The World's Best Labels and Studios

Following the Second World War, when Pinewood was used as a base of operations for many of the TV production units attached to the different sections of the armed forces, production of films moved back there from the nearby Denham Stuios.

The late 1940s and early 1950s, a period of post-war austerity, saw the production of several

Barbara Windsor & Sid James - Carry On stalwarts

notable films, including Black Narcissus (1947), The Blue Lagoon (1949) and The Importance of Being Earnest (1952).   Pinewood was now clearly the venue of choice for filmmakers in the U.K. and in 1959 it saw the production of  Carry on Sergeant, the first  in the long-running series of twenty-nine comedy films that spanned twenty years.  There was actually a Carry on Columbus made in 1992 with a whole new set of actors but the last genuine one had been made in 1978 (Carry on Emmanuelle – not at Pinewood).  The entire series was made at Pinewood and as an example of British slapstick humour from the period, should not be missed.

Back to the history then and the 1960s impressive production schedule conrtinued with films such as Whistle Down The Wind (1961), The Ipcress File (1965) and Fahrenheit 451 (1966).  It was also the decade which saw the production of the first James Bond film – Dr.

Daniel Craig

No – in 1962.  The James Bond franchise is the highest grossing film series of all time and is synonymous with Pinewood, perhaps even more so than the Carry On series.  Bond films are still being produced regularly now and the new Daniel Craig inspired 007 has injected new life into the character in Casino Royale and Quantum of Solace.  The next film is due for release sometime in 2012.

Along with the Bond films, the 1970 witnessed the production of such famous films as The Day of the Jackal (1973), The Man Who Would Be King (1975) and the first Superman film in 1978.  Adults of a certain age will also surely remember the bizarre custard pie, Chicago gangster film Bugsy Malone from 1975.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sA_0cvd1EUM

Part three follows…….

So let’s move on for this article to the next stage and the first article about world famous movie studios.  I’m English so the first post is about the historic Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire, U.K.  It’s a short drive west from London and so ideally situated for actors and employees alike.

Pinewood was completed in 1934 by the Henry Boot Company of Sheffield and the driving force behind the construction was Charles Boot, Henry’s son.  Henry was influenced by the new methods and ideas emanating from Hollywood at the time.  The first actual filming began in 1936.  The first film completed at Pinewood was called London Melody – it had started filming at the British and Dominions studios but that facility had burned down during production necessitating the swap.  The first film entirely produced at Pinewood was Talk of the Devil, completed in 1937.

A name familiar to film fans also had a significant interest in Pinewood from the outset and

J Arthur Rank

this was J Arthur Rank.  In later years Rank would take a controlling interest in Pinewood and was also instrumental in wrestling distribution control away from American companies before the Second World War.  We tend to think of American homogenisation as a relatively recent phenomenon but in the post war period 80% of films shown in U.K cinemas were American as the supply lines for both countries were controlled by the same group of companies.  Rank eventually successfully challenged this monopoly.

Back to Pinewood then and during the war the studios took on a variety of tasks when the wartime government requisitioned the studios for various purposes, one of which was the production of government documentaries (some may say propaganda).  Other film-making operations based there at the time were the Crown Film Unit, the RAF Film Unit, the Army Film Unit and, at one stage, the Polish Army Film Unit.  During this period film production was moved to Denham Studios, another of J Arthur Rank’s premises and just 4 miles away.

Part Two Follows……..