Earl Owensby Studios

Last updated

Earl Owensby Studios
TypeFilm/television production company
Industry Motion pictures
Founded1974
FounderEarl Owensby
Headquarters
Shelby, North Carolina
,
U.S.
Website earlowensbystudios.com

Earl Owensby Studios (shortened to E.O. Studios) is an American-based film and television film studio that was founded in 1974 by producer/actor Ernest Earl Owensby (born 1935). The studio was responsible for the development, production, and distribution of dozens of low-budget action films (distributed mostly to outdoor Drive-in and Grindhouse theaters). [1] Owensby discovered that although his films may have lacked widespread mainstream appeal, international audiences [2] latched on to his brand of filmmaking.

Contents

Notable films

On November 10, 1973, producer/actor Earl Owensby began production on his first feature film, the revenge actioner Frank Challenge: Manhunter. Directed by Martin Beck, the film starred Owensby as Frank Challenge, a candidate for the U.S. Senate who takes the law into his own hands after the murder of his family. Distributed in 1974 by Cinemation Industries to a reported 134 markets, Challenge proved to be quite profitable, leading directly to the establishment of E.O. Studios, a 200-acre motion picture facility located in Shelby, North Carolina. [3]

The following year, E.O. followed up Challenge with a sequel entitled The Brass Ring, (1975) with Owensby returning as the vengeful hero Frank Challenge. The film was later retitled as Manhunter for television release. [4]

Over the next four years, E.O. released one film per year starring Owensby: Dark Sunday (1976), Death Driver (1977), Buckstone County Prison (1978), and Wolfman- A Lycanthrope (1979). The ultra-violent Dark Sunday made national news headlines after the Motion Picture Association of America’s ratings board refused to approve the film, essentially making it an X rated film). E.O. appealed the ruling and asked for a "G-Rating on principle" [5] and it was released with an R rating.

In 1980, E.O. produced two films, both with a musical theme and featuring Ginger Alden, who had been the fiancee of Owensby’s friend Elvis Presley at the time of Presley’s death. The first film, called Lady Grey, was the studio’s first film to not star Owensby; The lead male role instead went to country music star David Allan Coe), while the second film, entitled Living Legend: The King of Rock and Roll, saw Owensby back on screen, portraying a character known as Eli Canfield, who bore a striking resemblance to Elvis. The soundtrack for Living Legend film was provided by another Presley friend, Roy Orbison. Orbison spent six months living in North Carolina [5] while recording the soundtrack for this film.

In an interview with Morley Safer on CBS’s 60 Minutes, Owensby explained that E.O. Studios’ success was due to never spending more than a million dollars to make a film and never signing a distribution deal that would net them less than eight million. That proved to be a sound strategy over the course of the next decade, as E.O. continued to crank out such profitable—though under-the-radar—films as A Day of Judgment (1981), Rottweiler: Dogs of Hell [6] (1982), Hit the Road Running (1983), Hot Heir (1984), Tales of the Third Dimension (1984), Chain Gang [7] (1984), The Last Game (1984), Hyperspace (also known as Gremloids) (1985), The Rutherford County Line (1986), and Order of the Black Eagle (1987). The films typically weren't given wide distribution beyond Drive-In circuits in the Southeastern United States. [8]

Partnering With James Cameron

In 1988, E.O purchased the unfinished, abandoned Cherokee Nuclear Power Plant, just outside Gaffney, South Carolina, with an eye towards turning it into a studio. The studio soon partnered with director James Cameron, who filled one of the plant's reactors with water to shoot his sci-fi epic The Abyss (1989). [9] It was, at that time, the world's largest underwater sound stage.

Recognizable talent

Though E.O. used mostly unknown talent in its productions, many well-known names came through its doors. 1984's Gremloids , which E.O. produced in conjunction with Regency Productions, featured comedians Paula Poundstone and Chris Elliott, while the action film Hooch (1977) starred Gil Gerard, known for his turn on the TV show Buck Rogers in the 25th Century and Danny Aiello. [10] The Oscar-nominated 1984 film Reuben, Reuben, starring Tom Conti and Kelly McGillis, though not produced by the studio, filmed on the studio's lot [11] as did 1987's Florida Straits (with Raul Julia and Fred Ward).[ citation needed ] Director Worth Keeter, who helmed eight films for E.O., went on to be a regular director for the Power Rangers franchise.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Michael Mann</span> American film director, screenwriter, and producer

Michael Kenneth Mann is an American film director, screenwriter, and producer, best known for his stylized crime dramas. His most acclaimed works include the films Thief (1981), Manhunter (1986), The Last of the Mohicans (1992), Heat (1995), The Insider (1999), Collateral (2004), and Public Enemies (2009). He is also known for his role as executive producer on the popular TV series Miami Vice (1984–89), which he adapted into a 2006 feature film.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roy Orbison</span> American singer-songwriter (1936–1988)

Roy Kelton Orbison was an American singer, songwriter, and musician known for his impassioned singing style, complex song structures, and dark, emotional ballads. His music was described by critics as operatic, earning him the nicknames "The Caruso of Rock" and "The Big O". Many of Orbison's songs conveyed vulnerability at a time when most male rock-and-roll performers chose to project machismo. He performed while standing motionless and wearing black clothes to match his dyed black hair and dark sunglasses.

<i>The Abyss</i> 1989 American science fiction film directed by James Cameron

The Abyss is a 1989 American science fiction film written and directed by James Cameron and starring Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, and Michael Biehn. When an American submarine sinks in the Caribbean, a US search and recovery team works with an oil platform crew, racing against Soviet vessels to recover the boat. Deep in the ocean, they encounter something unexpected.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sam Phillips</span> American record producer (1923–2003)

Samuel Cornelius Phillips was an American record producer. He was the founder of Sun Records and Sun Studio in Memphis, Tennessee, where he produced recordings by Elvis Presley, Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, Johnny Cash, and Howlin' Wolf. Phillips played a major role in the development of rock and roll during the 1950s, launching the career of Presley. In 1969, he sold Sun to Shelby Singleton.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ann-Margret</span> Swedish actress, singer, and dancer (born 1941)

Ann-Margret Olsson is a Swedish-American actress and singer credited as Ann-Margret. She has won five Golden Globe Awards and been nominated for two Academy Awards, two Grammy Awards, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and six Emmy Awards, winning in 2010 for a guest role in Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Line Cinema</span> American film and television production company

New Line Productions, Inc, doing business as New Line Cinema, is an American film and television production studio owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. Since 2008, it has been operating as a unit of Warner Bros. Pictures.

William Warren Bush is an American actor, usually credited as Billy Green Bush and sometimes as Billy Greenbush.

<i>Manhunter</i> (film) 1986 film by Michael Mann

Manhunter is a 1986 American thriller film directed and written by Michael Mann. Based on the 1981 novel Red Dragon by Thomas Harris, it stars William Petersen as FBI profiler Will Graham. Also featured are Tom Noonan as serial killer Francis Dollarhyde, Dennis Farina as Graham's FBI superior Jack Crawford, and Brian Cox as incarcerated killer Hannibal Lecktor. The film focuses on Graham coming out of retirement to lend his talents to an investigation on Dollarhyde, a killer known as the Tooth Fairy. In doing so, he must confront the demons of his past and meet with Lecktor, who nearly killed Graham.

<i>Class of 55: Memphis Rock & Roll Homecoming</i> 1986 studio album by Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison and Carl Perkins

Class of '55: Memphis Rock & Roll Homecoming is a collaborative studio album by Carl Perkins, Jerry Lee Lewis, Roy Orbison, and Johnny Cash. It was released on May 26, 1986, by America/Smash Records, a subsidiary of Polygram Records. The album was produced by Chips Moman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Norman Taurog</span> American film director (1899–1981)

Norman Rae Taurog was an American film director and screenwriter. From 1920 to 1968, Taurog directed 180 films. At the age of 32, he received the Academy Award for Best Director for Skippy (1931). He is the second youngest person ever to win the award after Damien Chazelle, who won for La La Land in 2017. He was later nominated for Best Director for the film Boys Town (1938). He directed some of the best-known actors of the twentieth century, including his nephew Jackie Cooper, Spencer Tracy, Mickey Rooney, Judy Garland, Deanna Durbin, Fred Astaire, Gene Kelly, Deborah Kerr, Peter Lawford, Dean Martin, Jerry Lewis, and Elvis Presley. Taurog directed six Martin and Lewis films, and nine Elvis Presley films, more than any other director.

<i>Aloha from Hawaii via Satellite</i> 1973 Elvis Presley concert broadcast via satellite

Aloha from Hawaii via Satellite is a concert starring Elvis Presley that took place at the Honolulu International Center and was broadcast live via satellite to audiences in Asia and Oceania on January 14, 1973. The show was presented with a delay in Europe. In the United States, to avoid a programming conflict with Super Bowl VII and Elvis on Tour which was playing in cinemas at the time, NBC opted to air a ninety-minute television special of the concert on April 4.

<i>Honeymoon in Vegas</i> 1992 film by Andrew Bergman

Honeymoon in Vegas is a 1992 American romantic comedy film written and directed by Andrew Bergman and starring James Caan, Nicolas Cage and Sarah Jessica Parker.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">If I Can Dream</span> Song recorded by Elvis Presley in 1968

"If I Can Dream" is a song made famous by Elvis Presley, written by Walter Earl Brown for the singer and notable for its similarities with Martin Luther King Jr.'s 1963 "I Have a Dream" speech. The song was published by Elvis Presley's music publishing company Gladys Music. It was recorded by Presley in June 1968, just two months after King's assassination. The recording was first released to the public as the finale of Presley's '68 Comeback Special.

De Laurentiis Entertainment Group (DEG) was an entertainment production company and distribution studio founded by Italian producer Dino De Laurentiis. The company is notable for producing Manhunter, Blue Velvet, the horror films Near Dark and Evil Dead II, King Kong Lives, and Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure, as well as distributing The Transformers: The Movie.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cherokee Nuclear Power Plant</span> Unfinished nuclear power plant in South Carolina, USA

The Cherokee Nuclear Power Plant is an uncompleted energy project 10 miles (16 km) outside Gaffney, South Carolina, United States. In the early 1970s, Duke Power started construction on a three-reactor nuclear power plant at the site. However, the project stalled due to economic problems by the early 1980s, leading to the project's eventual abandonment. In 1987, the power plant was the site of an underwater film studio built by Hollywood director James Cameron, for the film The Abyss.

Dogs of Hell, originally known as Rottweiler 3-D, also known as Rottweiler and Rottweiler: The Dogs of Hell, is a 1982 horror/thriller film starring Earl Owensby, Bill Gribble and Robert Bloodworth. This was the first of six 3-D films shot by the Ownsby Studios in the early to mid-1980s; it was filmed in the summer/fall of 1981 over the course of two or so months. The film had a wider release in theaters compared to the remaining five Owensby 3-D films.

Damon's Law is a 1987 American crime action film that follows the events and criminal cases that Sheriff Damon Huskey encounters while working for Rutherford County, North Carolina. Based on actual events, the film characterizes how Huskey, played by Earl Owensby, handles each case as well in some instances how they change his life forever.

<i>Carnival Magic</i> (1983 film) 1983 American film

Carnival Magic is a 1983 American film directed by Al Adamson and starring Don Stewart.

<i>All Hands on Deck</i> (1961 film) 1961 film

All Hands on Deck is a 1961 American DeLuxe musical film in CinemaScope directed by Norman Taurog and starring Pat Boone as a naval officer. It is based on the novel Warm Bodies by Donald R. Morris.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elvis Presley's guitars</span> Guitars played by American singer

Guitars were a major component of the "rock and roll" image created by Elvis Presley in the 1950s and 1960s, onstage and in film appearances.

References

  1. ↑ "Backwoods Movie Mogul Owensby Has High Hopes For His Low-Budget Empire," by Lewis Beale, Chicago Tribune , October 20, 1985
  2. ↑ The film critic (October 15, 2015). "Hollywood Meets Backwoods". The Film Critic. Archived from the original on September 28, 2020. Retrieved September 23, 2020.
  3. ↑ Earl Owensby Profile, Earl Owensby Studios
  4. ↑ "The Brass Ring". AFI . Retrieved September 3, 2020.
  5. 1 2 II, Noel T. Manning, Earl Owensby, the Man... the Myth (Documentary, Biography), Earl Owensby, Jay Phelps, retrieved September 23, 2020
  6. ↑ Owensby, Earl (October 29, 2020). "Rottweiler: Dogs of Hell". IMDB. Archived from the original on August 4, 2004. Retrieved October 29, 2020.
  7. ↑ Owensby, Earl (October 29, 2020). "Chain Gang in 3D". Blu-Ray.com. Retrieved October 29, 2020.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. ↑ Cook, David A. (August 19, 2021). A History of Three-Dimensional Cinema (Anthem Series on Exploitation and Industry in World Cinema). Anthem Press. p. 77. ISBN   1839980125.
  9. ↑ "This Is What James Cameron’s The Abyss Set Looks Like 20 Years Later," by Michaele Reyes, cinemablend.com ) (operated by Cinema Blend, LLC, Vancouver, Washington), April 16, 2014
  10. ↑ "Turner Classic Movies: Hootch overview" . Retrieved December 3, 2020.
  11. ↑ "American Film Institute Catalog: Reuben, Reuben" . Retrieved December 3, 2020.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.