Sunn Classic Pictures

Last updated
Sunn Classic Pictures
TypeProduction company
Film distributor
IndustryMotion picture / television entertainment
Founded1971 [1] [2]
FounderRayland Jensen
Defunct1988 to 1990 [1]
FateAcquired 1988
SuccessorLibrary:
Paramount Pictures
Headquarters
Park City, Utah
,
United States
Owner Schick (1971–1980) [1]
Taft Broadcasting (1980–1987) [3]
Independent (2000–present) [4]
Website www.sunnclassicpictures.com

Sunn Classic Pictures, also known as Sunn International Pictures, Schick Sunn Classic Pictures, and Taft International Pictures was an independent [4] U.S.-based film distributor, founded in 1971. [1] [2] The company was notable for family films and documentaries, and was purchased by Taft Broadcasting in 1980.

Contents

History

Sunn Classic was located in Park City, Utah, [5] with offices in nearby Salt Lake City; [3] its company name added an extra "n" to the word "Sun" to differentiate them from a publisher of pornographic books. [6] The founder, Rayland Jensen, previously handled distribution of American National Enterprises' 1968 release, Alaskan Safari, which spent five years at the North American box office. [1] In 1971, Jensen began his new company at the request of employees from the Schick razor company, [1] at the time a subsidiary of Warner-Lambert. [7] The founding executives were Jenson, Patrick Frawley (of Schick), and Charles E. Sellier Jr.

During its tenure, Sunn Classic spent US$85,000 in pre-production research on each of its films, conducting phone surveys and interviews with potential viewers. According to Bruce A. Austin, "Sunn identified as its market working-class families who rarely went to the movies more than twice a year". In the midst of the research, it released films with an MPAA rating of G, and in heavily marketed limited engagements. Through a process called four wall distribution (or "four-walling"), the company would rent theaters to show its films, and retained all of the box office receipts. [2] [8]

Sunn Classic specialized in family entertainment such as 1974's The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams , [4] [8] and its subsequent spin-off television series on the NBC network. [1] The Outer Space Connection was released in 1975. This documentary was produced by Alan Landsburg but was distributed by Sunn Classic. By 1977, domestic sales for Grizzly Adams reached upwards of US$24 million; another Sunn release, In Search of Noah's Ark , made US$26 million. [2]

For 1977's The Lincoln Conspiracy , [2] the company departed from its normal four wall distribution strategy to demand up-front guarantees from theatres. [9] [10] Among its other titles were 1979's In Search of Historic Jesus [11] and 1983's Cujo .

The company also ran a television unit in tandem with its film department. [3] Most of the company's 1970's productions were produced by Charles E. Sellier Jr and several were directed by the young (at the time) director James L. Conway and both would go on to long careers in the entertainment industry.

In July 1980, [12] the company and two Schick divisions were purchased by Cincinnati-based Taft Enterprises [13] for over US$2.5 million. [3] [12] Eventually, the new owner christened Sunn Classic as Taft International Pictures. [11] The group became part of the Taft Entertainment Company. [14] However, after Carl Lindner Jr. purchased Taft in 1987 and restructured it into Great American Broadcasting, the studio ceased operations. By the 2000s, the media and property assets of the original Sunn Classics were under new management. [4]

Jensen and another fellow employee, Clair Farley, formed Jensen Farley Pictures to take over the theatrical distribution assets; one of their early releases was 1981's Private Lessons . [15] [16]

Currently Sunn Classic's library is owned by Paramount Global subsidiary Paramount Pictures through Melange Pictures. However, very few films from that library have seen a DVD or Blu-ray release; those that have are mostly the later larger-budgeted Taft productions such as Cujo, Hangar 18 , and The Boogens although some of their TV shows like The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams have been released on DVD, under the CBS DVD banner due to CBS' ownership of the television side of the library. Like with almost all the Melange Pictures owned films, Olive Films owns the home video rights to the catalog.

Production slate

A partial list of films produced:

Documentaries

Films

Television films

From 1977 to 1982 the company produced a series of television films with the Classics Illustrated brand (Schick Sunn Classic Pictures executive Patrick Frawley owned the rights to Classic Illustrated during this period):

Related Research Articles

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Daniel Francis Haggerty was an American actor who was best known for playing the title role in the film and television series The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams.

<i>The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams</i> 1974 TV film and series

The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams is a 1974 independent feature film produced by Charles E. Sellier Jr. and Raylan D. Jensen for Sunn Classic Pictures. The film's popularity led to an NBC television series of the same name. The title character, played by Dan Haggerty, was loosely based on California mountain man John "Grizzly" Adams (1812–1860).

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The Taft Broadcasting Company was an American media conglomerate based in Cincinnati, Ohio.

<i>Beyond and Back</i> 1978 film

Beyond and Back is a 1978 documentary and "death-sploitation flick" released by Sunn Classic Pictures that deals with the subject of near death experiences.

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<i>Private Lessons</i> (1981 film) 1981 film by Alan Myerson

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<i>In Search of Noahs Ark</i> 1976 American film

In Search of Noah's Ark is a 1976 American documentary film based on David W. Balsiger and Charles E. Sellier Jr.'s book of the same name. Released by Sunn Classic Pictures, it explores the alleged final resting place of Noah's Ark.

Bradley Crandall was an American radio personality, voice-over announcer, and film narrator, best known for his radio show on WNBC in New York City, which aired from March 1964 to September 1971.

<i>In Search of Historic Jesus</i> 1979 American film

In Search of Historic Jesus is a 1979 American documentary film based on Lee Roddy and Charles E. Sellier Jr.'s book of the same name. Released by Sunn Classic Pictures, the film speculates on the historical accuracy of the biblical depiction of Jesus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jensen Farley Pictures</span>

Jensen Farley Pictures was an American independent film distribution company based in Utah that released several films between 1980 and 1983, founded by Rayland Jensen and Clair Farley, former heads of Sunn Classic Pictures. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on December 30, 1983, and ceased distribution.

Patrick Joseph Frawley, Jr. (1923–1998) was a Nicaraguan-American business magnate whose portfolio included Paper Mate, Schick, and Technicolor, Inc. A devout Catholic, he was a leading American conservative figure from the late 1950s onward. He became involved in publishing and film production from the late 1960s.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Management Team". Sunn Classic Pictures. Archived from the original on February 4, 2013. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Film gives new twist to Lincoln assassination". The Day . New London, Connecticut. Associated Press (AP). May 23, 1977. p. 15. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Staff (June 26, 1980). "Taft forms movie unit". Deseret News . p. 5B. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
  4. 1 2 3 4 "Company profile". Sunn Classic Pictures. 2004. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
  5. ↑ Buck, Jerry (April 9, 1978). "Programmed Bear". The Palm Beach Post . Associated Press (AP). p. G8. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
  6. ↑ Balsiger, David (4 October 1977). "Lincoln Conspiracy". The Capital Times. p. 33.
  7. ↑ safetyrazors.net: Schick Injector razors
  8. 1 2 Austin, Bruce A. (1989). "The Film Industry and Audience Response". Immediate Seating: A Look at Movie Audiences. Wadsworth Publishing. pp. 12–13. ISBN   0-534-09366-3.
  9. ↑ Silverman, Syd (January 4, 1978). "Show Biz Hits Grand Slam in 1977". Variety . p. 1.
  10. ↑ The Lincoln Conspiracy at the American Film Institute Catalog
  11. 1 2 Ebert, Roger (February 23, 1982). "Utah fest introduces new faces, films". The Miami News . Chicago Sun-Times. p. 3C. Retrieved October 11, 2010.
  12. 1 2 "Abstracts". Wall Street Journal Abstracts. Dow Jones & Company (News Corporation). July 10, 1980. p. 26.
  13. ↑ Staff (July 27, 1987). "Special Report: The top 50 companies". Advertising Age . Crain Communications, Inc. p. S-3.
  14. ↑ "Under one roof" (PDF). Broadcasting . September 8, 1980. p. 38. Retrieved October 8, 2023.
  15. ↑ Donahue, Suzanne Mary (1987). American Film Distribution: The Changing Marketplace. UMI Research Press. p. 232. ISBN   0-8357-1776-3 . Retrieved October 11, 2010.
  16. ↑ Hollinger, Hy (November 18, 1982). "Jensen Farley Pictures Wants To Fill Niche Once Held By Avco and Filmways". Daily Variety . pp. 1, 22.
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