Edward L. Montoro

A pioneer of independent filmmaking, exhibition and distribution, Edward L. Montoro remains one of the most notorious film producers in the motion picture industry and has since become an enigma of sorts in Hollywood after his mysterious disappearance in 1984. Originally from Cleveland, Ohio, Montoro had planned a career as an airline pilot, but that dream ended in 1968 when he was in a major plane crash. He decided to change career options from pilot to filmmaker. He founded Film Ventures International (FVI) in 1969, in Atlanta, Georgia and thus helped form the early stages of film production in the State of Georgia. Later in his career, Montoro was also appointed by then-Governor Jimmy Carter to the Georgia State Film Commission. Montoro directed and produced his first film, a "sexploitation" comedy entitled Getting Into Heaven (1970), which had some impact with audiences. That started Montoro on his lengthy career as a producer/distributor, usually of exploitation films, "B" horror pictures and Italian westerns and crime thrillers, which although shot cheaply managed to rake in impressive box-office receipts. Montoro's first major hit was the Italian import "spaghetti western" Boot Hill (1969), and four years later he hit it big again with another Italian import, a ripoff of The Exorcist (1973) called Beyond the Door (1974), starring Juliet Mills. Although the film was a hit with audiences, earning $9 million at the box office, "The Exorcist"'s distributor, Warner Brothers, filed suit against Montoro and FVI, claiming copyright infringement. However, the lawsuit was eventually dropped after it was discovered that Warner Brothers had no rights to some of the key scenes depicted in its film. Montoro's most successful effort as a producer was Grizzly (1976), a ripoff of Jaws (1975) but with a bear instead of a shark, starring Christopher George and Richard Jaeckel. The film, directed by William Girdler, became one of the most successful independent films of that year, earning over $30 million (on a budget of $750,000) worldwide. However, Montoro's decision to keep the profits for himself led director Girdler and the film's producers to file a lawsuit. Girdler returned the following year to direct Day of the Animals (1977) with an all-star cast, also produced by Montoro. The film wasn't a major hit, and Girdler and Montoro parted ways after it was released. Montoro continued making some impression with films such as Shock (1977), Hometown U.S.A. (1979) and The Dark (1979), all of which were not widely released, playing only to limited theaters. In 1980 Montoro picked up the Italian film The Last Shark (1981) and it was released in the United States. Although he put several million dollars into advertising, Universal Pictures felt that the film was too derivative of its monster hit "Jaws" and filed suit. The court agreed, and "Great White" was pulled from theaters. Although the suit cost several million dollars, it wasn't enough to cause Montoro and FVI to go bankrupt. He still had successful films that were getting impressive box office numbers, including The Incubus (1982), Vigilante (1982), They Call Me Bruce? (1982) and Kill and Kill Again (1981). In 1982 Montoro formed a "sister" company to FVI, Artists Releasing Corporation, which helped to release such films as Mortuary (1983) and The House on Sorority Row (1983), neither of which mad much impact at the box office. Mutant (1984) was the last film produced by Edward Montoro. It opened in 1984 to some success, but it didn't recoup its costs and resulted in the demise of Film Ventures International. After the release of "Mutant", Montoro was in the middle of a messy divorce from wife Joan, and she wound up becoming entitled to half of everything he owned, including Film Ventures International. Montoro was also very ill for several months and stayed at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles. Shortly after his recovery and release he took several million dollars from Film Ventures International's coffers and vanished, never to be seen again. The company was left in the hands of four executives, who tried desperately to keep it running, but it finally collapsed in 1985 later being taken over out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy by Irv Holendar's broadcasting company, Independent Network Inc. What remains of Montoro's legacy to this day are his movies that he both produced and distributed which have largely grown cult followings to a new generation of film buffs; the expansion of film promotion in the State of Georgia today which was largely "pioneered" by Montoro; and finally continued speculation as to what really happened to him.