Samuel Z. Arkoff

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Samuel Z. Arkoff
Arkoff in 2000
Born
Samuel Zachary Arkoff

June 12, 1918
Fort Dodge, Iowa, U.S.
DiedSeptember 16, 2001(2001-09-16) (aged 83)
Burbank, California, U.S.
Resting placeMount Sinai Memorial Park Cemetery
OccupationFilm producer
Known forco-founder of American International Pictures
SpouseHilda Rusoff
ChildrenLouis Arkoff
Donna Arkoff Roth

Samuel Zachary Arkoff (June 12, 1918 – September 16, 2001) was an American

producer of B movies.[1]

Life and career

Arkoff was born in Fort Dodge, Iowa, to Russian Jewish parents. He was the son of Helen (Lurie) and Louis Arkoff, who ran his Louis Clothing Co.[2][3] Arkoff first studied to be a lawyer. He began his career in Hollywood as a producer of The Hank McCune Show, a seminal sitcom produced in 1951.

In 1954, James H. Nicholson founded the American Releasing Corporation, which later became known as American International Pictures, and made Arkoff the vice-president. AIP films were mostly low-budget, with production completed in a few days, though nearly all of them became profitable. Along with business partner James H. Nicholson and producer-director Roger Corman, he produced eighteen films.

Arkoff is also credited with starting a few genres, such as the

Jay Anson's book The Amityville Horror
.

Following the sale of AIP to Filmways in 1979 for $30 million, Arkoff was unhappy with the direction of the company and resigned in December 1979 to set up his own production company, Arkoff International Pictures.,[4] receiving a payout worth $1.4 million.[5][6]

Arkoff's 1992 autobiography was titled Flying Through Hollywood by the Seat of my Pants: From the Man who Brought You I was a Teenage Werewolf and Muscle Beach Party.[7][8]

In 2000, Arkoff was featured alongside former collaborators including Roger Corman, Dick Miller and Peter Bogdanovich in the documentary SCHLOCK! The Secret History of American Movies, a film about the rise and fall of American exploitation cinema.

Personal life and death

He was married to Hilda Rusoff. They had two children: Louis Arkoff, who was also his producing partner; and Donna Roth, who is a movie producer married to the former chairman of Walt Disney Studios Joe Roth. He also had five grandchildren and a great-grandson.

Arkoff died in 2001 at age 83, within weeks of his wife's death.

The "ARKOFF Formula"

During a 1980s television talk show appearance, Arkoff shared with viewers his "ARKOFF Formula" for making successful, memorable films.[citation needed] The formula—or, more accurately, the checklist—forms an acronym of his surname, and it identifies the content elements that should be considered and included in a movie, especially in a low-budget production:[9]

  • 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)

References

  1. New York Times
    . Retrieved April 27, 2015. Samuel Z. Arkoff, the low-budget movie mogul who enticed two generations of teenagers into drive-in theaters with movies like I Was a Teenage Werewolf and Wild in the Streets, died on Sunday in Burbank, Calif. He was 83. ...
  2. ^ Samuel Arkoff desmoinesregister.com
  3. ^ "FamilySearch.org". FamilySearch.
  4. ^ Lawrence Van Gelder (October 2, 1987). "At the Movies: 'Beach Party' man is producing films again, after a pause 'Beverly Hills Cop II' premiere in Britain Richard Gere explores brotherhood on a farm 105th movie for Lillian Gish New from Louis Malle Japanese festival, U.S. films". New York Times. p. C8.
  5. ^ "President of Filmways' American International Pictures Resigns Post". Wall Street Journal. December 6, 1979. p. 30.
  6. ^ "Filmways Inc. Pays Ex-Aide $1.4 Million". Wall Street Journal. July 8, 1980. p. 8.
  7. ISBN 1-55972-107-3
    .
  8. ^ "Flying Through Hollywood by the Seat of my Pants". Kirkus Reviews. New York: Kirkus Media LLC. February 1, 1992. Retrieved October 8, 2021.
  9. ^ Ferrara, Greg. "FILM ARTICLE: Wild in the Streets", Turner Classic Movies Retrieved September 17, 2018.

External links

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