Associated British Picture Corporation
Encyclopedia
Associated British Picture Corporation (ABPC), originally British International Pictures (BIP), was a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...

 film production, distribution and exhibition company active from 1927 until 1970. ABPC also owned approximately 500 cinemas in Britain during 1943.

History

The company was founded during 1927 by Scottish solicitor John Maxwell after he had purchased British National Studios
British National Studios
The former British National Studio is located on Clarendon Road, Borehamwood, Hertfordshire, England. It is currently used by the BBC and has been in continuous use since its opening in 1927....

 and their Elstree Studios
Elstree Studios
"Elstree Studios" refers to any of several film studios that were based in the towns of Borehamwood and Elstree in Hertfordshire, England, since film production begun in 1927.-Name:...

 complex and merged it with his ABC
Associated British Cinemas
ABC Cinemas was a cinema chain in the United Kingdom. A wholly owned subsidiary of Associated British Picture Corporation , it operated between the 1930s and the late 1960s...

 cinema circuit, renaming the company British International Pictures. He appointed Joseph Grossman
Joseph Grossman
Joseph Grossman was a pioneer of the British film industry, most famous as the charismatic Studio Manager of Elstree Studios. Born in Dartford, Kent, the son of Myer Grossman and Rosa Morris, who belonged to Jewish families originally from Germany and Poland, he was always known as "Joe" and was...

, formerly manager of the Stoll Studios, as his Studio Manager. Under Maxwell's paternalistic management the company prospered and during 1937, after acquisition of British Pathé, the company was renamed Associated British Picture Corporation and was in a position to control production, distribution and exhibition of films, and challenge American dominance of the industry. However, after Maxwell's death in 1940, his widow Catherine sold a large number of shares to Warner Brothers, who, although the Maxwell family remained the largest shareholders, were able to exercise a measure of control.

During their early years the company's most prominent work was that directed by Alfred Hitchcock
Alfred Hitchcock
Sir Alfred Joseph Hitchcock, KBE was a British film director and producer. He pioneered many techniques in the suspense and psychological thriller genres. After a successful career in British cinema in both silent films and early talkies, Hitchcock moved to Hollywood...

, including his 1929 feature Blackmail
Blackmail (1929 film)
Blackmail is a 1929 British thriller drama film directed by Alfred Hitchcock, starring Anny Ondra, John Longden, and Cyril Ritchard, and featuring Donald Calthrop, Sara Allgood and Charles Paton. The film is based on the play Blackmail by Charles Bennett, as adapted by Hitchcock, with dialogue by...

, which is regarded commonly as being the first British all-talkie. Hitchcock left the company in 1933 to work for rival British Gaumont.

Much of the output of the studio was routine and decidedly British, which restricted its success outside the UK, but after World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, the company contracted with Warner (by now the largest shareholder, owning 40% of the studio) for the distribution of its films in the United States and the company was to produce some of its best and most well-remembered work during this period, including films such as The Dam Busters
The Dam Busters (film)
The Dam Busters is a 1955 British Second World War war film starring Michael Redgrave and Richard Todd and directed by Michael Anderson. The film recreates the true story of Operation Chastise when in 1943 the RAF's 617 Squadron attacked the Möhne, Eder and Sorpe dams in Germany with Wallis's...

(1954), Ice-Cold in Alex
Ice-Cold in Alex
Ice-Cold in Alex is a British film based on the novel of the same name by British author Christopher Landon. Directed by J. Lee Thompson and starring John Mills, the film was a prizewinner at the 8th Berlin International Film Festival...

(1958), and Summer Holiday (1963).

During 1955, ABPC also became the parent company of a new British ITV
ITV
ITV is the major commercial public service TV network in the United Kingdom. Launched in 1955 under the auspices of the Independent Television Authority to provide competition to the BBC, it is also the oldest commercial network in the UK...

 television franchise contractor, Associated British Corporation
Associated British Corporation
Associated British Corporation was one of a number of commercial television companies established in the United Kingdom during the 1950s by cinema chain companies in an attempt to safeguard their business by becoming involved with television which was taking away their cinema audiences.In this...

, which held the commercial television licence for broadcasting to both the Midlands
English Midlands
The Midlands, or the English Midlands, is the traditional name for the area comprising central England that broadly corresponds to the early medieval Kingdom of Mercia. It borders Southern England, Northern England, East Anglia and Wales. Its largest city is Birmingham, and it was an important...

 and the North of England during weekends. This company, through a 'shotgun' merger with Rediffusion Television
Associated-Rediffusion
Associated-Rediffusion, later Rediffusion, London, was the British ITV contractor for London and parts of the surrounding counties, on weekdays between 1954 and 29 July 1968. Transmissions started on 22 September 1955.-Formation:...

, later became Thames Television
Thames Television
Thames Television was a licensee of the British ITV television network, covering London and parts of the surrounding counties on weekdays from 30 July 1968 until 31 December 1992....

, and although it lost its broadcasting franchise in 1992 still exists in the form of the Talkback Thames independent production company.

During the 1960s, however, the fortunes of the company decreased, and in 1967 Seven Arts
Seven Arts Productions
Seven Arts Productions was founded in 1957 by Ray Stark and Eliot Hyman. The company was a frequent producer of movies for other studios, including The Misfits for United Artists, Gigot for Twentieth Century-Fox, Lolita for Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, and Is Paris Burning? for Paramount Pictures.Over...

, the new owners of Warner, decided to dispose of its holdings in ABPC and in 1969 it was purchased by EMI
EMI
The EMI Group, also known as EMI Music or simply EMI, is a multinational music company headquartered in London, United Kingdom. It is the fourth-largest business group and family of record labels in the recording industry and one of the "big four" record companies. EMI Group also has a major...

. The following year ABPC was renamed EMI Films
EMI Films
EMI Films was a British film and television production company and distributor. The company was formed after the takeover of Associated British Picture Corporation in 1968 by EMI....

, then later Thorn EMI Screen Entertainment. In 1986 the company including the ABC cinema subsidiary was sold to The Cannon Group. The entire ABFC library is now owned by StudioCanal
StudioCanal
StudioCanal is a French-based production and distribution company that owns the third-largest film library in the world...

.

Wholly owned

  • Associated British Productions Ltd. Film production and Elstree Studios.
  • Associated British Cinemas Ltd.
  • Associated British – Pathé Ltd. Documentaries and newsreel.
  • Associated British Film Distributors Ltd.
  • British and Overseas Film Sales Ltd.
  • Pathé Laboratories Ltd.
  • Associated British Cinemas (Television) Ltd.
  • Associated British Corporation Ltd. Television production and broadcasting.

Jointly owned

  • Warner-Pathé Distributors Ltd. (50%)
  • Anglo-Amalgamated Film Distributors. (50%)
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