The Samuel Goldwyn Company

Infobox_Company
company_name = The Samuel Goldwyn Company
The Samuel Goldwyn Company, Inc.
company_type = Corporation
foundation = November 9, 1979
founder = Samuel Goldwyn, Jr.
dissolved = 2000 into MGM Studios as Goldwyn Entertainment Co.
divisions = Samuel Goldwyn Television
Samuel Goldwyn Home Entertainment
owner = independent (1979-1996)
Orion Pictures (1996-1997)
MGM (1997-2000)

The Samuel Goldwyn Company was an independent film company founded by Samuel Goldwyn, Jr., the son of the famous Hollywood mogul, Samuel Goldwyn, in 1979. The company originally distributed and acquired art-house films from around the world to U.S. audiences; they soon added original productions to their roster as well, starting with "The Golden Seal" in 1983.

In succeeding years, the Goldwyn company was able to obtain (from the Sr. Goldwyn's estate) the rights to all films produced under Samuel Goldwyn (including the original 1929 "Bulldog Drummond", "Arrowsmith", and "Guys and Dolls"). They also acquired the theatrical and television rights to the Rodgers and Hammerstein films and television programs that were independently produced but released by other companies, including "South Pacific", "Oklahoma!", and the 1965 CBS television adaptation of "Cinderella". Animated films include "The Care Bears Movie", "The Chipmunk Adventure" (with Alvin and the Chipmunks), and "Rock-a-Doodle". Among the television programs in the Goldwyn company's library are the television series "American Gladiators" and Steve Krantz's miniseries "Dadah is Death".

In 1991, after a merger with another company, the company went public as Samuel Goldwyn Entertainment. That company and its library were later acquired by Metromedia, and in 1997 sold to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. This company's function of acquiring independent films for American release (or producing such films) has been assumed by United Artists, which was recently relaunched with the help of Tom Cruise and Paula Wagner.

Goldwyn has since gone on to found Samuel Goldwyn Films. This successor company has continued to release independent films such as "What the Bleep Do We Know?" and the Academy Award-nominated "The Squid and the Whale".

Ownership rights

The rights to pre-1997 Samuel Goldwyn Company films are now held by MGM. However, there are a few exceptions.

* "The Chipmunk Adventure" is owned by Bagdasarian Productions, who have licensed DVD rights to Paramount Pictures;
* "Mr. Wonderful" is owned by Warner Bros., the film's original distributor;
* For a number of years, the home video rights to "Oklahoma!" and "South Pacific" belonged to 20th Century Fox (and still does), while Goldwyn owned all television and theatrical rights. Even after MGM inherited Goldwyn's library, Fox still owned home video rights (this was due to contractual agreements that were assumed by Fox after the dissolving of CBS/FOX Video). Ironically, Fox now owns home video rights to MGM's library.
* The domestic rights to "The Program" and "The Preacher's Wife" remain with co-producer Touchstone Pictures via Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures.

Other names

* Samuel Goldwyn Entertainment;
* Goldwyn Entertainment Company;
* G2 Films.

uccessor

* Goldwyn Films;
* United Artists Films, Inc. (2001-2006).

ee also

*Samuel Goldwyn Television

External links

* [http://www.samuelgoldwynfilms.com The Samuel Goldwyn Films website]
*imdb company|id=0016710
*imdb company|id=0163093|company=Samuel Goldwyn Films