Brian R. Degas (2 October 1935 – 3 April 2020) was an English producer and writer, merchandiser, and creative packager of ancillary rights.
Early career
Degas was born to English parents on 2 October 1935 in
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...
,
Argentina
Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...
. As a youth, he worked as a writer and director in amateur productions.
At the age of 21, he took a job in the United States at the CBS network as a production trainee in public affairs programming. He later worked with Charles Collingwood on the documentaries ''
Adventure
An adventure is an exciting experience or undertaking that is typically bold, sometimes risky. Adventures may be activities with danger such as traveling, exploring, skydiving, mountain climbing, scuba diving, river rafting, or other extreme ...
'' and ''Odyssey''. In 1957, John Houseman invited Degas to work on his TV anthology series '' The Seven Lively Arts'' for CBS. During this period, Degas also worked with
Reginald Rose
Reginald Rose (December 10, 1920 – April 19, 2002) was an American screenwriter. He wrote about controversial social and political issues. His realism (arts), realistic approach was particularly influential in the anthology programs of the ...
George Roy Hill
George Roy Hill (December 20, 1921 – December 27, 2002) was an American film director. He is most noted for directing such films as ''Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid'' (1969) and ''The Sting'' (1973), both starring Paul Newman and Robert Re ...
. At the age of 27, Degas was appointed Executive Producer of Light Entertainment and a member of the programming board for a new CBS affiliate.
After a meeting with Roger Moore, Degas received the opportunity to write several episodes of the television series '' The Saint''. He also wrote episodes of '' The Baron'' and ''
Strange Report
''Strange Report'' is a British television crime drama series starring Anthony Quayle as Adam Strange. It was produced by ITC Entertainment and first broadcast in 1969 on ITV
In the United States, NBC broadcast ''Strange Report'' between 8 Ja ...
'' for
ITC Entertainment
The Incorporated Television Company (ITC), or ITC Entertainment as it was referred to in the United States, was a British company involved in production and distribution of television programmes.
History Incorporated Television Programme Compan ...
, ''
Shirley's World
''Shirley's World'' is a television series aired first by ABC during the 1971–72 television season. The sitcom was co-produced by the British ITC Entertainment and American producer Sheldon Leonard, with English producer-director Ray Au ...
'' for the
American Broadcasting Company
The American Broadcasting Company (ABC) is an American commercial broadcast television network. It is the flagship property of the ABC Entertainment Group division of The Walt Disney Company. The network is headquartered in Burbank, Cali ...
The Mask of Janus
''The Mask of Janus'' is a British television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmis ...
'' for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
.
In 1963, Degas started creating and developing his own television series with BBC Television. He created and wrote three episodes for the series ''Vendetta''. Degas also authored three paperbacks as spinoffs from the series and commissioned the series music from composer John Barry.
A fluent Italian speaker, Degas also started collaborating with
Dino de Laurentiis
Agostino "Dino" De Laurentiis (; 8 August 1919 – 10 November 2010) was an Italian-American film producer. Along with Carlo Ponti, he was one of the producers who brought Italian cinema to the international scene at the end of World War II. He ...
on design, script consulting and editing for the films '' Barbarella'', '' Danger Diabolik'', '' Better a Widow'' and '' Summertime Killer''. In 1975, after finishing these projects, Degas served as producer of ''The Venturers'', a drama series for BBC TV concerning the world of high finance.
Colditz
Degas produced the television series ''
Colditz
Colditz () is a small town in the district of Leipzig, in Saxony, Germany. It is best known for Colditz Castle, the site of the Oflag IV-C POW camp for officers in World War II.
Geography
Colditz is situated in the Leipzig Bay, southeast of the ...
'', a BBC TV/MCA Universal co-production in 1972. It was a Second World War drama series based on the film ''
The Colditz Story
''The Colditz Story'' is a 1955 British prisoner of war film starring John Mills and Eric Portman and directed by Guy Hamilton. It is based on the 1952 memoir written by Pat Reid, a British army officer who was imprisoned in Oflag IV-C, Colditz ...
'' and the book ''The Latter Days'' by Major Patrick Robert Reid. During its run, ''Colditz'' was named Best BBC TV Series, Best British TV Series, Best Design, and Best Music. It had a record viewing audience of 18 million in the United Kingdom each week and was screened in 47 countries.
Using the intellectual property of ''Colditz'', Degas pioneered the exploitation of television and film ancillary rights. He conceived, developed and licensed the following merchandising projects
*''The Spirit of Colditz'', a model of the Colditz glider for Airfix
*''Colditz Breakpoint'', a dramatic journey into the sounds of pursuit, capture and escape from Colditz released on an LP by EMI
*''The Colditz Escape Kit'', a DIY model of Colditz Castle
*an ''Action Man'' model
*endorsements for a Mars bar promotion that culminated in the board-game '' Escape from Colditz''
Degas conceived and developed ''Escape from Colditz'' jointly with Major P. R. Reid. The game sold over half a million copies, including a Spanish version.
Freelance career
Degas returned to the US and to television programming in New York and Hollywood for a brief period, which included being Head of Development for Brut Productions and for Danny Thomas Enterprises. With high hopes, he turned to the world of theatre and co-produced ''Chapter 17'' by Simon Gray, which was a dismal failure at the box office. A close friendship with the legendary
Gloria Swanson
Gloria May Josephine Swanson (March 27, 1899April 4, 1983) was an American actress and producer. She first achieved fame acting in dozens of silent films in the 1920s and was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Actress, most f ...
led to their collaboration on the writing of her long-awaited biography. Accordingly, in 1979, Degas set up Gloria's Way Inc and personally closed a publishing contract with Random House. The 520-page volume sold over 148,000 in hard cover and close to 300,000 in paperback, and was critically acclaimed in all three language editions. His distinctive marketing plan for the book and his promotional tour with Gloria refined his marketing skills in all aspects of the media.
Returning to the UK, he joined Polymuse Inc., an international film investment company, as executive vice-president in charge of Creative Affairs and Marketing emphasising that "in an advertising led system in a new billion dollar market in Europe it was time to develop a competitive strategy and target specific audiences on a cost effective bases – and that it was a fallacy to think that inexpensive programmes meant inferior TV".
In 1990, together with Harry Robertson he brought his innovative skills back to the BBC as creator, writer and producer of '' Specials'', a television drama series, including three paperback editions published by Fontana, about part-time policemen – ordinary people whose commitment made them extraordinary. This was followed by '' Virtual Murder'', an off-beat psychological 'whodunit' drama series about two jet-set investigative psychologists involved in bizarre crimes. The series' guest stars included
Richard Todd
Richard Andrew Palethorpe-Todd (11 June 19193 December 2009) was an Irish-British actor known for his leading man roles of the 1950s. He received a Golden Globe Award for Most Promising Newcomer – Male, and an Academy Award for Best Actor n ...
,
Dora Bryan
Dora May Broadbent, (7 February 1923 – 23 July 2014), known as Dora Bryan, was a British actress of stage, film and television.Jon Pertwee.
A later project was '' Confidentially Speaking'', created in association with British Telecom, and written as an "eavesdropping drama" down a crossed telephone line.
Degas later took an extended sabbatical, and travelled the globe. He became a committed
Sinophile
A Sinophile is a person who demonstrates a strong interest for China, Chinese culture, Chinese language, Chinese history, and/or Chinese people.
Those with professional training and practice in the study of China are referred to as Sinol ...