Bryanston Distributing Company
Encyclopedia
Bryanston Distributing Company is an American film distribution
company that was very active during the early 1970s and was left dormant for almost thirty years. It is not to be confused with Bryanston Pictures the production arm which was liquidated when former director "Anthony Peraino
" was prosecuted by the federal government on an obscenity charge stemming from the production and distribution of the film Deep Throat
, which is recognized as possibly the most financially successful independent film of all time.
Bryanston was and still is, in the business of acquisition, finance and distribution of independently produced films and music of every type, nature and gauge through established agents but the company will not look at unsolicited submissions.
The company's first title was Return of the Dragon starring Bruce Lee
. It also released of Andy Warhol's Frankenstein, an X-rated, 3D film that was later re-released under its European title, Flesh for Frankenstein
.
Among the company's more notable releases was the 1974 horror film The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
.
Bryanston also released John Carpenter
's first film, Dark Star
, from the same year. Both of these became major cult film classics. The company courted controversy in 1975 with Ralph Bakshi
's racially-tinged Coonskin
. which was released at "BRYAN WEST" Theater 1607 Broadway, NY on August 20, 1975 after the rights were quitclaimed by Paramount. Unfortunately the film was too controversial for its time. Later in 1976, after the re-release of "That's The Way of the World
" starring Harvey Keitel
and Earth Wind and Fire, the company went dormant having released about twenty movies. During 2005 the company was resurrected and acquired rights to several large movie libraries. Bryanston is a privately held company.
Film distributor
A film distributor is a company or individual responsible for releasing films to the public either theatrically or for home viewing...
company that was very active during the early 1970s and was left dormant for almost thirty years. It is not to be confused with Bryanston Pictures the production arm which was liquidated when former director "Anthony Peraino
Anthony Peraino
Anthony "Big Tony" Peraino was a New York mobster in the Colombo crime family who financed the ground-breaking pornographic film Deep Throat...
" was prosecuted by the federal government on an obscenity charge stemming from the production and distribution of the film Deep Throat
Deep Throat (film)
Deep Throat is a 1972 American pornographic film written and directed by Gerard Damiano and produced by Louis Peraino and starring Linda Lovelace ....
, which is recognized as possibly the most financially successful independent film of all time.
Bryanston was and still is, in the business of acquisition, finance and distribution of independently produced films and music of every type, nature and gauge through established agents but the company will not look at unsolicited submissions.
The company's first title was Return of the Dragon starring Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee
Bruce Lee was a Chinese American, Hong Kong actor, martial arts instructor, philosopher, film director, film producer, screenwriter, and founder of the Jeet Kune Do martial arts movement...
. It also released of Andy Warhol's Frankenstein, an X-rated, 3D film that was later re-released under its European title, Flesh for Frankenstein
Flesh for Frankenstein
Andy Warhol's Frankenstein or Flesh for Frankenstein is a 1973 horror film directed by Paul Morrissey and produced by Andy Warhol, Andrew Braunsberg, Louis Peraino, and Carlo Ponti and starring Udo Kier, Joe Dallesandro, Monique van Vooren and Arno Juerging...
.
Among the company's more notable releases was the 1974 horror film The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a 1974 American independent horror film directed and produced by Tobe Hooper, who cowrote it with Kim Henkel. It stars Marilyn Burns, Paul A. Partain, Edwin Neal, Jim Siedow, and Gunnar Hansen, who respectively portray Sally Hardesty, Franklin Hardesty, the...
.
Bryanston also released John Carpenter
John Carpenter
John Howard Carpenter is an American film director, screenwriter, producer, editor, composer, and occasional actor. Although Carpenter has worked in numerous film genres in his four-decade career, his name is most commonly associated with horror and science fiction.- Early life :Carpenter was born...
's first film, Dark Star
Dark Star (film)
Dark Star is a 1974 American comedic science fiction motion picture directed by John Carpenter and co-written with Dan O'Bannon.-Backstory and plot:...
, from the same year. Both of these became major cult film classics. The company courted controversy in 1975 with Ralph Bakshi
Ralph Bakshi
Ralph Bakshi is an Israeli-American director of animated and live-action films. In the 1970s, he established an alternative to mainstream animation through independent and adult-oriented productions. Between 1972 and 1992, he directed nine theatrically released feature films, five of which he wrote...
's racially-tinged Coonskin
Coonskin (film)
Coonskin is a 1975 American animated film written and directed by Ralph Bakshi, about an African American rabbit, fox, and bear who rise to the top of the organized crime racket in Harlem, encountering corrupt law enforcement, con artists and the Mafia...
. which was released at "BRYAN WEST" Theater 1607 Broadway, NY on August 20, 1975 after the rights were quitclaimed by Paramount. Unfortunately the film was too controversial for its time. Later in 1976, after the re-release of "That's The Way of the World
That's the Way of the World
-1999 reissue:-Covers and samples:"Reasons", the album's breakout love ballad, has been covered by Stanley Turrentine, Ramsey Lewis, Maxi Priest and other artists. "Reasons" has also been sampled by Master P on Intro/17...
" starring Harvey Keitel
Harvey Keitel
Harvey Keitel is an American actor. Some of his most notable starring roles were in Martin Scorsese's Mean Streets and Taxi Driver, Ridley Scott's The Duellists and Thelma and Louise, Ettore Scola's That Night in Varennes, Quentin Tarantino's Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, Jane Campion's The...
and Earth Wind and Fire, the company went dormant having released about twenty movies. During 2005 the company was resurrected and acquired rights to several large movie libraries. Bryanston is a privately held company.