- World Wide Pictures
World Wide Pictures (WWP) is a
film distributor and production company established as asubsidiary of theBilly Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) in 1951. It is involved in the production and distribution of evangelisticfilm s, the production of Graham crusade films, andpublicity for Graham crusades.WWP got its start after Graham met
Dick Ross , who had produced adocumentary film of Graham's 1950 crusade inPortland, Oregon . That film's success led the BGEA to buy Ross's production company, and hire him as the president of a new BGEA subsidiary incorporated as the Billy Graham Evangelistic Film Ministry (which was to be WWP's official name until 1980).WWP's first
feature film was "Mr. Texas ", produced during Graham's 1951Fort Worth, Texas Crusade. It was also during the 1950s that WWP established production facilities inBurbank, California .Perhaps WWP's best-known production was the 1965 film "
The Restless Ones ", featuringKim Darby . According to an October 14, 1966 issue of "Christianity Today " more than 120,000 professions of faith were recorded after more than two million people viewed the film. Other major feature films included "Two A Penny" (1965), which starredCliff Richard [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0140642/ Two a Penny (1967) IMDB.com] ] . Both "The Hiding Place" (1975) [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0073109/awards The Hiding Place (1975) IMDB.com] ] (withJulie Harris ) and "Time to Run" (1973) [ [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0070806/awards Time To Run (1973) IMDB.com] ] receivedGolden Globe nominations for Most Promising Newcomer.WWP stopped national releases of its films in the late 1980s. The company sold its Burbank studio, moved its headquarters to Minneapolis, and switched to working with independent producers and distributing films to churches, on home video, and as made-for-TV movies.
They cautiously returned to feature films in 2001, with the limited national release of "
Road to Redemption ", WWP's first comedy after over 125 films (including nine major motion pictures). The film starredPat Hingle . It was followed by "The Climb", which starredJason Winston George ,Ned Vaughn , andDabney Coleman , and featuredTodd Bridges .References
External links
* [http://www.wwp.org/ World Wide Pictures] , from Billy Graham's website, including a [http://www.billygraham.org/WWP_Movies.asp list of films]
*IMDb entries:
** [http://imdb.com/company/co0005954/ List of films as distributor]
** [http://imdb.com/company/co0016145/ List of films as production company]
* [http://www.wheaton.edu/bgc/archives/GUIDES/214.htm Records of World Wide Pictures] from the Billy Graham Center at Wheaton College
* [http://www.christianheadlines.com/filmhistory.html A History of Christian Films] , from a "Christian Headlines"blog written inAsheville, North Carolina
* [http://www.mcsweeneys.net/links/press01/redemption.html "Road to Redemption" released in 2001] , one of 2001's most censored press releases according toMcSweeney's
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