Joseph E. Levine

Self-proclaimed movie mogul who entered the film business as an exhibitor, specializing in importing foreign films. Alongside classics such as "Rome, Open City" (1945) and "The Bicycle Thief" (1948), Levine imported cheaply made entertainments such as "Godzilla" (1956) and "Hercules" (1959), a major commercial success which thrust him into the Hollywood big time. He then moved into production and had a significant hand in some major films of the 1960s including "8 1/2" (1963) and "The Graduate" (1967). The crass movie producer played by Jack Palance in Godard's "Contempt" (1963) is widely considered to be based on Levine--who produced the film!