Description
The Dan Curtis Productions Records span the years 1963-2005. Dan Curtis predominantly produced television series, made for
television movies, television episodes, and television miniseries. While Curtis produced many acclaimed productions, he is
most known for his 1960's gothic soap opera
Dark Shadows and the massive television miniseries
Winds of War and
War and Remembrance. Curtis also produced four motion picture projects including the horror film
Burnt Offerings,
Me and the Kid, as well as two films based on
Dark Shadows. Series include television projects, motion picture projects, unproduced projects, and business records. Subseries are arranged
alphabetically by project title and include scripts, production materials, and audio reels.
Background
Daniel Cherkoss (later changed to Curtis) was born in circa 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).
Extent
64.0 Linear Feet
(162 boxes)
Restrictions
Property rights to the physical objects belong to UCLA Library Special Collections. All other rights, including copyright,
are retained by the creators and their heirs. It is the responsibility of the researcher to determine who holds the copyright
and pursue the copyright owner or his or her heir for permission to publish where The UC Regents do not hold the copyright.
Availability
Open for research. All requests to access special collections materials must be made in advance using the request button located
on this page.