Universal and Imagine to Mine Playboy Archives for Film Ideas

Posted on May 13, 2002

Universal Pictures and Imagine Entertainment, headed by Brian Grazer and Ron Howard, have finalized a deal with Alta Loma Entertainment, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Playboy Enterprises Inc., for the archival rights to 48 years of material published in Playboy magazine as source material for new feature films. Previously, Imagine acquired the rights to develop a feature film about Playboy founder and editor-in-chief Hugh M. Hefner. Jill Liberman will supervise the Imagine/Playboy archival project for Alta Loma Entertainment.

From its debut issue in December 1953, the magazine has published short stories, articles and excerpts from some of the most distinguished writers of the past century, including Ray Bradbury, John Irving, Larry McMurtry, Rod Serling, Jean Shepherd and Ian Fleming. Among the works that first appeared in Playboy that went on to become major motion pictures are The Hustler, All The President's Men, The World According to Garp, The Fly, 9 1/2 Weeks, Fast Times at Ridgemont High and several films in the James Bond series.

Imagine's Grazer said, "For almost 50 years, Playboy magazine has served as the birthplace of source material for numerous movies, TV shows and plays, but we think there's still a lot of gold left to be mined from those archives. They're a veritable treasure trove of really great movie ideas."

Added Alta Loma Chairman Richard S. Rosenzweig, "We are delighted to be teaming with Brian Grazer and Ron Howard, the most successful producers in Hollywood, on this project. Playboy has been the genesis of a host of major feature films and television productions and has a plethora of as-yet untapped archival resources."

Upcoming Universal releases produced by Imagine include the action-comedy Undercover Brother, directed by Malcolm D. Lee and opening May 31; the romantic adventure Blue Crush, directed by John Stockwel; and the drama 8 Mile, starring Eminem and directed by Curtis Hanson, opening November 8. In addition, this summer they will begin production on the Coen Brothers' dark comedy Intolerable Cruelty, starring George Clooney and Catherine Zeta Jones, and later this year on Dr. Seuss' The Cat in the Hat, starring Mike Myers and directed by Bo Welch.