United Artists

The United Artists Corporation (aka United Artists Associated, United Artists Pictures, and United Artists Films) was formed on February 5, 1919 by five of the leading figures in early Hollywood, Charles Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, Mary Pickford, William S. Hart and D. W. Griffith. They were motivated in part by a desire to control their own pictures, as well as their futures. When he heard of this plan, Richard Rowland, head of Metro Pictures, said, "The inmates are taking over the asylum." The five friends, with advice from former Secretary of the Treasury William G. McAdoo (son-in-law of then-President Woodrow Wilson), formed their distribution company, with Hiram Abrams as its first managing director.

The 1970s and 1980s

What Transamerica got was not just the UA name and library, but the expertise and experience of Krim, Benjamin and a team of others. For a time the flow of successful pictures continued. New talent was encouraged, including Woody Allen, Sylvester Stallone, and Brian De Palma. In 1973 UA took over the sales and distribution of MGM's films.

Related Topics:
Woody Allen - Sylvester Stallone - Brian De Palma - MGM

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But insurance companies are a sure, steady business. The ups-and-downs of movie making made them nervous. And then there were the costs; Hollywood has always been based on image, so executives had to be pampered a bit. All of this drove the insurance suits crazy. Finally in 1978, after a dispute over administrative expenses, UA's top executives, including chairman Krim and president Benjamin, walked out. Within days they announced the formation of Orion Pictures, with backing from Warner.

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The inexperienced new leadership of UA, anxious to show that they could make quality pictures too, agreed to back Michael Cimino's pet project, a big-budget western, Heaven's Gate. After a tumultuous two-year gestation, the picture proved to be a colossal failure, angering critics and alienating audiences. The publicity about runaway costs far overshadowed any appeal the film might have. United Artists recorded a major loss for the year; to Transamerica, it was only a blip on a multi-billion dollar balance sheet, but it soured the relationship forever. To the greater Hollywood community, it also signalled that this was a company that could no longer produce pictures. Within a year, UA was sold to Kirk Kerkorian, who merged it into his MGM.

Related Topics:
Michael Cimino - Heaven's Gate

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In 1975, Harry Salzman sold UA his 50% stake in Danjaq, L.L.C., the holding-company for the Bond films. UA was to remain a silent partner, putting up money, while Albert Broccoli took producer credit. John Cork, producer of dozens of documentaries for the Bond films on DVD, claims that UA sold this 50% stake back to Broccoli in the mid-1980s. Despite that, the copyright for the movie-related Bond trademarks and properties continues to be "Danjaq LLC and United Artists Corporation" to this day.

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It has also been reported that MGM/UA kept a distribution deal with Danjaq said to be far better than that given Broccoli and Salzman in 1962.

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