Monogram Pictures
Monogram Pictures, a small but prolific independent studio, specialized in low-budget films for neighborhood theaters. Monogram produced most of its own films in-house, but also released films made by independent producers. Katzman sold Monogram on a juvenile delinquency series, to cash in on the successful cycle of the Dead End Kids and Little Tough Guys melodramas. Katzman's series, The East Side Kids, caught on almost immediately, and before long many of the original Dead End Kids and Little Tough Guys joined Katzman's series. The East Side Kids films gradually evolved from noisy melodramas to roughneck comedies. Leo Gorcey, Huntz Hall, Bobby Jordan, Gabriel Dell, Billy Benedict and 'Sunshine' Sammy Morrison were mainstays of Katzman's East Side troupe.
Katzman branched out with companion series for Monogram. He partnered with Jack Dietz to produce Bela Lugosi thrillers and comedy features with Harry Langdon, Billy Gilbert and Shemp Howard. When Leo Gorcey demanded double his weekly salary from Katzman in 1945, Katzman refused and pulled the plug on The East Side Kids series. He then approached Monogram with an idea at the opposite extreme: the wholesome adventures of squeaky-clean high school kids. Monogram agreed, and Katzman launched the "Teen Agers" series, featuring singer Freddie Stewart and future "Superman" co-star Noel Neill. The first of these was 1946's Junior Prom.
Read more about this topic: Sam Katzman, Biography
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