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Samuel Goldwyn Productions

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Samuel Goldwyn Productions
TypeIndependent
IndustryFilm
Founded1923; 99 years ago (1923)
FounderSamuel Goldwyn
Defunct1959; 63 years ago (1959)
FateDefunct
SuccessorLibrary:
Warner Bros. (United States only)
Miramax (internationally)
HeadquartersUnited States
ProductsMotion pictures
ServicesFilm production

Samuel Goldwyn Productions was an American film production company founded by Samuel Goldwyn in 1923, and active through 1959. Personally controlled by Goldwyn and focused on production rather than distribution, the company developed into the most financially and critically successful independent production company in Hollywood's Golden Age.

History

from the trailer for The Hurricane (1937)
from the trailer for The Hurricane (1937)

After the sale of his previous firm Goldwyn Pictures, Samuel Goldwyn organized his productions beginning in February 1923, initially in a partnership with director George Fitzmaurice. (Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, created by merger in April 1924, bears Goldwyn's name, but he did not produce films there.) Goldwyn Production's first release, Potash and Perlmutter, successfully opened in Baltimore on September 6, 1923.[1]

Some of the early productions bear the name "Howard Productions", named for Goldwyn's wife Frances Howard, who married Goldwyn in 1925. In the 1920s, Goldwyn released films through Associated First National. Throughout the 1930s, Goldwyn released most of his films through United Artists. Beginning in 1941, Goldwyn released most of his films through RKO Radio Pictures.

With consistently high production values and directors like John Ford and Howard Hawks, Goldwyn consistently received Academy Award for Best Picture nominations: Arrowsmith (1931), Dodsworth (1936), Dead End (1937), Wuthering Heights (1939), and The Little Foxes (1941). In 1946, he won best picture for The Best Years of Our Lives.

Through the 1940s and 1950s, many of Goldwyn's films starred Danny Kaye. Goldwyn's final production was the 1959 version of Porgy and Bess.

Elements for many films produced by Samuel Goldwyn Productions between 1929 and 1955 are held by the Academy Film Archive as part of the Samuel Goldwyn Collection.[2]

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Goldwyn Pictures

Goldwyn Pictures

Goldwyn Pictures Corporation was an American motion picture production company that operated from 1916 to 1924 when it was merged with two other production companies to form the major studio, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It was founded on November 19, 1916, by Samuel Goldwyn, an executive at Lasky's Feature Play Company, and Broadway producer brothers Edgar and Archibald Selwyn, using an amalgamation of both last names to name the company.

George Fitzmaurice

George Fitzmaurice

George Fitzmaurice was a French-born film director and producer.

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios, Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded on April 17, 1924, and based in Beverly Hills, California.

Frances Howard (actress)

Frances Howard (actress)

Frances Howard Goldwyn was an American actress. She was the second wife of producer Samuel Goldwyn, and the paternal grandmother of actors Tony and John Goldwyn.

First National Pictures

First National Pictures

First National Pictures was an American motion picture production and distribution company. It was founded in 1917 as First National Exhibitors' Circuit, Inc., an association of independent theatre owners in the United States, and became the country's largest theater chain. Expanding from exhibiting movies to distributing them, the company reincorporated in 1919 as Associated First National Theatres, Inc., and Associated First National Pictures, Inc. In 1924 it expanded to become a motion picture production company as First National Pictures, Inc., and became an important studio in the film industry. In September 1928, control of First National passed to Warner Bros., into which it was completely absorbed on November 4, 1929. A number of Warner Bros. films were thereafter branded First National Pictures until July 1936, when First National Pictures, Inc., was dissolved.

John Ford

John Ford

John Martin Feeney, known professionally as John Ford, was an American film director and naval officer. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers of his generation. Ford made frequent use of location shooting and wide shots, in which his characters were framed against a vast, harsh, and rugged natural terrain.

Howard Hawks

Howard Hawks

Howard Winchester Hawks was an American film director, producer and screenwriter of the classic Hollywood era. Critic Leonard Maltin called him "the greatest American director who is not a household name." Roger Ebert called Hawks "one of the greatest American directors of pure movies, and a hero of auteur critics because he found his own laconic values in so many different kinds of genre material."

Academy Award for Best Picture

Academy Award for Best Picture

The Academy Award for Best Picture is one of the Academy Awards presented annually by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) since the awards debuted in 1929. This award goes to the producers of the film and is the only category in which every member of the Oscars is eligible to submit a nomination and vote on the final ballot. The Best Picture category is traditionally the final award of the night and is widely considered as the most prestigious honor of the ceremony.

Arrowsmith (film)

Arrowsmith (film)

Arrowsmith is a 1931 American pre-Code drama film directed by John Ford and starring Ronald Colman, Helen Hayes, Richard Bennett, and Myrna Loy. It was adapted from Sinclair Lewis's 1925 novel Arrowsmith by Sidney Howard, departing substantially from the book regarding Arrowsmith's womanizing and other key plot elements. The pre-Code film received four Oscar nominations, including the Academy Award for Best Picture, Best Writing, Adaptation (Howard), Best Cinematography, and Best Art Direction.

Dodsworth (film)

Dodsworth (film)

Dodsworth is a 1936 American drama film directed by William Wyler, and starring Walter Huston, Ruth Chatterton, Paul Lukas, Mary Astor and David Niven. Sidney Howard based the screenplay on his 1934 stage adaptation of the 1929 novel of the same name by Sinclair Lewis. Huston reprised his stage role.

Dead End (1937 film)

Dead End (1937 film)

Dead End is a 1937 crime drama film directed by William Wyler. It is an adaptation of the Sidney Kingsley 1935 Broadway play of the same name. It stars Sylvia Sidney, Joel McCrea, Humphrey Bogart, Wendy Barrie, and Claire Trevor. It was the first film appearance of the acting group known as the Dead End Kids.

Danny Kaye

Danny Kaye

Danny Kaye was an American actor, comedian, singer, and dancer. His performances featured physical comedy, idiosyncratic pantomimes, and rapid-fire novelty songs.

Filmography

Poster for The Winning of Barbara Worth (1926)Lobby card for Roman Scandals (1933)Poster for Nana (1934)Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon in Wuthering Heights (1939)Lobby card for The Little Foxes (1941)Barbara Stanwyck in Ball of Fire (1941)Poster for Spitfire (1943)Hoagy Carmichael, Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews and Teresa Wright in a publicity photo for The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
Lobby card for Roman Scandals (1933)
Poster for The Winning of Barbara Worth (1926)Lobby card for Roman Scandals (1933)Poster for Nana (1934)Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon in Wuthering Heights (1939)Lobby card for The Little Foxes (1941)Barbara Stanwyck in Ball of Fire (1941)Poster for Spitfire (1943)Hoagy Carmichael, Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews and Teresa Wright in a publicity photo for The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
Poster for Nana (1934)
Poster for The Winning of Barbara Worth (1926)Lobby card for Roman Scandals (1933)Poster for Nana (1934)Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon in Wuthering Heights (1939)Lobby card for The Little Foxes (1941)Barbara Stanwyck in Ball of Fire (1941)Poster for Spitfire (1943)Hoagy Carmichael, Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews and Teresa Wright in a publicity photo for The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
Lobby card for The Little Foxes (1941)
Poster for The Winning of Barbara Worth (1926)Lobby card for Roman Scandals (1933)Poster for Nana (1934)Laurence Olivier and Merle Oberon in Wuthering Heights (1939)Lobby card for The Little Foxes (1941)Barbara Stanwyck in Ball of Fire (1941)Poster for Spitfire (1943)Hoagy Carmichael, Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews and Teresa Wright in a publicity photo for The Best Years of Our Lives (1946)
Poster for Spitfire (1943)
Release Date Title Distributor Notes
September 6, 1923 Potash and Perlmutter First National
January 24, 1924 The Eternal City
April 3, 1924 Cytherea
September 29, 1924 In Hollywood with Potash and Perlmutter
May 3, 1925 His Supreme Moment
June 18, 1925 A Thief in Paradise
September 27, 1925 The Dark Angel
November 16, 1925 Stella Dallas United Artists
February 15, 1926 Partners Again
October 14, 1926 The Winning of Barbara Worth
January 27, 1927 The Night of Love
September 18, 1927 The Magic Flame
November 3, 1927 The Devil Dancer
March 23, 1928 Two Lovers
November 17, 1928 The Awakening
January 12, 1929 The Rescue
May 2, 1929 Bulldog Drummond
June 22, 1929 This Is Heaven
November 3, 1929 Condemned
July 24, 1930 Raffles
October 5, 1930 Whoopee!
December 20, 1930 The Devil to Pay!
January 14, 1931 One Heavenly Night
September 5, 1931 Street Scene
October 3, 1931 Palmy Days
October 28, 1931 The Unholy Garden
December 17, 1931 Tonight or Never
December 26, 1931 Arrowsmith
February 13, 1932 The Greeks Had a Word for Them
November 17, 1932 The Kid from Spain
December 24, 1932 Cynara
September 3, 1933 The Masquerader
December 29, 1933 Roman Scandals
February 1, 1934 Nana
November 1, 1934 We Live Again
November 10, 1934 Kid Millions
March 8, 1935 The Wedding Night
September 8, 1935 The Dark Angel
October 13, 1935 Barbary Coast
November 22, 1935 Splendor
January 24, 1936 Strike Me Pink
March 18, 1936 These Three
September 23, 1936 Dodsworth
November 6, 1936 Come and Get It
December 25, 1936 Beloved Enemy
May 7, 1937 Woman Chases Man
August 6, 1937 Stella Dallas
August 27, 1937 Dead End
November 9, 1937 The Hurricane
February 4, 1938 The Goldwyn Follies
April 15, 1938 The Adventures of Marco Polo
November 17, 1938 The Cowboy and the Lady
April 7, 1939 Wuthering Heights
August 18, 1939 They Shall Have Music
September 29, 1939 The Real Glory
December 29, 1939 Raffles
September 20, 1940 The Westerner
August 29, 1941 The Little Foxes RKO Radio Pictures
December 2, 1941 Ball of Fire
July 14, 1942 The Pride of the Yankees
January 27, 1943 They Got Me Covered
June 12, 1943 Spitfire [3]
November 4, 1943 The North Star
February 17, 1944 Up in Arms
November 17, 1944 The Princess and the Pirate
June 8, 1945 Wonder Man
March 21, 1946 The Kid from Brooklyn
November 21, 1946 The Best Years of Our Lives
August 4, 1947 The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
December 9, 1947 The Bishop's Wife
October 19, 1948 A Song Is Born
December 11, 1948 Enchantment
August 18, 1949 Roseanna McCoy
December 25, 1949 My Foolish Heart
July 27, 1950 Our Very Own
August 2, 1950 Edge of Doom
December 22, 1951 I Want You
November 25, 1952 Hans Christian Andersen
November 3, 1955 Guys and Dolls Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
June 24, 1959 Porgy and Bess Columbia Pictures

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Nana (1934 film)

Nana (1934 film)

Nana is a 1934 American pre-Code film, produced by Samuel Goldwyn, released through United Artists, starring Anna Sten. and directed by Dorothy Arzner and George Fitzmaurice.

Laurence Olivier

Laurence Olivier

Laurence Kerr Olivier, Baron Olivier was an English actor and director who, along with his contemporaries Ralph Richardson and John Gielgud, was one of a trio of male actors who dominated the British stage of the mid-20th century. He also worked in films throughout his career, playing more than fifty cinema roles. Late in his career he had considerable success in television roles.

Merle Oberon

Merle Oberon

Merle Oberon was a British actress who began her film career in British films as Anne Boleyn in The Private Life of Henry VIII (1933). After her success in The Scarlet Pimpernel (1934), she travelled to the United States to make films for Samuel Goldwyn. She was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Actress for her performance in The Dark Angel (1935). Her nomination made her the first Asian actress to have received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress. Oberon hid her mixed heritage out of fear of discrimination and the impact it would have had on her career.

Barbara Stanwyck

Barbara Stanwyck

Barbara Stanwyck was an American actress, model and dancer. A stage, film, and television star, during her 60-year professional career she was known for her strong, realistic screen presence and versatility. She was a favorite of directors, including Cecil B. DeMille, Fritz Lang, and Frank Capra, and made 85 films in 38 years before turning to television.

Ball of Fire

Ball of Fire

Ball of Fire is a 1941 American screwball comedy film directed by Howard Hawks and starring Gary Cooper and Barbara Stanwyck. This Samuel Goldwyn Productions film concerns a group of professors laboring to write an encyclopedia and their encounter with a nightclub performer who provides her own unique knowledge.

Hoagy Carmichael

Hoagy Carmichael

Hoagland Howard Carmichael was an American musician, composer, songwriter, actor and lawyer. Carmichael was one of the most successful Tin Pan Alley songwriters of the 1930s, and was among the first singer-songwriters in the age of mass media to utilize new communication technologies such as television, electronic microphones, and sound recordings.

Fredric March

Fredric March

Fredric March was an American actor, regarded as one of Hollywood's most celebrated stars of the 1930s and 1940s. As a performer he was known for his protean versatility. Although his career never reached the same heights as that of the previous two decades, his success as an actor continued well into the 1950s and 1960s.

Myrna Loy

Myrna Loy

Myrna Loy was an American film, television and stage actress. As a performer, she was known for her ability to adapt to her screen partner's acting style.

Dana Andrews

Dana Andrews

Carver Dana Andrews was an American film actor who became a major star in what is now known as film noir. A leading man during the 1940s, he continued acting in less prestigious roles and character parts into the 1980s. He is best known for his portrayal of obsessed police detective Mark McPherson in the noir Laura (1944) and his critically acclaimed performance as World War II veteran Fred Derry in The Best Years of Our Lives (1946).

Potash and Perlmutter

Potash and Perlmutter

Potash and Perlmutter is a 1923 American silent comedy film directed by Clarence G. Badger. The film is based on an ethnic Jewish comedy with characters created by Montague Glass and Charles Klein for a 1913 Broadway play of the same name which ran for 441 performances. The play is based on the 1909 book of the same name by Montague Glass. This film is notable as the first release of Samuel Goldwyn's independent production company.

First National Pictures

First National Pictures

First National Pictures was an American motion picture production and distribution company. It was founded in 1917 as First National Exhibitors' Circuit, Inc., an association of independent theatre owners in the United States, and became the country's largest theater chain. Expanding from exhibiting movies to distributing them, the company reincorporated in 1919 as Associated First National Theatres, Inc., and Associated First National Pictures, Inc. In 1924 it expanded to become a motion picture production company as First National Pictures, Inc., and became an important studio in the film industry. In September 1928, control of First National passed to Warner Bros., into which it was completely absorbed on November 4, 1929. A number of Warner Bros. films were thereafter branded First National Pictures until July 1936, when First National Pictures, Inc., was dissolved.

Cytherea (film)

Cytherea (film)

Cytherea is a 1924 American silent romantic drama film directed by George Fitzmaurice and starring Alma Rubens, Lewis Stone, Constance Bennett, and Norman Kerry. Based on the novel Cytherea, Goddess of Love, by Joseph Hergesheimer and was adapted for the screen by Frances Marion. Cytherea features two dream sequences filmed in an early version of the Technicolor color film process. The film is also known as The Forbidden Way.

Distribution

As of 2012, the distribution rights of Samuel Goldwyn films from the library were transferred to Warner Bros.,[4] with Paramount Pictures (via Miramax) managing global licensing, with the exception of The Hurricane, which is now back with its original distributor, United Artists.[5] Studio Distribution Services, LLC., a joint venture between Warner Bros. Home Entertainment and Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, distributes the entire Samuel Goldwyn catalog on home video, including The Hurricane, via a distribution deal with MGM Home Entertainment.

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Warner Bros.

Warner Bros.

Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. Founded in 1923 by four brothers, Harry, Albert, Sam, and Jack Warner, the company established itself as a leader in the American film industry before diversifying into animation, television, and video games, and is one of the "Big Five" major American film studios, as well as a member of the Motion Picture Association (MPA).

Paramount Pictures

Paramount Pictures

Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production and distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global. It is the fifth-oldest film studio in the world, the second-oldest film studio in the United States, and the sole member of the "Big Five" film studios located within the city limits of Los Angeles.

Miramax

Miramax

Miramax, LLC, also known as Miramax Films, is an American film and television production and distribution company founded on December 19, 1979, by Harvey and Bob Weinstein, and based in Los Angeles, California.

The Hurricane (1937 film)

The Hurricane (1937 film)

The Hurricane is a 1937 film set in the South Seas, directed by John Ford and produced by Samuel Goldwyn Productions, about a Polynesian who is unjustly imprisoned. The climax features a special effects hurricane. It stars Dorothy Lamour and Jon Hall, with Mary Astor, C. Aubrey Smith, Thomas Mitchell, Raymond Massey, John Carradine, and Jerome Cowan. James Norman Hall, Jon Hall's uncle, co-wrote the novel of the same name on which The Hurricane is based.

United Artists

United Artists

United Artists Corporation (UA), doing business as United Artists Digital Studios, was an American production and distribution company. Founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charlie Chaplin, Mary Pickford, and Douglas Fairbanks, the studio was premised on allowing actors to control their own interests, rather than being dependent upon commercial studios. UA was repeatedly bought, sold, and restructured over the ensuing century. Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) acquired the studio in 1981 for a reported $350 million.

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment Inc. is the home video distribution division of Warner Bros.

Universal Pictures Home Entertainment

Universal Pictures Home Entertainment

Universal Pictures Home Entertainment is the home video distribution division of American film studio Universal Pictures, owned by the NBCUniversal Film and Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, which is owned by Comcast.

MGM Home Entertainment

MGM Home Entertainment

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Home Entertainment LLC was the home video division of the American media company Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM), whose titles are exclusively distributed by Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

Source: "Samuel Goldwyn Productions", Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, (2022, May 3rd), https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Samuel_Goldwyn_Productions.

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See also
References
  1. ^ Goldwyn: A Biography, A. Scott Berg
  2. ^ "Samuel Goldwyn Collection". Academy Film Archive. 5 September 2014.
  3. ^ "Of Local Origin". The New York Times. June 9, 1943. Retrieved 2015-12-14.
  4. ^ "Warner Brothers Acquires Rights to Films from the Samuel Goldwyn Library".
  5. ^ "Miramax to Manage Films from Samuel Goldwyn's Library". 2 April 2012.

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