Guy McElwaine (June 29, 1936 – April 2, 2008) was a former professional baseball player turned Hollywood agent, producer and studio head. He joined

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Studios Inc., also known as Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Pictures and abbreviated as MGM, is an American film, television production, distribution and media company owned by amazon (company), Amazon through MGM Holdings, founded o ...

's publicity department in 1955 but left in 1959 to join marketing and public relations agency

Rogers & Cowan Rogers & Cowan is a global marketing and public relations agency. A division of the Interpublic Group of Companies (NYSE: IPG), the company is based in Los Angeles, with offices in New York, Miami, and London. History Rogers & Cowan was foun ...

. In 1964, he set up his own PR firm. He became an agent at Creative Management Associates in 1969 and was a founding partner of

International Creative Management ICM Partners is a talent and literary agency with offices in Los Angeles, New York City, Washington D.C. and London. ICM (International Creative Management) Partners represents clients in the fields of motion pictures, television, music, publi ...

when CMA merged with International Famous Agency in 1975. He was the first agent of

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

. While at CMA, he became vice-president of worldwide production at

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (commonly known as Warner Bros. or abbreviated as WB) is an American film and entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California, and a subsidiary of Warner Bros. D ...

but left after 18 months and rejoined the agency when ICM was created. He left ICM to join

Columbia Pictures Columbia Pictures Industries, Inc. is an American film production studio that is a member of the Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, a division of Sony Pictures Entertainment, which is one of the Big Five studios and a subsidiary of the mu ...

in 1981 and became head of production in October 1983 replacing

Frank Price Frank Price (born May 17, 1930) is a television writer and executive during the 1950s to 1970s, and a Hollywood studio chief in the 1980s. He held a number of executive positions including head of Universal TV in the 1970s; president, and later ...

and lasted until April 1986. The first film that started production under his reign at Columbia Studios was ''

The New Kids ''The New Kids'' is a 1985 American horror thriller film, directed by Sean S. Cunningham and starring Shannon Presby, Lori Loughlin and James Spader. The film was released on January 18, 1985, by Columbia Pictures. Plot When Abby and Lor ...

''. Columbia's production increased during his reign with 14 films started in 1984 compared to 9 in 1983 but none of the 14 were hits when they were released. The biggest hit produced under his tenure was ''

The Karate Kid Part II ''The Karate Kid Part II'' is a 1986 American martial arts drama film written by Robert Mark Kamen and directed by John G. Avildsen. It is the second installment in the ''Karate Kid'' franchise and the sequel to the 1984 film ''The Karate Kid'', ...

'' with a gross of $115 million on a negative cost of $14 million. He

greenlit To green-light is to give permission to proceed with a project. The term is a reference to the green traffic signal, indicating "go ahead". Film industry In the context of the film and television industries, to green-light something is to ...

Ishtar Inanna, also sux, 𒀭𒊩𒌆𒀭𒈾, nin-an-na, label=none is an ancient Mesopotamian goddess of love, war, and fertility. She is also associated with beauty, sex, divine justice, and political power. She was originally worshiped in S ...

'', produced by

Warren Beatty Henry Warren Beatty (né Beaty; born March 30, 1937) is an American actor and filmmaker, whose career spans over six decades. He was nominated for 15 Academy Awards, including four for Best Actor, four for Best Picture, two for Best Director, ...

for whom McElwaine had acted as publicist for in the past. The budget doubled from an initial $27.5 million to $55 million and he was fired after production wrapped. He was fired by Columbia Pictures and succeeded by

David Puttnam David Terence Puttnam, Baron Puttnam, CBE, HonFRSA, HonFRPS, MRIA (born 25 February 1941) is a British film producer, educator, environmentalist and former member of the House of Lords. His productions include ''Chariots of Fire'', which wo ...

. He rejoined ICM in 1988 and in 2002 became president of

Morgan Creek Entertainment Morgan Creek Entertainment is an American film production company that has released box-office hits including '' Young Guns'', '' Dead Ringers'', '' Major League'', ''True Romance'', '' Ace Ventura: Pet Detective'', '' The Crush'', '' Robin Hood: ...

until his death from pancreatic cancer. McElwaine married six times, including to actress

Leigh Taylor-Young Leigh Taylor-Young (born January 25, 1945) is an American actress who has appeared on stage, screen, podcast, radio and television. The most famous films in which she had important roles include '' I Love You, Alice B. Toklas'' (1968), '' The Hor ...

. He was also involved with

Lana Wood Lana Wood (born Svetlana Lisa Gurdin; March 1, 1946) is an American actress and producer. She made her film debut in ''The Searchers'' as a child actress and later achieved notability for playing Sandy Webber on the TV series '' Peyton Place'' a ...

, who revealed in her 2021 memoir that she terminated a pregnancy by him in 1963.

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