Sir John Woolf (15 March 1913, London – 28 June 1999, London) and his brother James Woolf (2 March 1920, London – 30 May 1966, Beverly Hills, California) were British
film producers
A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordinating writing, dir ...
. John and James founded the production companies Romulus Films and Remus Films, which were active during the 1950s and 1960s,Tom Vallanc "Obituary: Sir John Woolf" ''The Independent'', 1 July 1999 and the distribution company Independent Film Distributors (known as IFD), which was active 1950–59 and handled the UK distribution of films such as '' The African Queen'' and '' Gift Horse'', as well as several films made by their two production companies (such as '' Room at the Top'').
Biography
John and James Woolf were the sons of the British producer C. M. Woolf (1879–1942), who was co-producer with Michael Balcon of two early
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock (13 August 1899 – 29 April 1980) was an English filmmaker. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the history of cinema. In a career spanning six decades, he directed over 50 featur ...
films, '' Downhill'' (1927) and '' Easy Virtue'' (1928). Woolf senior was a major figure at
Gaumont British
The Gaumont-British Picture Corporation produced and distributed films and operated a cinema chain in the United Kingdom. It was established as an offshoot of the Gaumont Film Company of France.
Film production
Gaumont-British was founded in 18 ...
and established General Film Distributors in 1937.
John and James were educated at Eton, while the older brother also attended Institut Montana, Switzerland."Sir John Woolf, 86, Producer Of 'African Queen' and 'Oliver'" ''New York Times'', 1 July 1999 John was the sales manager of General Film Distributors until it was taken over by the
Rank Organisation
The Rank Organisation was a British entertainment conglomerate founded by industrialist J. Arthur Rank in April 1937. It quickly became the largest and most vertically integrated film company in the United Kingdom, owning production, distribut ...
James worked for Columbia Pictures in the Hollywood publicity department. John Woolf served in World War II and was demobilised with the rank of major.
Romulus Films
When their father died in 1942, J. Arthur Rank became director of General Film Distributors. John returned from the Army as joint managing director. However, neither John or James enjoyed working for a large corporation. In 1948, they went to S.G. Warburg for financial backing for two new companies, Independent Film Distributors, and a production arm, Romulus Films. According to critic
Ronald Bergan
Ronald Bergan (né Ginsberg, 2 November 1937 – 23 July 2020) was a South African-born British writer and historian. He was contributor to ''The Guardian'' (from 1989) and lecturer on film and other subjects as well as the author (or co-author) ...
in his obituary of Sir John Woolf: "Their aims were ambitious: to produce artistically valuable and yet commercially viable films, whose subjects would be wider than the Little Englanderism of British pictures of the period, and featuring big stars." James Woolf's obituary in ''
The Times
''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ( ...
'' stated that John "was the main financial brain and James primarily in charge of artistic policy.""Mr. J. Woolf." Times ondon, England1 June 1966: 14. The Times Digital Archive. Web. 12 July 2012.
The first Romulus release was '' Pandora and the Flying Dutchman'' (1951) with
James Mason
James Neville Mason (; 15 May 190927 July 1984) was an English actor. He achieved considerable success in British cinema before becoming a star in Hollywood. He was the top box-office attraction in the UK in 1944 and 1945; his British films inc ...
and
Ava Gardner
Ava Lavinia Gardner (December 24, 1922 – January 25, 1990) was an American actress. She first signed a contract with Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew critics' attention in 1946 with her perform ...
. The American director-producer Albert Lewin had begun to prepare the film for MGM, but James Woolf discovered on a Hollywood visit that the studio had cancelled the project because of Lewin's problems with the
House Un-American Activities Committee
The House Committee on Un-American Activities (HCUA), popularly dubbed the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC), was an investigative United States Congressional committee, committee of the United States House of Representatives, create ...
. According to John, this resulted in the Woolf's concentration on developing transatlantic projects. Their mentor,
Alexander Korda
Sir Alexander Korda (; born Sándor László Kellner; hu, Korda Sándor; 16 September 1893 – 23 January 1956)The African Queen'' (1951): "Two old people going up and down an African river . . . who's going to be interested in that? You'll be bankrupt!". Korda was proved wrong. From this
John Huston
John Marcellus Huston ( ; August 5, 1906 – August 28, 1987) was an American film director, screenwriter, actor and visual artist. He wrote the screenplays for most of the 37 feature films he directed, many of which are today considered ...
film they gained international critical and financial success. Two further films directed by Huston followed, ''
Moulin Rouge
Moulin Rouge (, ; ) is a cabaret in Paris, on Boulevard de Clichy, at Place Blanche, the intersection of, and terminus of Rue Blanche.
In 1889, the Moulin Rouge was co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Paris Ol ...
'' (1952) and '' Beat the Devil'' (1953), but were less successful.
Romulus became one of the most significant English production companies of the time. They made several films with producer Daniel Angel and helped turn
Laurence Harvey
Laurence Harvey (born Zvi Mosheh Skikne; 1 October 192825 November 1973) was a Lithuanian-born British actor and film director. He was born to Lithuanian Jewish parents and emigrated to South Africa at an early age, before later settling in th ...
, whom they had under contract, into a star. In the mid '50s they formed a partnership with Korda, helping him to finance his films, including ''
Richard III
Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Bat ...
'' (1955). By 1959, they estimated their movies had earned more than £3million overseas. John Woolf became interested in ''Room at the Top'' after seeing an interview conducted by Woodrow Wyatt with the novel's author
John Braine
John Gerard Braine (13 April 1922 – 28 October 1986) was an English novelist. Braine is usually listed among the angry young men, a loosely defined group of English writers who emerged on the literary scene in the 1950s.
Biography
John Brain ...
on ''Panorama'' on 8 April 1957.Tony Aldgate "Room at the Top" in Brian McFarlane ''The Cinema of Britain And Ireland'', London: Wallflower Press, 2005, p.106 He bought a copy of the book the next day, and quickly purchased the film rights.
Individually, John was instrumental in the formation of
Anglia Television
ITV Anglia, previously known as Anglia Television, is the ITV franchise holder for the East of England. The station is based at Anglia House in Norwich, with regional news bureaux in Cambridge and Northampton. ITV Anglia is owned and operated b ...
in 1958 and James wrote novels.
In 1963, the Woolf brothers ran into trouble from the film distributors' Defence Organisation owing to their refusal to withhold the rights to their old cinema films from the sale to television. There was some talk that their new films would be boycotted by British cinemas, but that did not happen.
Later career
By now the brothers were working separately. James went to Hollywood to produce ''King Rat''. Shortly afterwards he was staying at the Beverly Hills Hotel when he failed to keep a dinner arrangement with director
Lewis Gilbert
Lewis Gilbert (6 March 1920 – 23 February 2018) was an English film director, producer and screenwriter who directed more than 40 films during six decades; among them such varied titles as ''Reach for the Sky'' (1956), ''Sink the Bismarck!'' ...
about making a film version of the musical ''Oliver!''. A hotel employee found him dead, sitting up in bed with an open book on his lap; the cause was reported to be a heart attack. He was 46 years old.
Bryan Forbes
Bryan Forbes CBE (; born John Theobald Clarke; 22 July 1926 – 8 May 2013) was an English film director, screenwriter, film producer, actor and novelist described as a "Renaissance man"Falk Q. . BAFTA. 17 October 2007. Retrieved 9 May 2013 and ...
later claimed the heart attack was brought on by an accidental overdose of painkillers. Gilbert had to pull out of the ''Oliver!'' project shortly before filming began because of his Paramount contract. John Woolf remembered '' The Fallen Idol'' (1948), which suggested to him that its director, Sir Carol Reed, had the requisite skills to work with children.
John continued his career as a producer. In 1968 he bought British and American Film Holdings from Minster Trust. That year he produced his first film on his own, ''
Oliver!
''Oliver!'' is a Coming-of-age story, coming-of-age Musical theatre, stage musical, with book, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the 1838 novel ''Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens.
It premiered at the Wimbledon Theatre ...
'', which ended up winning the Oscar for Best Picture.
John Woolf was knighted in 1975 and remained a director of Anglia Television until 1983. In 1982 he joined
Bernard Delfont
Bernard Delfont, Baron Delfont (born Boris Winogradsky; 5 September 1909 – 28 July 1994) was a leading Russian-born British theatrical impresario.
Life and career
Delfont was born in Tokmak, Berdyansky Uyezd, Taurida Governorate, Russia ...
and
Max Rayne
Max Rayne, Baron Rayne (8 February 1918 – 10 October 2003) was a British property developer and philanthropist who supported medical, religious, education and arts charities in England.
Early life
Rayne came from a Jewish family. His father, Ph ...
to form First Leisure Corporation, of which he was a director. He was also a trustee of the Cinema and Television Benevolent Fund.
Personal lives
James was gay and was rumoured to be a lover of
Laurence Harvey
Laurence Harvey (born Zvi Mosheh Skikne; 1 October 192825 November 1973) was a Lithuanian-born British actor and film director. He was born to Lithuanian Jewish parents and emigrated to South Africa at an early age, before later settling in th ...
.
John Woolf was married three times. His second wife was the actress
Edana Romney
Edana Romney (15 March 1919 – 17 December 2002) was a South African actress, writer, and television presenter, based in London and later in Southern California.
Early life and career
Born as Edna Rubenstein in Johannesburg, Edana Romney was of ...
. His third wife, Ann, was the daughter of director
Victor Saville
Victor Saville (25 September 1895 – 8 May 1979) was an English film director, producer, and screenwriter. He directed 39 films between 1927 and 1954. He also produced 36 films between 1923 and 1962.
Biography
Saville produced his first f ...
. She survived him. In 1999, the year of his death, John Woolf was estimated to be worth £40 million, through a combination of his films and shrewd investments.
In the late 1940s the brothers' uncle, Maurice Woolf, left £130,000 to a showgirl, Prudence Wise. John Woolf challenged the will and settled out of court.
Romulus revival
Sir John Woolf's son, Jonathan Woolf, revived Romulus Films as of 1999, producing the film ''
Revelation
In religion and theology, revelation is the revealing or disclosing of some form of truth or knowledge through communication with a deity or other supernatural entity or entities.
Background
Inspiration – such as that bestowed by God on the ...
'' (2001).
In 2013, Romulus Films, Ltd. changed directions from film production to regenerative medicine, being involved in a $5 million stock and warrant purchase funding arrangement with BioTime Inc.
In April 2021, Romulus signed a worldwide distribution deal with
StudioCanal
StudioCanal S.A.S. (formerly known as Le Studio Canal+, Canal Plus, Canal+ Distribution, Canal+ D.A., Canal+ Production, and Canal+ Image and also known as StudioCanal International) is a French film production and distribution company that owns ...
.
Appraisal
In 1971, film critic Alexander Walker wrote about James Woolf:
ewas a rarity in British films at the time, and would still be so if he was alive today: a man of taste and judgement who loved craftsmanship and supported a director instead of suffocating him or using him as a surrogate talent for the film he himself would have liked to direct had he dared... He was an obsessional filmmaker, loving the wheeling and dealing, relishing the juggling with human talents that it involved, and taking pleasure in spotting youthful proteges and promoting their careers, thereby gaining a vicarious satisfaction from their success that was lacking in his own basically lonely nature.Alexander Walker, ''Hollywood, England'', Stein and Day, 1974 p50-51
Filmmaker
Bryan Forbes
Bryan Forbes CBE (; born John Theobald Clarke; 22 July 1926 – 8 May 2013) was an English film director, screenwriter, film producer, actor and novelist described as a "Renaissance man"Falk Q. . BAFTA. 17 October 2007. Retrieved 9 May 2013 and ...
concurred:
He was a midwife for talent and smacked many of us into life... He had a quick mind that panned and found the nuggets before other prospectors on the trail had even arrived at the mine... Jimmy was a shield, quite fearless when tackling the front offices. He knew everybody and he was rich enough in his own right not to have to depend on the largesse of others when it came to getting a project off the ground. He had taste: taste in actors, taste in subject matter... There was a sadness about him at times because he had demons to fight, and in the end he died alone.Bryan Forbes, ''A Divided Life'', Mandarin Paperbacks, 1993 p 285-86
I'll Get You for This
''I'll Get You for This'' (released in the US as ''Lucky Nick Cain'') is a 1951 British thriller film by Joseph M. Newman starring George Raft, Coleen Gray, and Enzo Staiola. It was made from an adaptation by George Callahan and William Ros ...
Women of Twilight
''Women of Twilight'' is a 1951 play by Sylvia Rayman that became a 1952 film directed by Gordon Parry. The latter stars Freda Jackson, Rene Ray and Lois Maxwell, with a screenplay by Anatole de Grunwald. It was the first British film to receiv ...
'' (1952)
*''
Moulin Rouge
Moulin Rouge (, ; ) is a cabaret in Paris, on Boulevard de Clichy, at Place Blanche, the intersection of, and terminus of Rue Blanche.
In 1889, the Moulin Rouge was co-founded by Charles Zidler and Joseph Oller, who also owned the Paris Ol ...
'' (1952)
*''
Cosh Boy
''Cosh Boy'' (released in the United States as ''The Slasher'') is a 1953 British film noir directed by Lewis Gilbert and starring James Kenney and Joan Collins. It was made at Riverside Studios in Hammersmith.
Plot
Based on an original play by ...
The Good Die Young
''The Good Die Young'' is a 1954 British crime film directed by Lewis Gilbert and starring Laurence Harvey, Gloria Grahame, Joan Collins, Stanley Baker, Richard Basehart and John Ireland. It was made by Remus Films from a screenplay bas ...
I Am a Camera
''I Am a Camera'' is a 1951 Broadway play by John Van Druten adapted from Christopher Isherwood's 1939 novel '' Goodbye to Berlin'', which is part of ''The Berlin Stories''. The title is a quotation taken from the novel's first page: "I am a ca ...
'' (1955)
*''
Richard III
Richard III (2 October 145222 August 1485) was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 26 June 1483 until his death in 1485. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty. His defeat and death at the Bat ...
Dry Rot
Dry rot is wood decay caused by one of several species of fungi that digest parts of the wood which give the wood strength and stiffness. It was previously used to describe any decay of cured wood in ships and buildings by a fungus which resul ...
Three Men in a Boat
''Three Men in a Boat (To Say Nothing of the Dog)'',The Penguin edition punctuates the title differently: ''Three Men in a Boat: To Say Nothing of the Dog!'' published in 1889, is a humorous account by English writer Jerome K. Jerome of a two ...
The Story of Esther Costello
''The Story of Esther Costello'' is a 1957 British drama film starring Joan Crawford, Rossano Brazzi, and Heather Sears. The film is an exposé of large-scale fundraising. ''The Story of Esther Costello'' was produced by David Miller and Ja ...
'' (1957)
*''
Time Lock
A time lock (also timelock) is a part of a locking mechanism commonly found in bank vaults and other high-security containers. The time lock is a timer designed to prevent the opening of the safe or vault until it reaches the preset time, eve ...
The Wrong Arm of the Law
''The Wrong Arm of the Law'' is a 1963 British comedy film directed by Cliff Owen and starring Peter Sellers, Bernard Cribbins, Lionel Jeffries, John Le Mesurier and Bill Kerr. It was partly written by Ray Galton and Alan Simpson and made by R ...
'' (1963)
*''
Heavens Above!
''Heavens Above!'' is a 1963 British satirical comedy film starring Peter Sellers, directed by John and Roy Boulting, who also co-wrote along with Frank Harvey, from an idea by Malcolm Muggeridge. It is in a similar vein to the earlier collabor ...
Oliver!
''Oliver!'' is a Coming-of-age story, coming-of-age Musical theatre, stage musical, with book, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the 1838 novel ''Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens.
It premiered at the Wimbledon Theatre ...
The Day of the Jackal
''The Day of the Jackal'' (1971) is a political thriller novel by English author Frederick Forsyth about a professional assassin who is contracted by the OAS, a French dissident paramilitary organisation, to kill Charles de Gaulle, the Presid ...
The Odessa File
''The Odessa File'' is a thriller by English writer Frederick Forsyth, first published in 1972, about the adventures of a young German reporter attempting to discover the location of a former SS concentration-camp commander.
The name ODESSA ...
'' (1974) – producer
*''
Orson Welles' Great Mysteries
''Orson Welles Great Mysteries'' is a British television series originally transmitted between 1973 and 1974, produced by Anglia Television for the ITV network.
The series is an anthology of mystery stories. Each episode is introduced by Or ...
BFI
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...
BFI
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...
BFI
The British Film Institute (BFI) is a film and television charitable organisation which promotes and preserves film-making and television in the United Kingdom. The BFI uses funds provided by the National Lottery to encourage film production, ...