United Artists: Difference between revisions

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The company was founded in 1919, one year after the founding of [[Warner Bros]] They stood out from the other Hollywood studios at the time for two reasons:
The company was founded in 1919, one year after the founding of [[Warner Bros]] They stood out from the other Hollywood studios at the time for two reasons:


1. As the name "United Artists" indicates, UA was founded not by executives, but actors and directors--namely, [[Charlie Chaplin]], Douglas Fairbanks, D.W. Griffith, and Mary Pickford, all major names in the era's film industry.<ref>Cowboy star William S. Hart was involved at the very beginning, but left before the studio got off the ground.</ref> The founders intended to avoid [[Executive Meddling]] by taking control of their own work. To date, [[Dream Works]] is the only other big studio founded by creators.
1. As the name "United Artists" indicates, UA was founded not by executives, but actors and directors--namely, [[Charlie Chaplin]], Douglas Fairbanks, D.W. Griffith, and Mary Pickford, all major names in the era's film industry.<ref>Cowboy star William S. Hart was involved at the very beginning, but left before the studio got off the ground.</ref> The founders intended to avoid [[Executive Meddling]] by taking control of their own work. To date, [[DreamWorks]] is the only other big studio founded by creators.


2. UA were never much more than backer-distributors (most other studios at the time made their own movies). Because of this, they were usually the [[Butt Monkey]] of the studio system's eight biggest studios during [[The Golden Age of Hollywood]]. In fact, sometimes it was like there was [[My Friends and Zoidberg|seven big studios and United Artists]].
2. UA were never much more than backer-distributors (most other studios at the time made their own movies). Because of this, they were usually the [[Butt Monkey]] of the studio system's eight biggest studios during [[The Golden Age of Hollywood]]. In fact, sometimes it was like there was [[My Friends and Zoidberg|seven big studios and United Artists]].
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United Artists was successful enough to diversify during [[The Fifties]]. The company started a TV production division in 1956. UA also launched United Artists Records in 1957; like other labels started by film studios, it was initially an outlet for soundtrack albums, but evolved into a major name in the music industry.
United Artists was successful enough to diversify during [[The Fifties]]. The company started a TV production division in 1956. UA also launched United Artists Records in 1957; like other labels started by film studios, it was initially an outlet for soundtrack albums, but evolved into a major name in the music industry.


Unfortunately, this idyllic lifestyle came to a screeching halt in 1980, when UA distributed ''[[Heavens Gate (Film)|Heavens Gate]]''. It had a big budget, but it ended up one of the most notorious [[Creator Killer|creator-killing]] failures in history. So much that Transamerica's aforementioned ambition was dashed, and they were forced to sell the studio to [[Metro Goldwyn Mayer]]. Meanwhile, the record label got sold to EMI.
Unfortunately, this idyllic lifestyle came to a screeching halt in 1980, when UA distributed ''[[Heaven's Gate (film)|Heavens Gate]]''. It had a big budget, but it ended up one of the most notorious [[Creator Killer|creator-killing]] failures in history. So much that Transamerica's aforementioned ambition was dashed, and they were forced to sell the studio to [[Metro Goldwyn Mayer]]. Meanwhile, the record label got sold to EMI.


At first, MGM treated UA as an equal in the business. However, they fell out of favor when MGM began getting their hands on other libraries left and right. They then became more of an arthouse distributor.
At first, MGM treated UA as an equal in the business. However, they fell out of favor when MGM began getting their hands on other libraries left and right. They then became more of an arthouse distributor.
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=== United Artists films with [[TV Tropes]] pages: ===
=== United Artists films with [[TV Tropes]] pages: ===
* ''[[12 Angry Men (Film)|Twelve Angry Men]]'' (1957)
* ''[[12 Angry Men|Twelve Angry Men]]'' (1957)
* ''[[Twenty Four Hour Party People (Film)|Twenty Four Hour Party People]]''
* ''[[24 Hour Party People|Twenty Four Hour Party People]]''
* ''[[Two Hundred Motels (Film)|Two Hundred Motels]]''
* ''[[200 Motels|Two Hundred Motels]]''
* ''[[The African Queen]]''
* ''[[The African Queen]]''
* ''[[All Dogs Go to Heaven (Animation)|All Dogs Go to Heaven]]''
* ''[[All Dogs Go to Heaven]]''
* [[Woody Allen]] films:
* [[Woody Allen]] films:
** ''[[Bananas]]''
** ''[[Bananas]]''
** ''[[Sleeper (Film)|Sleeper]]''
** ''[[Sleeper (film)|Sleeper]]''
** ''[[Love and Death]]''
** ''[[Love and Death]]''
** ''[[Annie Hall (Film)|Annie Hall]]''
** ''[[Annie Hall]]''
* ''[[The Apartment (Film)|The Apartment]]''
* ''[[The Apartment]]''
* ''[[Apocalypse Now]]''
* ''[[Apocalypse Now]]''
* ''[[Around the World In Eighty Days]]'' (1956)
* ''[[Around the World in Eighty Days]]'' (1956)
* ''[[Art School Confidential]]''
* ''[[Art School Confidential]]''
* [[The Beatles (Music)|The Beatles]]' films:
* [[The Beatles (band)|The Beatles]]' films:
** ''[[A Hard Days Night (Film)|A Hard Days Night]]''
** ''[[A Hard Day's Night|A Hard Days Night]]''
** ''[[Help (Film)|Help]]''
** ''[[Help]]''
** ''[[Yellow Submarine (Animation)|Yellow Submarine]]''
** ''[[Yellow Submarine]]''
** ''[[Let It Be (Film)|Let It Be]]''
** ''[[Let It Be]]''
* ''[[Carrie]]''
* ''[[Carrie]]''
* ''[[The Childrens Hour]]''
* ''[[The Children's Hour]]''
* ''[[Chitty Chitty Bang Bang]]''
* ''[[Chitty Chitty Bang Bang]]''
* ''[[Coming Home]]''
* ''[[Coming Home]]''
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** ''[[A Fistful of Dollars]]''
** ''[[A Fistful of Dollars]]''
** ''[[For a Few Dollars More]]''
** ''[[For a Few Dollars More]]''
** ''[[The Good the Bad And The Ugly]]''
** ''[[The Good, the Bad and the Ugly]]''
* ''[[Fiddler On the Roof]]''
* ''[[Fiddler On the Roof]]''
* ''[[The Final Countdown]]''
* ''[[The Final Countdown]]''
* ''[[A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum (Theatre)|A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum]]''
* ''[[A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum]]''
* ''[[The General (Film)|The General]]''
* ''[[The General (film)|The General]]''
* ''[[Ghost World]]''
* ''[[Ghost World]]''
* ''[[The Great Dictator]]''
* ''[[The Great Dictator]]''
* ''[[The Great Escape]]''
* ''[[The Great Escape]]''
* ''[[The Greatest Story Ever Told]]''
* ''[[The Greatest Story Ever Told]]''
* ''[[Heavens Gate (Film)|Heavens Gate]]''
* ''[[Heaven's Gate (film)|Heavens Gate]]''
* ''[[High Noon]]'' (1952)
* ''[[High Noon]]'' (1952)
* ''[[Hotel Rwanda]]''
* ''[[Hotel Rwanda]]''
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* ''[[How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying]]''
* ''[[How to Succeed In Business Without Really Trying]]''
* ''[[Adventures of Huckleberry Finn|Huckleberry Finn]]'' (1974 film)
* ''[[Adventures of Huckleberry Finn|Huckleberry Finn]]'' (1974 film)
* ''[[Inherit the Wind (Theatre)|Inherit the Wind]]''
* ''[[Inherit the Wind]]''
* ''[[It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World (Film)|Its a Mad Mad Mad Mad World]]''
* ''[[It's A Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World|Its a Mad Mad Mad Mad World]]''
* ''[[Jack the Giant Killer (Film)|Jack the Giant Killer]]''
* ''[[Jack the Giant Killer (film)|Jack the Giant Killer]]''
* The ''[[James Bond (Film)|James Bond]]'' series between 1962 and 1981:
* The ''[[James Bond (film)|James Bond]]'' series between 1962 and 1981:
** ''[[Dr. No (Film)|Dr. No]]''
** ''[[Dr. No]]''
** ''[[From Russia With Love (Film)|From Russia With Love]]''
** ''[[From Russia with Love]]''
** ''[[Goldfinger (Film)|Goldfinger]]''
** ''[[Goldfinger]]''
** ''[[Thunderball (Film)|Thunderball]]''
** ''[[Thunderball]]''
** ''[[You Only Live Twice (Film)|You Only Live Twice]]''
** ''[[You Only Live Twice]]''
** ''[[On Her Majesty's Secret Service (Film)|On Her Majesty's Secret Service]]''
** ''[[On Her Majesty's Secret Service]]''
** ''[[Diamonds Are Forever (Film)|Diamonds Are Forever]]''
** ''[[Diamonds Are Forever]]''
** ''[[Live and Let Die (Film)|Live and Let Die]]''
** ''[[Live and Let Die (film)|Live and Let Die]]''
** ''[[The Man With the Golden Gun (Film)|The Man With the Golden Gun]]''
** ''[[The Man with the Golden Gun]]''
** ''[[The Spy Who Loved Me (Film)|The Spy Who Loved Me]]''
** ''[[The Spy Who Loved Me]]''
** ''[[Moonraker (Film)|Moonraker]]''
** ''[[Moonraker]]''
** ''[[For Your Eyes Only (Film)|For Your Eyes Only]]''
** ''[[For Your Eyes Only (film)|For Your Eyes Only]]''
* ''[[Last Tango in Paris]]''
* ''[[Last Tango in Paris]]''
* ''[[The Lord of the Rings (Animation)|The Lord of the Rings]]'' (the 1978 animated film)
* ''[[The Lord of the Rings (animation)|The Lord of the Rings]]'' (the 1978 animated film)
* ''[[The Magnificent Seven (Film)|The Magnificent Seven]]'' and its [[Sequelitis|sequels]]
* ''[[The Magnificent Seven]]'' and its [[Sequelitis|sequels]]
* ''[[Man of La Mancha]]''
* ''[[Man of La Mancha]]''
* ''[[The Manchurian Candidate]]'' (1962)
* ''[[The Manchurian Candidate]]'' (1962)
* ''[[Midnight Cowboy]]''
* ''[[Midnight Cowboy]]''
* ''[[Modern Times]]''
* ''[[Modern Times]]''
* ''[[The Mouse That Roared (Literature)|The Mouse on the Moon]]''
* ''[[The Mouse That Roared|The Mouse on the Moon]]''
* ''[[The Night of the Hunter (Film)|The Night of the Hunter]]''
* ''[[The Night of the Hunter]]''
* ''[[Novecento]]'' (aka ''1900''; distributor in Australia, France and Germany)
* ''[[Novecento]]'' (aka ''1900''; distributor in Australia, France and Germany)
* ''[[Of Mice and Men (Literature)|Of Mice and Men]]'' (1939)
* ''[[Of Mice and Men]]'' (1939)
* ''[[On the Beach]]'' (1959)
* ''[[On the Beach]]'' (1959)
* ''[[One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest]]''
* ''[[One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest]]''
* ''[[Paths of Glory]]''
* ''[[Paths of Glory]]''
* The ''[[Pink Panther]]'' series
* The ''[[Pink Panther]]'' series
* ''[[The Plague Dogs (Literature)|The Plague Dogs]]'' (UK distributor)
* ''[[The Plague Dogs]]'' (UK distributor)
* ''[[The Prisoner of Zenda]]'' (1937)
* ''[[The Prisoner of Zenda]]'' (1937)
* The first two ''[[Quatermass]]'' films (US distributor, both under [[Market-Based Title|Market Based Titles]]):
* The first two ''[[Quatermass]]'' films (US distributor, both under [[Market-Based Title|Market Based Titles]]):
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** ''Quatermass II'' (as ''Enemy from Space'')
** ''Quatermass II'' (as ''Enemy from Space'')
* ''[[Raging Bull]]''
* ''[[Raging Bull]]''
* ''[[Rain Man (Film)|Rain Man]]''
* ''[[Rain Man]]''
* ''[[Red Dawn]]''
* ''[[Red Dawn]]''
* The ''[[Rocky (Film)|Rocky]]'' series
* The ''[[Rocky (film)|Rocky]]'' series
* ''[[The Russians Are Coming]]''
* ''[[The Russians Are Coming]]''
* ''[[The Secret of NIMH (Animation)|The Secret of NIMH]]''
* ''[[The Secret of NIMH]]''
* [[Silly Symphonies]] shorts (distributor, July 1932--May 1937)
* [[Silly Symphonies]] shorts (distributor, July 1932--May 1937)
* ''[[Since You Went Away (Film)|Since You Went Away]]''
* ''[[Since You Went Away]]''
* ''[[Some Like It Hot]]''
* ''[[Some Like It Hot]]''
* ''[[Stagecoach]]'' (1939)
* ''[[Stagecoach]]'' (1939)
* ''[[To Be or Not To Be]]'' (1942)
* ''[[To Be or Not to Be]]'' (1942)
* ''[[Tom Jones (Film)|Tom Jones]]'' (1963)
* ''[[Tom Jones]]'' (1963)
* ''[[Valkyrie (Film)|Valkyrie]]''
* ''[[Valkyrie]]''
* ''[[War Games]]''
* ''[[War Games]]''
* ''[[West Side Story]]''
* ''[[West Side Story]]''
* ''[[Wuthering Heights (Literature)|Wuthering Heights]]'' (1939)
* ''[[Wuthering Heights (novel)|Wuthering Heights]]'' (1939)


=== United Artists TV series with [[TV Tropes]] pages: ===
=== United Artists TV series with [[TV Tropes]] pages: ===
* ''[[The Fugitive (TV)|The Fugitive]]''
* ''[[The Fugitive (TV series)|The Fugitive]]''
* ''[[Gilligan's Island (TV)|Gilligans Island]]''
* ''[[Gilligan's Island|Gilligans Island]]''
* ''[[Its About Time]]''
* ''[[It's About Time]]''
* ''[[My Mother the Car]]''
* ''[[My Mother the Car]]''
* ''[[The Outer Limits (TV)|The Outer Limits]]''
* ''[[The Outer Limits]]''
* ''[[The Patty Duke Show]]''
* ''[[The Patty Duke Show]]''
* ''[[The Rat Patrol (TV)|The Rat Patrol]]''
* ''[[The Rat Patrol]]''


{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}

Revision as of 02:58, 8 April 2014

/wiki/United Artistscreator
File:United Artists 3179.jpg
"The proudest name in entertainment"
—Slogan of United Artists Records during the 1960's

United Artists is a film studio from Hollywood.

The company was founded in 1919, one year after the founding of Warner Bros They stood out from the other Hollywood studios at the time for two reasons:

1. As the name "United Artists" indicates, UA was founded not by executives, but actors and directors--namely, Charlie Chaplin, Douglas Fairbanks, D.W. Griffith, and Mary Pickford, all major names in the era's film industry.[1] The founders intended to avoid Executive Meddling by taking control of their own work. To date, DreamWorks is the only other big studio founded by creators.

2. UA were never much more than backer-distributors (most other studios at the time made their own movies). Because of this, they were usually the Butt Monkey of the studio system's eight biggest studios during The Golden Age of Hollywood. In fact, sometimes it was like there was seven big studios and United Artists.

This all changed with the collapse of the studio system in the 1950's. While the other studios suffered as a result of this (especially RKO and Metro Goldwyn Mayer), UA prospered, with a system that bankrolled outside production companies, giving them more freedom than most of its other rivals wanted to. In the 1960s, this paid off with the company with releasing more hits every year, especially with the James Bond series. UA was purchased by Transamerica (an insurance company) in 1967, which they did to strengthen themselves to form a conglomerate in the veins of General Electric or RCA. This worked well for them, and soon nearly every studio was following their example (Disney was still making its own films).

United Artists was successful enough to diversify during The Fifties. The company started a TV production division in 1956. UA also launched United Artists Records in 1957; like other labels started by film studios, it was initially an outlet for soundtrack albums, but evolved into a major name in the music industry.

Unfortunately, this idyllic lifestyle came to a screeching halt in 1980, when UA distributed Heavens Gate. It had a big budget, but it ended up one of the most notorious creator-killing failures in history. So much that Transamerica's aforementioned ambition was dashed, and they were forced to sell the studio to Metro Goldwyn Mayer. Meanwhile, the record label got sold to EMI.

At first, MGM treated UA as an equal in the business. However, they fell out of favor when MGM began getting their hands on other libraries left and right. They then became more of an arthouse distributor.

A comeback was anticipated in 2006, when Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner joined forced to revitalize UA. Unfortunately, the comeback never materialized due to a combination of MGM's financial problems and Paula Wagner's departure, and MGM has since reclaimed full ownership.

Today, like MGM, United Artists is pretty much little more than a production company, getting its films distributed by other entities.

United Artists films with TV Tropes pages:

United Artists TV series with TV Tropes pages:

  1. ↑ Cowboy star William S. Hart was involved at the very beginning, but left before the studio got off the ground.
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