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Lou Rusoff

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Lou Rusoff
Born3 August 1911
Died29 June 1963
Los Angeles, United States
Occupation(s)Screenwriter, film producer

Lou Rusoff (August 3, 1911 – June 29, 1963) was a Canadian-born screenwriter and producer best known for his work with American International Pictures.

He was brother-in-law to Sam Arkoff and was the screenwriter for many of Roger Corman's first films. He was the father of Ted Rusoff.

Career

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Rusoff worked as a social worker[1] and wrote for Canadian radio and television before moving to Hollywood in 1950. He wrote for a number of TV programs, then started working for AIP and became their most prolific screenwriter, usually writing scripts to match a concept and poster that AIP had come up with.[2] Arkoff later said:

Often, he was working on five or six scripts simultaneously – not only his own but rewriting other people's screenplays when emergencies occurred and the original writers were unavailable. He also eventually produced some of the AIP movies he wrote... More than any other writer, Lou had a real appreciation for what we were trying to do. He understood how to keep costs down by limiting the number of sets and locations. He framed his scripts beautifully into our titles and artwork. And he always kept a sense of humour, which was a real virtue under hectic circumstances.[3]

Writer Mark McGee said, "Rusoff's scripts were usually hackneyed and dull but they generally made sense."[4] Filmink called him "competent, unremarkable" as a writer.[5]

He worked his way up to vice-president in charge of production.

Rusoff died of brain cancer during the editing of his final film, Beach Party (1963).[6]

He was survived by his wife, two sons, a brother and six sisters.[7]

Select credits

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References

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  1. ^ "Anna Sten Resuming; Petal Premiere Set". Los Angeles Times. July 16, 1956. p. 27.
  2. ^ Scheuer, Philip K. (September 21, 1958). "Shocker Pioneers Tell How to Make Monsters: Want to Make a Monster? Experts Tell How It's Done". Los Angeles Times. p. E1.
  3. ^ "Arkoff p39".
  4. ^ Mark McGee (1996). Faster and Furiouser: The Revised and Fattened Fable of American International Pictures. McFarland. p. 58.
  5. ^ Vagg, Stephen (May 15, 2024). "Top Ten Corman – Part Three: Westerns". Filmink.
  6. ^ Arkoff p 130
  7. ^ "TV-Movie Producer Rusoff Dies". Los Angeles Times. July 1, 1963. p. A1.
  • Arkoff, Samuel Z & Richard Turbo, Flying Through Hollywood By the Seat of My Pants, Birch Lane Press, 1992
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