THE LAST MOGULS

By PARALLEL MADNESS @parallelmadness · On September 23, 2013

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It’s quite clear to me that the majority of their work in the past… has been work that has appealed to the lowest common denominator in the audience.

– David Puttnam

Back in 1986, the BBC made a documentary on Cannon Films.

Originally owned by Dennis Friedland and Chris Dewey, the company was bought out by Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus in 1979.

globus menaheim

Under their ownership, they churned out:

Chuck Norris-starring B-movie actioners
Direct-to-VHS cash-grabs
“The cinematic sci-fi event of the 80s” – Lifeforce
“The Star Wars of the 80s” – Masters Of The Universe
A Cassavetes film
A film written and directed by Norman Mailler
An Oscar-winning Dutch drama
Musicals
Comedies
Period dramas
And the blockbuster that contributed to their very own ruin: Superman IV: Quest For Peace

Golan and Globus appeared as Harry Friedman and Nate Fischman in Charles Bukowski’s Hollywood – a liberal account of the writer’s experiences adapting Barfly.