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Carolco Pictures

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File:Carolco.jpg
The classic 1988 Carolco Pictures logo.

Carolco Pictures, Inc. was an independent production company, that within a decade went from producing such blockbuster successes as Terminator 2: Judgment Day and the Rambo series to being made bankrupt by bombs such as Cutthroat Island and Showgirls.

Early years

The company was founded by two film investors, Mario Kassar and Andrew Vajna, as Anabasis Investments. Their goal was to make their new studio a major independent production company producing A-movie product.

One of the first Anabasis/Carolco films was First Blood (1982), followed by the sequel Rambo: First Blood Part II (1985) (released the year it was renamed Carolco) with Sylvester Stallone (who later signed a ten-picture deal with the studio). The release of First Blood Part II was so instrumental to Carolco's financial success that from then on, the music of the company's logo utilizes the first stanza of its famous score, written by Jerry Goldsmith.

Success with Terminator 2: Judgment Day

With this success, Carolco went on to acquire the rights to the Terminator franchise from Hemdale Film Corporation. The company re-hired Terminator director James Cameron (who had also worked as a screenwriter on Rambo), and Arnold Schwarzenegger to star, in a multi-million-dollar budgeted sequel, Terminator 2: Judgment Day (released in 1991). It was the highest-grossing film of its year, and as it turned out, the most successful film in Carolco's history.

Filmography

1970s

1980s

1990s

Television production and distribution

In later years, Carolco acquired television syndicator Orbis Communications and initiated television production and distribution. They also purchased the former De Laurentiis Entertainment Group production facility in North Carolina (where the television series Matlock was partially filmed), and established a home video division (with Live Entertainment, later Artisan Entertainment and Lions Gate Home Entertainment, as output partner).

Spider-Man

Carolco struggled for some years to secure the rights to Spider-Man, a property that Cameron was keen to produce as a film. Plans fell through, although it would eventually be made as a Sam Raimi film for Columbia Pictures.

Bankruptcy

As budgets for their feature films grew, the box-office intake fell. Following the disastrous releases of Cutthroat Island and Showgirls, Carolco went bankrupt and the company closed soon after.

Out of the ashes rose a new partnership between Carolco's owner (Mario Kassar) and Cinergi's owner (Andrew G. Vajna) in 2002: C2 Pictures.

The assets

The assets of Carolco were later sold off to other companies, most already sold during Carolco's existence. Today, the ancillary rights to a majority of Carolco's library are held by French production company StudioCanal, while CBS Paramount Television holds the television rights (inherited from Spelling Entertainment's Worldvision Enterprises).

Lionsgate continues to hold the US/Canadian home video rights (via a new output deal with StudioCanal), while the international home video rights are held by a different company for each country. For example, the UK rights are with Momentum Pictures (a subsidiary of Alliance Atlantis) and the Australian rights rest with Universal Studios. Also, Lionsgate spun off its Canadian distribution arm as Maple Pictures in 2005, hence the Canadian video rights rest with Maple.

The only Carolco films not included in the deal are Cliffhanger, Aces: Iron Eagle III, Last of the Dogmen, and Showgirls; the rights to these have been retained by their original theatrical distributors (TriStar Pictures, New Line Cinema, Savoy Pictures/HBO, and United Artists, respectively). However, Lionsgate does own some ancillary rights to the original Stargate, and full rights to Wagons East.

Logos

The first logo began with two streaks heading toward the center of the screen from the bottom-left and top-right corners. They form together to make the familiar Carolco "C". "CAROLCO" appears under the C, and after a few seconds, an orange light briefly glows on the logo. The jingle started with a siren, followed by a short synth tune that sounded like a rock/NES combo. However, on the 1989 VHS release of Angel Heart, the next logo's jingle was used. The logo (with the correct jingle) appeared on the original theatrical release of First Blood, as well as on the original IVE video release of Extreme Prejudice

The second logo is set in space. Three sets of laser lights zoom in and out, forming the familiar "C". After the third laser light, the logo shines, and "CAROLCO" shines in underneath. The jingle is a suspenseful tune that becomes triumphant as the "C" shines. It is based on the theme from Rambo: First Blood Part II. The four films confirmed to use this logo are Rambo: First Blood Part II, Angel Heart, Extreme Prejudice, and Nightflyers. The Artisan editions of Rambo: First Blood Part II, though, plaster this logo with the next, so with the exception of the 1989 VHS release of Angel Heart (which used the previous logo with this logo's jingle), the best sources for this logo are the International Video Entertainment, Live Entertainment, and Avid Home Entertainment releases of said films.

The third logo has a laser light drawing the familiar "C". As soon as the drawing is complete, it shines to become 3-dimensional, and it zooms out with "CAROLCO" underneath. This logo was adapted for home video, with "HOME VIDEO" fading in under "CAROLCO" as soon as the zoom-out was finished. This logo is usually preserved on VHS and DVD releases of its films, while that of TriStar Pictures is cut (with a few exceptions, see below).

List of media with a preserved Tri-Star/Carolco logo combo

Trivia

  • Carolco's previous ownership of Cliffhanger is made clear in a circulating copy of the film's workprint; "Prop. of Carolco Pict." is displayed above the footage for its entire duration. The display of ownership is so prominent that it takes up one quarter of the entire screen. This circulating workprint of Cliffhanger is marked as being from October 1991.
  • Jose Menendez was a member of the Board of Directors of Carolco in August 1989, when he and his wife were murdered by their sons Erik and Lyle.
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