PolyGram Filmed Entertainment: Difference between revisions

{{PageCredits|description=codyfinke, Eric S., Supermarty-o, V of Doom, UniversalFlorida1990, and Shadeed A. Kelly|capture=V of Doom and Eric S.|edits=thehugetvfan, indycar, UniversalFlorida1990, Michael Kenchington and Jesse Coffey|video=EnormousRat, LogicSmash, Logo Archive, CraigS1996Entertainment, SpikeyTheDog188, TheRedBaron1985, and Jamster}}

|founder=Peter Guber

|defunct=2000

|parent=PolyGram (1980-1998)<br>[[Universal Pictures]] (1998-2000)

'''PolyGram''', a Dutch-German entertainment conglomerate, was founded in 1972 as a joint venture between '''Poly'''dor Records (owned by German electronics giant Siemens) and Phono'''Gram''' Records (owned by Dutch electronics giant Philips). In 1983, after the Federal Trade Commission (in the U.S.) and the Bundeskartellamt (Federal Cartel Office) in what was then West Germany rejected a proposal to merge PolyGram with WEA Records (now the Warner Music Group), 40% of Siemens' stake in the firm was purchased by Philips, which acquired the remaining 10% of PolyGram stock in 1987.  

In the early 1980s, [[PolyGram Video]] was formed as a subsidiary of the conglomerate that was used to distribute concert films and music videos (both under the [[PolyGram Music Video]] imprint and through video arms of its various record labels) and feature films acquired from third-party companies. To help fund the video division of the conglomerate, in 1986, PolyGram launched '''PolyGram Filmed Entertainment''' as a subsidiary based in England and became a European competitor to Hollywood. The first film it produced was ''P.I. Private Investigations'' in 1987. In 1989, PolyGram set up a film sales subsidiary [[Manifesto Film Sales]]. However, it didn't begin distributing its own films in the U.S. or use a logo until 1992. Prior to that, PolyGram often used other US distributors for some of their films such as [[The Samuel Goldwyn Company]] (''Wild at Heart'' and ''Fear, Anxiety & Depression'') and [[New Line Cinema]] (''Drop Dead Fred'', ''Fools of Fortune'' and ''Chicago Joe and the Showgirl''). Between 1990 and 1995, PolyGram would acquire several production companies such as [[Working Title Films]], [[Propaganda Films]], [[Interscope Communications]], [[Island Pictures]], and [[ITC Entertainment Group|ITC Entertainment]]; a similar acquisition practice was followed by PolyGram's co-owned record division, which was one of the world's largest record companies. PolyGram also formed 2 other labels as well: [[Gramercy Pictures]] (a joint venture between PolyGram and [[Universal Pictures]], which acted as the former's American distributor and the latter's arthouse distributor) in 1992 and [[Rogue|Rogue Pictures]] (a low budget label) in 1997. On December 10, 1998, Seagram, then the corporate parent of Universal Studios, completed an acquisition of PolyGram that it had announced in May; subsequently, the conglomerate was folded into Universal Pictures' broader operations, with PolyGram's film distribution network outside of the North American market being renamed to Universal Pictures International. UPI would handle international distribution for a small number of films, most of which were inherited from PFE; following the box office failure of one such film, ''Mickey Blue Eyes'', Universal decided, in 2000, to fold the network into its former partner, [[United International Pictures]]; Universal would reenter theatrical distribution on its own in most countries in 2007. In 1999, Seagram sold most of the pre-March 31, 1996 library to [[Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios]] and it was incorporated into their [[Orion Pictures]] library.  

Currently, most of the pre-March 31, 1996 PolyGram film library, including most of the Island Pictures library, the entire [[Atlantic Releasing Corporation]] library (through Island), and the [[Epic Productions]] library (which PolyGram had acquired in 1997), is owned by MGM, which retained the May 31, 1996 film ''Eddie'' with [[Hollywood Pictures]]. Universal owns the rights to some pre-March 31, 1996 films; such as ''Backbeat'', ''Before the Rain'', ''Barton Fink'', ''Hate'' (also known as ''La Haine''), ''The Jacksons: An American Dream'', ''Drop Dead Fred'' (in the UK only) and ''Cold Blooded'') and the remaining films that were produced by PolyGram until its disestablishment. The rights to the PolyGram name itself have since been transferred to the [[Universal Music Group]], which has been operating separately from the film studio since 2004.

{{chronology|[[PolyGram Pictures]]|[[Universal Pictures]]}}