After World War II, he bought some brand-new army-surplus
searchlights and advertised them for sale. His first customer was the
"king of exploitation", Kroger Babb. His meeting with Babb
led to an association with the showman, especially with the
producer's notorious roadshow attraction Mom and Dad (1945).
Coined the term "Mall-seleum" to refer to multiplex cinemas.
Because of his film experience as a civilian, when he went into the army he was assigned to the Signal Corps, where he attended Army Film School and was trained in motion
picture production, distribution and exhibition.
His first jobs in the industry included a stint as a film booker at a
Paramount exchange by day and a union projectionist and stagehand by
night. These jobs were interupted by a draft notice during World War
II.
He was a partner in Modern Film Distributors.
Ak of February 2008 was living in retirement since the early 1990s in his home town of Birmingham, AL.
Owner of Entertainment Ventures Inc., a film production/distribution company.
Unlike many of his fellow "exploitation" producers, he came from a wealthy and prominent family--his father was a newspaper publisher in Birmingham, AL, and a close friend of US Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black.
Started, with partner Dan Sonney, the Pussycat Theater chain of adult-film theaters. They sold it to Vince Miranda in 1968.