 Sunnyside Action Timothy Galfas
July 27, 1979 The Amityville Horror Horror Stuart Rosenberg
September 14, 1979 California Dreaming Comedy-drama John D. Hancock
September 1979 Seven Action crime Andy Sidaris
October 5, 1979 Something Short of Paradise Romantic comedy David Helpern
October 19, 1979 Meteor Disaster Ronald Neame
November 1979 Jaguar Lives! Action Ernest Pintoff
December 21, 1979 C.H.O.M.P.S. Sci-fi comedy Don Chaffey

1980s

edit
Release date Title Genre Director Notes
February 15, 1980 Mad Max Action George Miller Australian sci-fi dystopian film dubbed in American English
March 14, 1980 Defiance Action John Flynn
March 14, 1980 The Visitor Sci-fi horror Michael J. Paradise Initially planned for AIP release, but sold off to independent distributor The International Picture Show; rights to the film would eventually come back full circle to MGM
March 28, 1980 Nothing Personal Romantic comedy George Bloomfield
May 1, 1980 Gorp Sex comedy Joseph Ruben Final film released under AIP banner
July 11, 1980 How to Beat the High Cost of Living Crime comedy Robert Scheerer Released through Filmways Pictures
July 25, 1980 Dressed to Kill Horror Brian De Palma Last AIP produced film until its resurrection on October 7, 2020, by MGM; released through Filmways Pictures

2020s

edit
Release date Title Genre Director Notes
February 12, 2021 Breaking News in Yuba County Comedy-crime-drama Tate Taylor First film following relaunch
July 20, 2021 How it Ends Comedy-drama Daryl Wein
Zoe Lister-Jones
August 24, 2021 Summer Days, Summer Nights Comedy-drama Edward Burns
February 11, 2022 Minamata Drama Andrew Levitas
September 9, 2022 About Fate Romantic comedy Maryus Vaysberg
September 22, 2022 Duetto Drama Vicente Amorim Brazilian film

Unproduced films

edit

The following films were announced for production by AIP, but never made:

Financial earnings

edit
  • 1970 – $22.7 million[80]
  • 1971 – $21.4 million[81]
  • 1972 – $24 million
  • 1973 – $24.5 million[82] – profit $744,000[83]
  • 1974 – $32.5 million – profit of $931,400[38]
  • 1975 – $48.2 million[84]
  • 1978 – $51.2 million – profit $1.8 million[85]

Notes

edit
  1. ^ "AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL PICTURES LLC". Dun & Bradstreet. Retrieved April 19, 2024.
  2. ^ Johnson, John Cheap Tricks and Class Acts, 1996, McFarland, p.265
  3. ^ "Artist Interviews » Les Baxter". www.artistinterviews.eu. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  4. ^ Scheuer, Philip K. (September 17, 1958). "Shocker Pioneers Tell How to Make Monsters: Want to Make a Monster? Experts Tell How It's Done". Los Angeles Times. p. E1.
  5. ^ Samuel Z Arkoff Biography, Fancast, archived from the original on July 23, 2011.
  6. ^ a b c Doherty, Thomas (1988), Teenagers and Teenpics, Unwin-Hyman.
  7. ^ Booker, M. Keith (2011). Historical dictionary of American cinema. Lanham, Maryland: Scarecrow Press. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-8108-7192-2.
  8. ^ Albert Kallis – bio, Learn about movie posters, archived from the original on March 21, 2008.
  9. ^ Vagg, Stephen (December 4, 2024). "Beach Party: An Appreciation". Filmink. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
  10. ^ Bean, Robin and Austen, David U.S.A. Confidential p. 215 Films and Filming November 1968 quoted in p. 157 Doherty, Thomas Teenagers and Teenpics Unwin-Hyman 1988
  11. ^ a b Scheuer, Philip K. (September 21, 1958). "Shocker Pioneers Tell How to Make Monsters: Want to Make a Monster? Experts Tell How It's Done". Los Angeles Times. p. E1.
  12. ^ Gordon, Alex (May 1983). "The Pit and the Pen". Fangoria. No. 27. pp. 34–37.
  13. ^ "Creator/American International Pictures". TV Tropes. Retrieved March 3, 2023.
  14. ^ "Colonial of NY Coin Source For Amer. Int'l Fix". Variety. March 25, 1959. p. 24.
  15. ^ a b Corman, Roger; Jerome, Jim (1998). How I Made Over a Hundred Movies in Hollywood and Never Lost a Dime. DaCapo Press.
  16. ^ "P as in Poe and Public Domain". Variety. October 3, 1962. p. 30.
  17. ^ Alpert, Don (July 15, 1962). "Who Needs High Salaried Stars? Horrors! Film Makers Find Audiences Prefer Action". Los Angeles Times. p. A8.
  18. ^ "AIP Reveals Its 1968 Film Program". Los Angeles Times. January 13, 1968. p. b7.
  19. ^ VINCENT CANBY (March 2, 1969). "Bye, Bye, Beach Bunnies: Bye, Bye, Beach Bunnies". The New York Times. p. D1.
  20. ^ p. 96 + p. 214 Arkoff, Sam and Trubo, Richard Flying Through Hollywood by the Seat of My Pants 1990 Carol Publishing
  21. ^ "International Secret Police". tokyo street report. April 16, 2009. Archived from the original on July 4, 2010. Retrieved August 2, 2010.
  22. ^ "American-International Television (AIP-TV) – IMDbPro". imdb.com. Retrieved April 21, 2018.
  23. ^ Heffernan, Kevin Ghouls Gimmicks and Gold: Horror Films and the American Movie Business, 2004, Duke University Press, p.167
  24. ^ "14 More Join Label Parade". Billboard. June 8, 1959. p. 9. Retrieved August 2, 2010 – via Internet Archive. American International Records
  25. ^ "American International Records – CDs and Vinyl". Discogs. Retrieved August 2, 2010.
  26. ^ "Together/AIR Album Discography". Bsnpubs.com. April 12, 2000. Retrieved August 2, 2010.
  27. ^ "American International Pictures". The Wall Street Journal. June 3, 1969. p. 29.
  28. ^ "American International Pictures". The Wall Street Journal. July 10, 1969. p. 27.
  29. ^ "American International Pictures Enters Film Accord". The Wall Street Journal. April 10, 1970. p. 22.
  30. ^ Warga, Wayne (January 28, 1971). "30 FEATURES SET: AIP ANNOUNCES PLANS FOR BUSIEST FILM YEAR". Los Angeles Times. p. g11.
  31. ^ "X-Rated Movies: On the Downswing?". The Washington Post and Times-Herald. March 31, 1971. p. B4.
  32. ^ "Nicholson to Quit American International Pictures Post". The Wall Street Journal. January 17, 1972. p. 18.
  33. ^ "Nicholson Plans Own Film Firm". Los Angeles Times. January 22, 1972. p. b6.
  34. ^ "California Film Maker Buys Own Stock From Ex-Officer". The Wall Street Journal. September 19, 1972. p. 43.
  35. ^ "J.H. Nicholson, Film Maker, Dies of Cancer". Los Angeles Times. December 11, 1972. p. 26.
  36. ^ Vagg, Stephen (May 21, 2024). "Top Ten Corman – Part Eight, Corman's Studios". Filmink.
  37. ^ Taylor, Clarke (October 8, 1978). "LARRY GORDON ROLLS HIS DICE". Los Angeles Times. p. n35.
  38. ^ a b "The dime-store way to make movies-and money by Aljean Harmetz". The New York Times. August 4, 1974. p. 202.
  39. ^ "Policy Shift Set by American International Pictures Inc". The Wall Street Journal. May 25, 1972. p. 7.
  40. ^ "American International Pictures Buys Shares From Sylvia Nicholson". The Wall Street Journal. April 19, 1978. p. 36.
  41. ^ "Filmways Inc. Signs Accord in Principle For Movie Maker". The Wall Street Journal. October 10, 1978. p. 48.
  42. ^ "American International Pictures, Filmways Inc. Terminates Merger Plan". The Wall Street Journal. December 11, 1978. p. 20.
  43. ^ Jones, John A. (February 12, 1979). "May Revive Merger Talks With Filmways, AIP Says". Los Angeles Times. p. d12.
  44. ^ "Filmways Says Assets Were Overstated For American International Pictures Inc". The Wall Street Journal. December 3, 1979. p. 8.
  45. ^ "AIP BITES DUST AS FILMWAYS RENAMES STUDIO". Los Angeles Times. March 13, 1980. p. f3.
  46. ^ "President of Filmways' American International Pictures Resigns Post". The Wall Street Journal. December 6, 1979. p. 30.
  47. ^ "Filmways Inc. Pays Ex-Aide $1.4 Million". The Wall Street Journal. July 8, 1980. p. 8.
  48. ^ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on April 14, 2016. Retrieved October 14, 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  49. ^ Welles, Chris (May 15, 1983). "How Accountants Helped Orion Pictures Launch Its Financial Comeback". Los Angeles Times. p. f1.
  50. ^ "Tate Taylor's 'Breaking News in Yuba County' Picked up by MGM for Relaunched American International Pictures BannerTheWrap". October 7, 2020.
  51. ^ Spangler, Todd (May 17, 2021). "Amazon Said to Make $9 Billion Offer for MGM". Variety. Retrieved May 17, 2021.
  52. ^ Toonkel, Jessica (May 17, 2021). "Amazon Pondering Deal to Buy MGM". The Information. Retrieved May 17, 2021.
  53. ^ Maas, Jennifer (March 17, 2022). "Amazon Closes $8.5 Billion Acquisition of MGM". Variety. Retrieved March 17, 2022.
  54. ^ McClintock, Pamela (March 5, 2023). "Box Office: Michael B. Jordan's 'Creed III' Wins Title With Historic $58.6M Opening". The Hollywood Reporter.
  55. ^ Whittock, Jesse (May 8, 2023). "Amazon MGM Studios Distribution To Launch At LA Screenings". Deadline Hollywood. Archived from the original on May 8, 2023. Retrieved May 10, 2023.
  56. ^ Smith p. 97
  57. ^ Smith p. 98
  58. ^ Smith p. 99
  59. ^ Smith p. 114
  60. ^ a b Smith p. 118
  61. ^ Smith p. 159
  62. ^ a b c d Smith p. 249
  63. ^ Smith p. 161
  64. ^ Smith p. 188, 230
  65. ^ Smith p. 188
  66. ^ Smith p. 192
  67. ^ "First Kiss (January 1962), Charlton Comics".
  68. ^ pp.219-220 Palmer, Randy Paul Blaisdell, Monster Maker: A Biography of the B Movie Makeup and Special Effects Artist McFarland, January 1, 1997
  69. ^ a b Scheuer, Philip K. (July 12, 1963). "Grand Guignol Set at Vine St. Cabaret: Huston 'Sells' Kipling Yarn; Sinatra, AIP Think Young". Los Angeles Times. p. D11.
  70. ^ a b c Smith p. 208
  71. ^ a b Scheuer, Philip K. (January 2, 1964). "AIP Millions for Poe, Beach Parties: 'Flowers' Oscar Hopeful; Burton Buys, May Direct". Los Angeles Times. p. C11.
  72. ^ "Hollywood To Make A Big Silent Film". The Times. London. March 3, 1965. p. 15 – via The Times Digital Archive.
  73. ^ Dorothy Kilgallen (June 11, 1964). "Howard Hughes, Aide Part Company". The Washington Post. p. E22.
  74. ^ Smith p. 262
  75. ^ a b Smith p. 289
  76. ^ "American Film Executive On Study Visit". South China Morning Post and Hongkong Telegraph. September 15, 1965. p. 7.
  77. ^ "MOVIE CALL SHEET: Spiegel to Film 'Swimmer'". Los Angeles Times. March 19, 1965. p. D13.
  78. ^ a b c "American International Expanding Operations". Los Angeles Times. May 4, 1966. p. e13.
  79. ^ Smith p. 315
  80. ^ "American International Pictures' Profit Steady: Company Says Results for Third Fiscal Quarter Were About the Same as for Year-Ago Period". The Wall Street Journal. October 12, 1971. p. 37.
  81. ^ "American International Pictures". The Wall Street Journal. May 9, 1973. p. 19.
  82. ^ Getze, John (February 20, 1974). "Horror or Horrid Films, AIP Quickies Score at Box Office: FILMS". Los Angeles Times. p. d10.(Turn on hit highlighting for speaking browsers)
  83. ^ "Stockholder Meeting Briefs". The Wall Street Journal. June 26, 1973. p. 35.
  84. ^ "American International Will Be 'Happy' if Net Matches Fiscal 1975's". The Wall Street Journal. October 27, 1975. p. 18.
  85. ^ Bry, Barbara (January 5, 1979). "AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL EPIC: CHINESE BOOK U.S. FILM 'FUTUREWORLD'". Los Angeles Times. p. d16.

References

edit
  • Mark Thomas McGee, Faster and Furiouser: The Story of American International Pictures (McFarland & Company, 1995) ISBN 0-7864-0137-0.
  • Gary A. Smith, American International Pictures: The Golden Years, Bear Manor Media 2013
  • Hamilton, John, Witches, B*tches and Banshees: The British Films of American International. Little Shoppe of Horrors (2022), ISBN 979-8416552794
edit
 
Wikimedia Commons has media related to American International Pictures.
Retrieved from "https://en.wiki.x.io/w/index.php?title=American_International_Pictures&oldid=1262405179"