Customer Reviews

How I Made a Hundred Movies in Hollywood and Never Lost a Dime

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This book reads like one of Corman's movies plays out: fast, to the point, and when the monster's dead, the movie (or book) is over. There's not a lot of brooding, introspective material. (Mr. Corman muses some on why he never "sold out" to the majors and also why the European community has accorded him more respect, but these are fortunately brief segments.)

In the meantime the reader is treated to many of the adventures Corman and his ensemble braved to make his movies, some insights on how to squeeze the most out of a small budget, and a refreshingly forthright attitude about money and movies.

The book could stand an update, as Mr. C has been busy in the past decade, but it's still a worthwhile read as is.

A terrific book, loaded with great stories and anecdotes about the world of low-budget film making-- from its heyday in the 50's and 60's, to the 1980's, when the industry kind of petered out because the major studios began making the types of visceral horror, science fiction, and exploitation movies previously reserved for "quickie" independent producers like Mr. Corman. It was fun to read this book and rent some of the films as they were being discussed. Another plus: the book is peppered with informative and revealing guest essays by the likes of Francis Coppola, Joe Dante, Martin Scorcese, Jack Nicholson, and various other directors, actors, and producers who worked with and/or got their start with Roger Corman. Though most of the comments about Mr. Corman in these essays are predictably laudatory, we are also allowed to read the occasional critical or negative observation, which permits the reader to get a nicely balanced view of the subject. The book is rounded out by a great selection of photos from the dozens of movies covered.

Considering the book is about Roger Corman the shallowness might be understandable.

The book is a retrospective of some of his movies and a little bit of the life he spent around them. The anecdotes are interesting and for the most part the book is well written.

The main problem that I had with the book is the length and the lack of detail about the movies and the making of them. In only a couple of cases does he go into any real depth. Most of the movies are limited to a few paragraphs.

I think that I would have preferred a book with fewer movies being covered but greater depth of coverage.

All in all a good book for those that are fans of Roger's films, as I am. However don't expect any major revelations.

Roger Corman wrote "How I Made a Hundred Movies in Hollywood and Never Lost a Dime" in 1990, reflecting on a 35-year career making movies, during which he was nearly always in production. The title of the book should be taken literally. Corman tells us just how he directed or produced the low-budget independent films for which he is famous. After giving a brief account of his early life, Corman dives into his career of non-stop filmmaking, launched by "The Monster from the Ocean Floor", made for $12,000 in 1954, through directing films for American International Pictures 1955-1969, producing youth-oriented exploitation films and distributing foreign art films for his own company New World Pictures 1970-1982, and finally his focus on the home video market in the 1980s.

Corman learned the business of making movies as he went along, so he takes the reader though the financing and production of many of his movies, his mistakes, his philosophy, and his legendary efficiency. The recollections of people who worked with Corman, many of whom got their start in the unofficial "Corman School", are scattered throughout the text. These add an interesting variety of perspectives. Among those who chime in with their thoughts on working with Corman are actors Jack Nicholson, Peter Fonda, Bruce Dern, and Vincent Price, directors Peter Bogdanovich, Martin Scorsese, Ron Howard, John Sayles, and Francis Coppola, and Corman's wife and associate producer Julie Corman.

Corman's disdain for bureaucracy, his many methods of penny-pinching, his attempts to inject social relevance into exploitation films, his commitment to making films to suit the market (or even to suit the sets!), and his almost infallible instincts for what people want to see come across strongly. Corman's obsessive thrift seems almost pathological at times. He might have done better to spend a little more money here and there and to have more concern for his cast and crew's safety. But the ways in which he managed time, re-used sets and footage, and got people to do things for cheap would be helpful to anyone trying to break into the business on a low budget. Corman filmed "The Little Shop of Horrors" in 2 days on a leftover soundstage. It's one of the cheapest and most enduring films he made.

I'm not sure of how I happened upon this biography, but I'm glad I did. I'm not particularly a Roger Corman fan, having seen perhaps three or four of his films without really noticing that Corman had a part in their making.

Corman's life is interesting. Not only was he probably the most successful independent filmaker in history, he was also mentor and first-chance for many of today's leading producers, directors, writers and stars.

Remarkably down to earth and honest, Corman admits that his life has not been totally fulfilling: like many successful people, success is never enough - there's always one more challenge down the road and more than one challenge left unexplored in the past.

Corman engages in some, but not deep, analysis of his films, explains his evolving political philosophy and provides snippets that from another author might be construed as name-dropping. But Corman was there and it's his interactions with these people he's talking about, so it's not in the least obnoxious.

Above all, the value of Corman's book may not be to film buffs, but to business people, especially small scale entrepreneurs. Corman's management methods and his approach to filmaking were true nose-to-the-grindstone. He knew his market; he studied his market; he created his product to appeal to his market and he kept costs down to a minimum in order to reduce his risk of loss.

Quite a guy and his biography is worth the couple of hours it takes to read it.

Jerry

First, this is really a 1990 book, and all information pertains to 1988 and prior. I enjoy exploitation films and this book adds to my enjoyment. Many films today are boring and darkly filmed. Just a bunch of special effects done on a computer. It's nice to know that many of Roger Corman films are still available. Maybe not at you local Wal Mart, but they do appear on TV occasionally. This book provides information to further my appreciation of what Roger Corman was able to accomplish during his life-time. Well through 1988, anyway.

Comprehensive, informative and extremely entertaining. Provides a fascinating insight into the career and personal thoughts of the world's most commercially successful independent film maker.Roger brings that whole era of classic, B-Grade sci fi and horror movies into sharp focus as he takes us behind the scenes with an endless array of wonderful stories.There's never a dull moment in this great little book which moves along with all the spontaneity ,zip and energy of a good Roger Corman movie. Mandatory reading for all retro buffs.

If you like to watch Roger Corman movies, this book is for you. It gives you behind the scenes info on all of his best known films; if you don't like his movies, this book is still for you- because even if you don't find his films very entertaining, I'm sure you'll find the stories about how they were made to be the funniest you've ever read. Maybe he should make a movie based on this book...

The funniest random comment from Roger Corman in this book related to the use of stock footage: Corman mentioned that when he was filming the Edgar Allan Poe series (Poe was popular since all of his tales were in public domain)that nobody associated with the productions ever envisioned the home video market would permit film students and others to analyze the films on a frame by frame basis! One oft used fire sequence was economically obtained when Corman paid the owner of a barn, who had obtained a burning permit to demolish the dilphidated structure, a few dollars to photograph the razing of the barn. The collapsing rafters from the flaming roof appeared in film after film.

Roger Corman managed to learn enough about filmmaking to become a profitable commodity. He avoided the major studios with one exception: "The St. Valentine's Day Massacre." This celebrated cult film was shot on the backlot of 20th Century Fox and featured just about every heavy and extra who had ever appeared on the television series "The Untouchables." Corman was foiled in his bid to cast Orson Welles as Al Capone. Studio executives feared that Welles would wrest control of the film away from Corman and begin directing the movie. Fox contract player Jason Robards, who was to have played Bugs Moran, was quickly recast as a malnourished Scarface, and Ralph Meeker was substituted as Moran. Corman regulars, Jack Nicholson, Dick Miller and Bruce Dern can also be glimpsed in the finished film. This cult favorite was the closest that Corman ever came to the Hollywood mainstream.

Corman was steadily employed as a cost conscious producer and director who got most of his projects completed on time and under budget. He was an advocate of getting every last dollar's worth of production values up on the screen. The sole exception was "The Intruder." This civil rights message picture about a bigoted political agitator was the only Corman film to lose money in its initial release.

Roger Corman's greatest legacy may well be the number of actors and directors who launched their celebrated careers in his B minus films. This book is an amusing diversion, but like many of Corman's drive-in quickies it is not too deep in terms of its analysis.

It is obvious from this book that Roger Corman is a true movie producer. He makes movies because he loves them. Many filmmakers such as Scorsese, Ron Howard, Coppolla, etc. owe their careers to this guy who has turned the B movie into an art form. I am a filmmaker, and I highly recommend this book for anyone making films or who loves the magic behind Hollywood.