Joseph E. Levine

Joseph E. Levine (September 9, 1905 – July 31, 1987) was an American film producer. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His Embassy Pictures Corporation was an independent studio and distributor responsible for such films as Hercules (1958 film), The Carpetbaggers, Harlow, The Graduate, A Bridge Too Far and The Lion in Winter. Levine is famous in the industry for his massive advertising campaigns, starting with Hercules in 1959. He is also resp... more

Joseph E. Levine (September 9, 1905 – July 31, 1987) was an American film producer. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts. His Embassy Pictures Corporation was an independent studio and distributor responsible for such films as Hercules (1958 film), The Carpetbaggers, Harlow, The Graduate, A Bridge Too Far and The Lion in Winter. Levine is famous in the industry for his massive advertising campaigns, starting with Hercules in 1959. He is also responsible for bringing the movie Godzilla to the U.S. public. Levine had hired Terry Turner, a former RKO Pictures exploitation expert of the late 1920's and 1930's where he expolited King Kong amongst other films.Levine and Turner's exploitation campaigns were designed to appeal both to the general public but also the film industry and exhibitors as well. In 1964, Levine received the Golden Globe Cecil B. DeMille Award in recognition of his lifetime achievement in motion pictures. Joseph E. Levine died in 1987 in Greenwich, Connecticut. You can... less