Samuel Zachary Arkoff (June 12, 1918–September 16, 2001) was an American producer of B-movies. June 12 is the 163rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (164th in leap years), with 202 days remaining. ... 1918 was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. ... September 16 is the 259th day of the year (260th in leap years). ... Jump to: navigation, search 2001: A Space Odyssey. ... In the entertainment industry, a producer is generally in charge of, or helps to coordinate, the financial, legal, administrative, technological, and artistic aspects of a production. ... The term B-movie originally referred to a film designed to be distributed as the lower half of a double feature, often a genre film featuring cowboys, gangsters or vampires. ...

Born in Fort Dodge, Iowa, Arkoff first studied to be a lawyer. Along with business partner James H. Nicholson and producer-director Roger Corman, he produced eighteen films. In the 1950s, he and Nicholson founded American Releasing Corporation, which later became known as American International Pictures and produced over 125 films before the company's demise in the 1980s. These films were mostly low-budget, with production completed in a few days, though nearly all of them became profitable. Fort Dodge is a city and county seat of Webster County, Iowa, situated on the Des Moines River. ... For information on the type of fish called Lawyer, see the article on Burbot. ... Roger William Corman (born April 5, 1926) is an American producer and director of low-budget films; as such, he has apprenticed many now-famous directors, stressing the importance of budgeting and resourcefulness. ... // Events and trends The 1950s in Western society was marked with a sharp rise in the economy for the first time in almost 30 years and return to the 1920s-type consumer society built on credit and boom-times, as well as the height of the baby-boom from returning... American International Pictures was formed in 1956 from American Releasing Corporation by James H. Nicholson and Samuel Z. Arkoff, dedicated to releasing independently produced, low-budget films, primarily of interest to the teenagers of the 1950s. ... // Events and trends The 1980s marked an abrupt shift towards more conservative lifestyles after the momentous cultural revolutions which took place in the 1960s and 1970s and the definition of the AIDS virus in 1981. ...

Arkoff is also credited with starting a few genres, such as the Beach Party and outlaw biker movies, and his company played a substantial part in bringing the horror movie genre to a novel level with successes such as I Was a Teenage Werewolf and The Thing with Two Heads. American International Pictures movies starred many established actors in principal or cameo roles, such as Boris Karloff, Elsa Lanchester and Vincent Price, as well as up-and-comers who later became household names, including Don Johnson, Nick Nolte, Diane Ladd, and most notably Jack Nicholson (no relation to James Nicholson). A number of actors shunned or overlooked by most of Hollywood during the 1960s and 1970s, such as Bruce Dern and Dennis Hopper, also found work in one or more of Arkoff's productions. Beach Party movies were an American 1960s genre of feature films which often starred Annette Funicello and Frankie Avalon. ... An outlaw biker is a motorcyclist (biker) who is a member or an affiliate of a so-called outlaw motorcycle club or motorcycle gang. ... DVD cover showing horror characters as depicted by Universal Studios. ... I Was a Teenage Werewolf is a 1957 horror film starring Michael Landon as a troubled teenager and Whit Bissell as the primary adult. ... Boris Karloff Boris Karloff (November 23, 1887 - February 2, 1969), born William Henry Pratt, was a famous actor in horror films. ... Elsa Lanchester and Boris Karloff in The Bride of Frankenstein Elsa Lanchester (October 28, 1902–December 26, 1986), was a British-born American character actress, perhaps best-known as the long-suffering wife of Charles Laughton. ... Vincent Price on Broadway as Mr. ... Don Johnson (born December 15, 1949) is an actor best known for his film and television appearances. ... Nick Nolte Nicholas King Nolte (born February 8, 1941, Omaha, Nebraska) is an American model, actor, and producer. ... Diane Ladd (born November 29, 1932 in Meridian, Mississippi) is an American television and film actress. ... Jack Nicholson, John Joseph Nicholson (born April 22, 1937) is a highly successful, iconic American method actor. ... The 1960s, or The Sexy Sixties, in its most obvious sense refers to the decade between 1960 and 1969, but the expression has taken on a wider meaning over the past twenty years. ... This article provides extensive lists of events and significant personalities of the 1970s. ... Bruce MacLeish Dern (born Winnetka, Illinois, June 4, 1936) is an American actor. ... Dennis Hopper (born May 17, 1936) is an American actor and film-maker. ...

Not long after American International Pictures went out of business, Arkoff founded Arkoff International Pictures.

Arkoff died in 2001, within weeks of his wife's own death.

The ARKOFF formula

During a 1980s television talk show appearance, Arkoff related his "ARKOFF Formula" for a successful, memorable movie. This states that a successful low-budget movie should include: A talk show (U.S.) or chat show (Brit. ...

• Action (exciting, entertaining drama)
• Revolution (novel or controversial themes and ideas)
• Killing (a modicum of violence)
• Oratory (notable dialogue and speeches)
• Fantasy (acted-out fantasies common to the audience)
• Fornication (sex appeal, for young adults)

...

External link

• IMDB entry