Dan Curtis Productions

Daniel Cherkoss (later changed to Curtis) was born in ca. 1927 in Bridgeport, Conn., and was educated at Syracuse University. He began his career in television in 1950 as a salesman for syndicated shows. He had a passion for golf and in the early 1960s created Challenge golf with Arnold Palmer and Gary Player. He was also executive producer for The CBS golf classic, which first aired in 1963 and ran for a decade. He followed this success with the creation of the gothic daytime soap opera Dark shadows, which first aired in 1966. The show suffered poor ratings until, in 1967, the vampire Barnabus Collins was introduced. Despite the massive following of loyal fans, the show was canceled in 1971 with a total of 1,225 episodes. The program went into syndication almost immediately and has continued to maintain a loyal fan base. Curtis produced two Dark shadows feature films released by MGM: House of dark shadows (1970) and Night of dark shadows (1971). Curtis produced and/or directed numerous television productions during his 40-plus year career. Among his credits are projects for ABC wide world specials and ABC wide world of mystery (under the umbrella ABC wide world of entertainment) including Frankenstein (1973), The picture of Dorian Gray (1973), and The turn of the screw (1974). His made-for-television movie credits include The night stalker (1972), The night strangler (1973) and Trilogy of terror I (1975) and II (1996) which introduced the iconic "Zuni doll." In 1978, Curtis produced the semi-autobiographical When every day was the Fourth of July, which was based on his childhood in Bridgeport, Me. in the 1930s. He followed up this project with another semi-autobiographical sequel, The long days of summer (1980). Curtis was the first executive producer of the ill-fated television anthology series, Supertrain (1979), which was one of the most expensive television series ever made. The largest of all of Dan Curtis Productions' projects were the ABC miniseries Winds of war and War and remembrance, both adapted from Herman Wouk's bestseller novels. Winds of war, a seven part miniseries, aired in February of 1983. It was the longest mini-series ever made for network television, winning Curtis an Emmy Award for the production. Curtis went back to his roots and produced a Dark shadows revival series that aired in 1991. Dan Curtis Productions produced 12 episodes of this new Dark shadows series before it was canceled. Fromm 1999 to 2005, Curtis produced several more television projects and one motion picture project, Me and the Kid (1993). His final project as both producer and director was the May 2005 Showtime production, Our Fathers, which dealt with the scandals of the Catholic Church. Dan Curtis died of cancer on March 28, 2006, in Los Angeles, Calif. at the age of 78.

From the description of Records, 1962-2005. (University of California, Los Angeles). WorldCat record id: 39845911

Biography

Daniel Cherkoss (later changed to Curtis) was born in ca. 1927 in Bridgeport, CT, and was educated at Syracuse University. He began his career in television in 1950 as a salesman for syndicated shows. He had a passion for golf and in the early 1960s created Challenge Golf with Arnold Palmer and Gary Player. He was also executive producer for The CBS Golf Classic, which first aired in 1963 and ran for a decade. He followed this success with the creation of the gothic daytime soap opera Dark Shadows, which first aired in 1966. The show suffered poor ratings until, in 1967, the vampire Barnabus Collins was introduced. Despite the massive following of loyal fans, the show was canceled in 1971 with a total of 1,225 episodes. The program went into syndication almost immediately and has continued to maintain a loyal fan base. Curtis produced two Dark Shadows feature films released by MGM: House of Dark Shadows (1970) and Night of Dark Shadows (1971).

Curtis produced and/or directed numerous television productions during his 40-plus year career. Among his credits are projects for ABC Wide World Specials and ABC Wide World of Mystery (under the umbrella ABC Wide World of Entertainment) including Frankenstein (1973), The Picture of Dorian Gray (1973), and The Turn of the Screw (1974). His made-for-television movie credits include The Night Stalker (1972), The Night Strangler (1973) and Trilogy of Terror I (1975) and II (1996) which introduced the iconic "Zuni Doll." In 1978, Curtis produced the semi-autobiographical When Every Day Was the Fourth of July which was based on his childhood in Bridgeport Maine in the 1930s. He followed up this project with another semi-autobiographical sequel, The Long Days of Summer (1980). Curtis was the first executive producer of the ill-fated television anthology series, Supertrain (1979), which was one of the most expensive television series ever made.

The largest of all of Dan Curtis Productions' projects were the ABC miniseries Winds of War and War and Remembrance, both adapted from Herman Wouk's bestseller novels. Winds of War, a seven part miniseries, aired in February of 1983. The miniseries focused on fictional characters interwoven with historical events between the years 1939-1941, culminating in the attack on Pearl Harbor. It cost 40 million dollars to produce, was filmed in 267 locations in six countries, and boasted a viewership of 140 million. War and Remembrance, a twelve part miniseries, aired in both November 1988 and May 1989. It continued with the time period 1941-1945, including both the Battle of Midway as well as the Holocaust. It featured 1,020 sets, was filmed in more than 10 countries including Auschwitz Poland, and had a final budget of 140 million dollars. It was the longest mini-series ever made for network television, winning Curtis an Emmy Award for the production.

Curtis went back to his roots and produced a Dark Shadows revival series that aired in 1991. Dan Curtis Productions produced 12 episodes of this new Dark Shadows series before it was canceled. Fromm 1999 to 2005, Curtis produced several more television projects and one motion picture project, Me and the Kid (1993). His final project as both producer and director was the May 2005 Showtime production Our Fathers, which dealt with the scandals of the Catholic Church. Dan Curtis died of cancer on March 28, 2006, in Los Angeles, CA at the age of 78.

From the guide to the Dan Curtis Productions Records, 1963-2005, (University of California, Los Angeles. Library. Performing Arts Special Collections.)