The actor, ‘Monster’ producer was 91 years old.

Mark Damon, who starred in the Vincent Price horror classic; Usher’s house and foreign sales and distribution before revolutionizing spaghetti westerns including the film business and producing features. 9 1/2 weeks, Monster And Sole survivor, have died. He was 91 years old.

Damon died of natural causes in Los Angeles on Sunday, his daughter Alexis Damon Rabout said. The Hollywood Reporter.

Damon spent the first 20 years of his career as an actor, including as a leading man in nearly a dozen Italian action films, before moving into business.

He had early success as an executive producer on two films written and directed by Wolfgang Petersen: the German-language World War II drama. the boat (1981), which received six Oscar nominations, and A never ending story (1984), a big-budget fantasy film that featured Giorgio Moroder’s demon-commissioned score for non-German audiences.

He shared the Independent Spirit Award with director Patty Jenkins and others. Monster (2003), Charlize Theron starred as real-life serial killer Elaine Wuornos in an Oscar-winning turn.

Damon produced nearly five dozen features during his career, among them Adrian Lines 9 1/2 weeks (1986), John Badham Short circuit (1986), Joel Schumacher The Lost Boys (1987), Stalingrad (1993), The Jungle Book (1994), Trey Parker orgasm (1997), Dog of Flanders (1999), The opposite of anger (2005), Baltasar Kormakors 2 guns (2013), by Peter Berg Sole survivor (2013), Last complete measurement (2019) and Willy’s Wonderland (2021).

Born Alan Harris on April 22, 1933, in Chicago, Damon attended Fairfax High School and UCLA in Los Angeles, studied acting with Lee Strasberg and Sanford Messner, and roomed with Jack Nicholson. .

He had a big year as an actor in 1956, appearing on CBS Alfred Hitchcock presents. And in movies Inside Detroit, The screeching eagle and of Richard Fleischer Between heaven and hell.

He earned leading man status with graduation. Young and dangerous (1957) and Party Crashers (1958) – both opposite Connie Stevens – Plus Life begins at 17. (1958) This rebellious generation (1960) and then of the AIP Usher’s house (1960), from producer-director Roger Corman.

For his performance as the fiance of a woman (Myrna Fahey) whose crazy brother (Price) tries desperately to stop them from getting married, Damon won a Golden Globe for Most Outstanding Male Newcomer.

When he was 28, he moved to Italy and was introduced to Western countries. “I was surprised, because I had never ridden a horse in my life,” he said in a 2014 interview. “Cowboys have to be tall and blond, and I’m not that tall. I had very dark hair then, but they said, ‘It doesn’t matter. You’re American.’ I said yes and learned to ride a horse.

He starred in Sergio Corbucci’s in Italy. The shortest day (1963), Mario Bava Black Sabbath (1963), Cleopatra’s son (1964), Secret Agent 777 (1965) Ringo and his golden pistol (1966), Johnny Yuma (1966), A train to Durango (1968) Youth, devils and barbarians (1968) Pistol Pecan Preacher (1971), The crypt of the living dead (1973) and Bang, and the angels sing. (1974).

When Damon found himself typecast and Westerns became old, he gave up acting to pursue other pursuits, and in 1975 he took a job with an Italian film distributor who paid him $1,000 a month. “They really wanted me because they thought I knew everyone in Hollywood and could get them big pictures,” he said.

At the time, the major US studios handled foreign sales, but he believed that local companies could get more box office from the films.

“An independent distributor abroad who is investing his own money in a film is going to struggle very hard to make that picture, not only in the major cities but also in the provinces, because his own money is at stake. It’s happened.” They Told Producer/Podcaster Matthew Helderman in 2020. “The majors have their employees who are only interested in their salaries.”

Damon said it took him about seven years before he finally proved that independents could do better than the studios.

He returned to America in 1977 and founded the production and sales company Producers Sales Organization. the following the boat And A never ending storyPSO handled foreign sales for Martin Scorsese. The king of comedy (1982) and ‘s Once Upon a Time in America (1984).

After PSO went bankrupt, he, Jon Peters and Peter Guber founded Vision International in 1987, which was eventually sold to Credit Lyonnais. In 1993, Damon launched MDP, a worldwide production, sales and distribution organization, which went public. A decade later, it became Media 8 Entertainment, then filed for bankruptcy protection in 2012.

In 1980, he was one of the founders of the American Film Marketing Association, now called the Independent Film and Television Alliance, and published a book, From Cowboy to Mogul to Monster: The Neverending Story of Film Pioneer Mark Damonin 2008.

In addition to his daughter, he is survived by his second wife, actress Margaret Markoff, whom he married in October 1976 – they first met when she starred in a film; Playground (1974), which he produced with Corman – his son, Jonathan; and her son-in-law Matthew.

“My claim to fame is that I basically, coming from an acting background, became what they call the godfather of independent films. The one who invented the foreign sales business. The one who financed films. invented ways to get support,” Damon said in Luke Ford’s 2004 book, Producer: Profiles in Desperation.

“How did anyone do what I did? Because I didn’t know any better. I came up with this new perspective because I was an actor and didn’t know anything.