Associated Artists Productions
Encyclopedia
Associated Artists Productions (a.a.p.) was a distributor of theatrical feature films and short subjects for television
. It existed from 1953 to 1958. It was later folded into United Artists
. The former a.a.p. library was later owned by MGM/UA Entertainment
and then Turner Entertainment
. Turner (in conjunction with Warner Bros. Television
) continues to own the former a.a.p. library as part of the Time Warner
conglomerate.
film library, which included every feature film and most short subjects the studio released prior to that year.
The material a.a.p. bought from Warner Bros. Pictures included all of its features produced and distributed by Warners prior to 1950 (Warner retained the rights to two 1949 films it only distributed) and all of its live action short subjects released prior to September 1, 1948. Also included was the 1956 Warners film Moby Dick
.
The cartoon library included every color Looney Tunes
and Merrie Melodies
short released prior to August 1, 1948, and all of the Merrie Melodies produced by Harman-Ising Pictures from 1931 to 1933, except Lady, Play Your Mandolin!
(1931). The remaining black-and-white Merrie Melodies were not part of this package, and the black-and-white Looney Tunes (along with the Schlesinger-produced B&W Merrie Melodies) were already sold to Sunset Productions
. Former Warner cartoon director Bob Clampett
was hired to catalog the Warner cartoon library.
a.a.p. also purchased the Popeye
cartoons from Paramount Pictures
, which had been produced by Fleischer Studios
and Famous Studios
. This purchase and the Warner Bros. cartoon package combined gave a.a.p. a library of over 568 theatrical cartoon shorts, which would be staples of children's television for decades.
For the Warner Bros. productions, a.a.p. simply inserted their logo at the beginning of the film (the logo used specifically for the cartoons featured various WB characters arranged around the company name).
For the Popeye cartoons, a.a.p. removed all logos and mentions of Paramount from the Popeye prints they distributed, since Paramount did not want to be associated with television
at the time (the original copyright line remained, as Paramount held theatrical rights until 1967 - at which point they reverted to UA, who, unlike Paramount, never actually reissued Popeye cartoons theatrically).
in 1958. The resulting division was named United Artists Associated (a division of United Artists Television
, or UATV for short), and, by 1968, United Artists Television Distribution. In 1981, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
purchased United Artists, along with its film library.
The rights to Alfred Hitchcock
's 1948 film Rope
, originally distributed by Warner Bros., reverted to Alfred Hitchcock (and later his estate). Distribution rights were later sold to Universal Pictures
in 1983, although UA continues to hold the film's copyright.
Turner Entertainment
took over the library in 1986 after Ted Turner
's short-lived acquisition of MGM/UA. When Turner sold back the MGM/UA production unit, he kept the MGM library, including the former a.a.p. properties, for his own company. Not included in this purchase was the feature Moby Dick
, which UA (via MGM) continues to own today (although the worldwide rights are currently held by StudioCanal
with MGM holding distribution rights in most international countries).
The Warner Bros. film libraries were reunited when the studio's parent company Time Warner
bought Turner in 1996. Turner retains the rights to the former a.a.p. properties, while Warner handles their distribution.
UA originally leased video rights to their library (including the a.a.p. library) to Magnetic Video
, the first home video company. Magnetic Video was sold to 20th Century Fox
in 1981, becoming 20th Century Fox Video. In 1982, Fox and CBS
formed CBS/Fox Video
, which continued to distribute the UA/a.a.p. library under license from MGM/UA Home Video
until the rights reverted back to MGM/UA. After Turner's purchase of the MGM/UA library, MGM/UA Home Video continued to distribute the films on video under license until 1999, when the rights were transferred to Warner Home Video
.
For color films, the colors faded over time as the material used was inferior to what was used for theatrical prints. These same prints would be the ones used on pre-1999 VHS and laserdisc releases of former a.a.p.-owned films. The a.a.p. versions of these films were also later used for cable television broadcasts (even as recently as March 2011, a.a.p. prints of WB cartoons have been seen on TV). Early video releases of WB films released between 1928-1931 bore an a.a.p. copyright renewal notice, since these renewals came before the UA purchase.
In the 1990s, Turner began removing the a.a.p. logos from many of the films (although this process started before that by both UA and local television stations). One hundred twenty-three of the Warner Bros. cartoons purchased by a.a.p. were restored from their original negatives for inclusion in Warner Home Video's series of six Looney Tunes Golden Collection
DVD box sets (with the color cartoons looking very vibrant, as to attempt to create an experience similar to when the cartoons were first released in theaters).
The black and white Popeye cartoons (and the three Color Specials) were also restored from their original negatives for a series of three Popeye the Sailor
DVD sets (a production error on Volume 2, later corrected, resulted in the accidental usage of prints with a.a.p. titles on two cartoons, though the Paramount logos were still seen). The Famous-produced color Popeye cartoons will be released in later years, though no dates have been set. Prior to 2007, no official video releases of the Popeye cartoons were available due to licensing issues with King Features (MGM/UA had attempted to release some cartoons in the 1980s, but KFS blocked their attempt).
stereotypes, included:
The ban would be upheld even by the later owners of the a.a.p. library, including MGM, Turner, and now Warner Bros. themselves. However, the cartoons are available online and on many unauthorized collections of mainly-public domain cartoons on VHS and DVD, despite eight of the cartoons remaining under copyright.
which a.a.p. bought the rights to.
The subsidiary was later folded into UA's main theatrical distribution arm after the company was sold to UA.
in The Teardrop Explodes
song "Sleeping Gas".
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
. It existed from 1953 to 1958. It was later folded into United Artists
United Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
. The former a.a.p. library was later owned by MGM/UA Entertainment
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
and then Turner Entertainment
Turner Entertainment
Turner Entertainment Company, Inc. is an American media company founded by Ted Turner. Now owned by Time Warner, the company is largely responsible for overseeing its library for worldwide distribution Turner Entertainment Company, Inc. (commonly known as Turner Entertainment Co.) is an American...
. Turner (in conjunction with Warner Bros. Television
Warner Bros. Television
Warner Bros. Television is the television production arm of Warner Bros. Entertainment, itself part of Time Warner. Alongside CBS Television Studios, it serves as a television production arm of The CW Television Network , though it also produces shows for other networks, such as Shameless on...
) continues to own the former a.a.p. library as part of the Time Warner
Time Warner
Time Warner is one of the world's largest media companies, headquartered in the Time Warner Center in New York City. Formerly two separate companies, Warner Communications, Inc...
conglomerate.
Formative years
a.a.p. was founded in 1953 and headed by Elliott Hyman. In 1956, Lon Chesler purchased interest in the company. The same year, a.a.p. purchased the pre-1950 Warner Bros.Warner Bros.
Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., also known as Warner Bros. Pictures or simply Warner Bros. , is an American producer of film and television entertainment.One of the major film studios, it is a subsidiary of Time Warner, with its headquarters in Burbank,...
film library, which included every feature film and most short subjects the studio released prior to that year.
The material a.a.p. bought from Warner Bros. Pictures included all of its features produced and distributed by Warners prior to 1950 (Warner retained the rights to two 1949 films it only distributed) and all of its live action short subjects released prior to September 1, 1948. Also included was the 1956 Warners film Moby Dick
Moby Dick (1956 film)
Moby Dick is a 1956 film adaptation of Herman Melville's novel Moby-Dick. It was directed by John Huston with a screenplay by Ray Bradbury and the director. The film starred Gregory Peck, Richard Basehart, and Leo Genn...
.
The cartoon library included every color Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes
Looney Tunes is a Warner Bros. animated cartoon series. It preceded the Merrie Melodies series and was Warner Bros.'s first animated theatrical series. Since its first official release, 1930's Sinkin' in the Bathtub, the series has become a worldwide media franchise, spawning several television...
and Merrie Melodies
Merrie Melodies
Merrie Melodies is the name of a series of animated cartoons distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures between 1931 and 1969.Originally produced by Harman-Ising Pictures, Merrie Melodies were produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions from 1933 to 1944. Schlesinger sold his studio to Warner Bros. in 1944,...
short released prior to August 1, 1948, and all of the Merrie Melodies produced by Harman-Ising Pictures from 1931 to 1933, except Lady, Play Your Mandolin!
Lady, Play Your Mandolin!
Lady, Play Your Mandolin! was the first Warner Bros. Merrie Melodies cartoon, directed by Rudolf Ising of Harman and Ising. It was originally released in August 1931.-Overview:...
(1931). The remaining black-and-white Merrie Melodies were not part of this package, and the black-and-white Looney Tunes (along with the Schlesinger-produced B&W Merrie Melodies) were already sold to Sunset Productions
Sunset Productions
Sunset Productions was a television syndication division of Warner Bros. which existed in the 1950s.-Overview:Sunset Productions is best known as the company identified on a package of black-and-white Warner Bros. cartoons distributed in television syndication in the early 1950s...
. Former Warner cartoon director Bob Clampett
Bob Clampett
Robert Emerson "Bob" Clampett was an American animator, producer, director, and puppeteer best known for his work on the Looney Tunes animated series from Warner Bros., and the television shows Time for Beany and Beany and Cecil...
was hired to catalog the Warner cartoon library.
a.a.p. also purchased the Popeye
Popeye
Popeye the Sailor is a cartoon fictional character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, who has appeared in comic strips and animated cartoons in the cinema as well as on television. He first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
cartoons from Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
, which had been produced by Fleischer Studios
Fleischer Studios
Fleischer Studios, Inc., was an American corporation which originated as an Animation studio located at 1600 Broadway, New York City, New York...
and Famous Studios
Famous Studios
Famous Studios was the animation division of the film studio Paramount Pictures from 1942 to 1967. Famous was founded as a successor company to Fleischer Studios, after Paramount acquired the aforementioned studio and ousted its founders, Max and Dave Fleischer, in 1941...
. This purchase and the Warner Bros. cartoon package combined gave a.a.p. a library of over 568 theatrical cartoon shorts, which would be staples of children's television for decades.
For the Warner Bros. productions, a.a.p. simply inserted their logo at the beginning of the film (the logo used specifically for the cartoons featured various WB characters arranged around the company name).
For the Popeye cartoons, a.a.p. removed all logos and mentions of Paramount from the Popeye prints they distributed, since Paramount did not want to be associated with television
Paramount Television
Paramount Television was an American television production/distribution company that was active from January 1, 1968 to August 27, 2006.Its successor is CBS Television Studios, formerly CBS Paramount Television...
at the time (the original copyright line remained, as Paramount held theatrical rights until 1967 - at which point they reverted to UA, who, unlike Paramount, never actually reissued Popeye cartoons theatrically).
Ownership of properties
The company was acquired by United ArtistsUnited Artists
United Artists Corporation is an American film studio. The original studio of that name was founded in 1919 by D. W. Griffith, Charles Chaplin, Mary Pickford and Douglas Fairbanks....
in 1958. The resulting division was named United Artists Associated (a division of United Artists Television
United Artists Television
-Background:UA purchased Associated Artists Productions in 1958, giving UA access to the pre-1950 Warner Bros. library and the Popeye cartoons made by Fleischer Studios and Famous Studios between 1933 and 1957....
, or UATV for short), and, by 1968, United Artists Television Distribution. In 1981, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer
Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc. is an American media company, involved primarily in the production and distribution of films and television programs. MGM was founded in 1924 when the entertainment entrepreneur Marcus Loew gained control of Metro Pictures, Goldwyn Pictures Corporation and Louis B. Mayer...
purchased United Artists, along with its film library.
The rights to Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...
's 1948 film Rope
Rope (film)
Rope is a 1948 American thriller film based on the play Rope by Patrick Hamilton and adapted by Hume Cronyn and Arthur Laurents, directed by Alfred Hitchcock and produced by Sidney Bernstein and Hitchcock as the first of their Transatlantic Pictures productions...
, originally distributed by Warner Bros., reverted to Alfred Hitchcock (and later his estate). Distribution rights were later sold to Universal Pictures
Universal Pictures
-1920:* White Youth* The Flaming Disc* Am I Dreaming?* The Dragon's Net* The Adorable Savage* Putting It Over* The Line Runners-1921:* The Fire Eater* A Battle of Wits* Dream Girl* The Millionaire...
in 1983, although UA continues to hold the film's copyright.
Turner Entertainment
Turner Entertainment
Turner Entertainment Company, Inc. is an American media company founded by Ted Turner. Now owned by Time Warner, the company is largely responsible for overseeing its library for worldwide distribution Turner Entertainment Company, Inc. (commonly known as Turner Entertainment Co.) is an American...
took over the library in 1986 after Ted Turner
Ted Turner
Robert Edward "Ted" Turner III is an American media mogul and philanthropist. As a businessman, he is known as founder of the cable news network CNN, the first dedicated 24-hour cable news channel. In addition, he founded WTBS, which pioneered the superstation concept in cable television...
's short-lived acquisition of MGM/UA. When Turner sold back the MGM/UA production unit, he kept the MGM library, including the former a.a.p. properties, for his own company. Not included in this purchase was the feature Moby Dick
Moby Dick (1956 film)
Moby Dick is a 1956 film adaptation of Herman Melville's novel Moby-Dick. It was directed by John Huston with a screenplay by Ray Bradbury and the director. The film starred Gregory Peck, Richard Basehart, and Leo Genn...
, which UA (via MGM) continues to own today (although the worldwide rights are currently held by StudioCanal
StudioCanal
StudioCanal is a French-based production and distribution company that owns the third-largest film library in the world...
with MGM holding distribution rights in most international countries).
The Warner Bros. film libraries were reunited when the studio's parent company Time Warner
Time Warner
Time Warner is one of the world's largest media companies, headquartered in the Time Warner Center in New York City. Formerly two separate companies, Warner Communications, Inc...
bought Turner in 1996. Turner retains the rights to the former a.a.p. properties, while Warner handles their distribution.
UA originally leased video rights to their library (including the a.a.p. library) to Magnetic Video
Magnetic Video
Magnetic Video was a home video/audio duplication service established by Andre Blay in 1968 and based in Farmington Hills, Michigan. In 1977 it became the first corporation to release theatrical motion pictures onto Betamax and VHS videocassette for consumer use. Magnetic Video was a home...
, the first home video company. Magnetic Video was sold to 20th Century Fox
20th Century Fox
Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation — also known as 20th Century Fox, or simply 20th or Fox — is one of the six major American film studios...
in 1981, becoming 20th Century Fox Video. In 1982, Fox and CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
formed CBS/Fox Video
CBS/Fox Video
CBS/Fox Video was a home video company formed and established in 1982, as a merger between 20th Century Fox Video, formerly Magnetic Video Corporation, and CBS Video Enterprises....
, which continued to distribute the UA/a.a.p. library under license from MGM/UA Home Video
MGM Home Entertainment
MGM Home Entertainment is the home video and DVD arm of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer.-History:The home video division of MGM started in 1979 as MGM Home Video, releasing all the movies and TV shows by MGM. In 1980, MGM joined forces with CBS Video Enterprises, the home video division of the CBS television...
until the rights reverted back to MGM/UA. After Turner's purchase of the MGM/UA library, MGM/UA Home Video continued to distribute the films on video under license until 1999, when the rights were transferred to Warner Home Video
Warner Home Video
Warner Home Video is the home video unit of Warner Bros. Entertainment, Inc., itself part of Time Warner. It was founded in 1978 as WCI Home Video . The company launched in the United States with twenty films on VHS and Betamax videocassettes in late 1979...
.
Recent television screenings and video releases
Neither a.a.p. nor its successor companies had any access to the original Warner negatives. All television prints of a.a.p.-owned films were made on 16mm film.For color films, the colors faded over time as the material used was inferior to what was used for theatrical prints. These same prints would be the ones used on pre-1999 VHS and laserdisc releases of former a.a.p.-owned films. The a.a.p. versions of these films were also later used for cable television broadcasts (even as recently as March 2011, a.a.p. prints of WB cartoons have been seen on TV). Early video releases of WB films released between 1928-1931 bore an a.a.p. copyright renewal notice, since these renewals came before the UA purchase.
In the 1990s, Turner began removing the a.a.p. logos from many of the films (although this process started before that by both UA and local television stations). One hundred twenty-three of the Warner Bros. cartoons purchased by a.a.p. were restored from their original negatives for inclusion in Warner Home Video's series of six Looney Tunes Golden Collection
Looney Tunes Golden Collection
The Looney Tunes Golden Collection was an annual series of six four-disc DVD box sets from Warner Bros.' home video unit Warner Home Video, each containing about 60 Looney Tunes and Merrie Melodies animated shorts...
DVD box sets (with the color cartoons looking very vibrant, as to attempt to create an experience similar to when the cartoons were first released in theaters).
The black and white Popeye cartoons (and the three Color Specials) were also restored from their original negatives for a series of three Popeye the Sailor
Popeye the Sailor (Warner DVD series)
Popeye the Sailor is a fictional cartoon character created by Elzie Crisler Segar, which first appeared in the daily King Features comic strip Thimble Theatre on January 17, 1929...
DVD sets (a production error on Volume 2, later corrected, resulted in the accidental usage of prints with a.a.p. titles on two cartoons, though the Paramount logos were still seen). The Famous-produced color Popeye cartoons will be released in later years, though no dates have been set. Prior to 2007, no official video releases of the Popeye cartoons were available due to licensing issues with King Features (MGM/UA had attempted to release some cartoons in the 1980s, but KFS blocked their attempt).
Public domain
Some of the films and short subjects bought by a.a.p. fell into the public domain, and are available on various low-budget video releases, although the owners of the original film elements also gave some of this material official releases as well. These include:- 34 Popeye cartoons
- The Color Specials
- 6 B&W Fleischer cartoons
- The Famous B&W cartoon Me Musical Nephews
- Several ranges (by release date) of 1950's Famous cartoons
- Shuteye Popeye to Ancient Fistory
- Floor Flusher to Cookin' With Gags
- Popeye for President to Spooky SwabsSpooky SwabsSpooky Swabs is a Popeye theatrical cartoon short, starring Jack Mercer as Popeye and Mae Questel as Olive Oyl. Produced by Paramount Cartoon Studios and directed by Isadore Sparber, it was released in 1957 and is the final cartoon in the Popeye series of theatrical cartoons released by Paramount...
- 61 WB cartoons
- All Merrie Melodies from Smile, Darn Ya, Smile! through The Shanty Where Santy Claus Lives
- 40 color cartoons released between 1936-44
- 2 cartoons from 1947
- Several WB features, such as Santa Fe TrailSanta Fe Trail (film)Santa Fe Trail is a 1940 western film directed by Michael Curtiz and starring Errol Flynn and Olivia de Havilland. The film was one of the top-grossing films of the year, being the seventh Flynn-de Havilland collaboration. The film also has nothing to do with its namesake, the famed Santa Fe Trail...
and Life with FatherLife with Father (film)Life with Father is a 1947 American comedy film. It tells the true story of Clarence Day, a stockbroker who wants to be master of his house, but finds his wife and his children ignoring him, until they start making demands for him to change his own life. In keeping with the autobiography, all the...
Censored Eleven
11 a.a.p.-owned cartoons were pulled from circulation by UA in 1968, at the height of the Civil Rights movement. These cartoons, banned because they were based around African AmericanAfrican American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
stereotypes, included:
- Hittin' the Trail for Hallelujah LandHittin' the Trail for Hallelujah LandHittin' the Trail for Hallelujah Land is a Merrie Melodies animated cartoon directed by Rudy Ising , produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions, and released to theatres on November 28, 1931 by Warner Bros. Pictures and The Vitaphone Corporation...
- Sunday Go to Meetin' TimeSunday Go to Meetin' TimeSunday Go to Meetin' Time is a Merrie Melodies animated cartoon directed by Friz Freleng, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions, and released to theatres on August 8, 1936 by Warner Bros. Pictures and The Vitaphone Corporation. The plot follows the misadventures of a black man in the...
- Clean PasturesClean PasturesClean Pastures is a Merrie Melodies animated cartoon directed by I. Freleng, produced by Leon Schlesinger, and released to theatres on May 22, 1937 by Warner Bros. and Vitaphone. The cartoon is a parody of Warner Bros.' 1936 film, The Green Pastures...
- Uncle Tom's BungalowUncle Tom's BungalowUncle Tom's Bungalow is a Merrie Melodies animated cartoon directed by Tex Avery, and released to theatres on July 12, 1937 by Warner Bros. The short cartoon is a parody of the 1852 novel, Uncle Tom's Cabin and the “plantation melodrama” genre of the 1930s. It contains many stereotypical portrayals...
- Jungle JittersJungle JittersJungle Jitters is a one-reel animated cartoon short subject in the Merrie Melodies series, produced in Technicolor and released to theatres on February 19, 1938 by Warner Bros. Pictures and The Vitaphone Corporation. It was produced by Leon Schlesinger and directed by Friz Freleng, with musical...
- The Isle of Pingo PongoThe Isle of Pingo PongoThe Isle of Pingo Pongo is a 1938 Warner Bros. cartoon directed by Tex Avery. It is the first of Avery's spoofs of travelogues. The cartoon was banned from television syndication in 1968 by United Artists for racist depictions of black people and is one of the "Censored Eleven".The short follows a...
- All This and Rabbit StewAll This and Rabbit StewAll This and Rabbit Stew is a one-reel animated cartoon short subject in the Merrie Melodies series, produced in Technicolor and released to theatres on September 20, 1941 by Warner Bros. and Vitaphone. It was produced by Leon Schlesinger and directed by an uncredited Tex Avery, with musical...
- Coal Black and de Sebben DwarfsCoal Black and de Sebben DwarfsCoal Black and de Sebben Dwarfs is a Merrie Melodies animated cartoon directed by Bob Clampett, produced by Leon Schlesinger Productions, and released to theatres on January 16, 1943 by Warner Bros...
- Tin Pan Alley CatsTin Pan Alley CatsTin Pan Alley Cats is a 1943 animated short subject, directed by Bob Clampett for Leon Schlesinger Productions as part of Warner Bros.' Merrie Melodies series...
- Angel PussAngel PussAngel Puss is a 1944 short animated cartoon written by Lou Lilly, animated by Ken Harris, and directed by Chuck Jones. It was released on June 3, 1944, by Warner Brothers as part of its Looney Tunes series.-Synopsis:...
- Goldilocks and the Jivin' BearsGoldilocks and the Jivin' BearsGoldilocks and the Jivin' Bears is an animated cartoon short written by Tedd Pierce and directed by Friz Freleng. It was released on September 2, 1944, by Warner Brothers as part of its Merrie Melodies series....
The ban would be upheld even by the later owners of the a.a.p. library, including MGM, Turner, and now Warner Bros. themselves. However, the cartoons are available online and on many unauthorized collections of mainly-public domain cartoons on VHS and DVD, despite eight of the cartoons remaining under copyright.
a.a.p. Records, Inc.
a.a.p. Records, Inc. was a music arm of a.a.p., which has distributed inter alia Official Popeye TV Album.United Telefilms Limited
United Telefilms Limited was the Canadian division of a.a.p., which existed around the same time. Live action films used a variation of the main a.a.p. logo, but the initials "UTL" would be spelled out, and a notice at the bottom said "Distributed in Canada by United Telefilms Limited".Dominant Pictures Corporation
Dominant Pictures Corporation was a subsidiary of a.a.p. which distributed the features that the company purchased to theaters. It re-released a number of films from the pre-1950 WB library, as well as a number of British filmsCinema of the United Kingdom
The United Kingdom has had a major influence on modern cinema. The first moving pictures developed on celluloid film were made in Hyde Park, London in 1889 by William Friese Greene, a British inventor, who patented the process in 1890. It is generally regarded that the British film industry...
which a.a.p. bought the rights to.
The subsidiary was later folded into UA's main theatrical distribution arm after the company was sold to UA.
Cultural References
The company is referenced by Julian CopeJulian Cope
Julian Cope is a British rock musician, author, antiquary, musicologist, poet and cultural commentator...
in The Teardrop Explodes
The Teardrop Explodes
The Teardrop Explodes were an English post-punk/neo-psychedelic band formed in Liverpool in 1978. Best known for their Top Ten UK single "Reward" the group originated as a key band in the emerging Liverpool post-punk scene of the late 1970s, the group also launched the career of group frontman...
song "Sleeping Gas".