Richard P. Rubinstein (born June 15, 1947) is an American film and television producer, who has worked mainly in the science fiction and horror genres. In the 1970s and 1980s he collaborated frequently with horror director

George A. Romero George Andrew Romero (; February 4, 1940 – July 16, 2017) was an American-Canadian filmmaker, writer, editor and actor. His ''Night of the Living Dead'' series of films about an imagined zombie apocalypse began with the 1968 film of the ...

, including on the seminal 1978

zombie film A zombie film is a film genre. Zombies are fictional creatures usually portrayed as reanimated corpses or virally infected human beings. They are commonly portrayed as cannibalistic in nature. While zombie films generally fall into the horror g ...

'' Dawn of the Dead'' and the 1984–1988 anthology horror television series ''

Tales from the Darkside ''Tales from the Darkside'' is an American anthology horror TV series created by George A. Romero. Debuting in October 1983 with a pilot episode and then being picked up for syndication in September 1984, the show ran for 4 seasons through July ...

''. In the 1980s and 1990s Rubinstein produced a substantial number of projects based on the writings of horror novelist

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author of horror, supernatural fiction, suspense, crime, science-fiction, and fantasy novels. Described as the "King of Horror", a play on his surname and a reference to his high s ...

Early life and family

Rubinstein was born in 1947 in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

, New York. His younger brother, born in 1952, is

Donald Rubinstein Donald Rubinstein is a film composer, singer/songwriter, and multi-media artist who is best known for his collaborations with George A. Romero and Avant-garde jazz/rock collaborations with such musicians as Bill Frisell, Emil Richards and Wayne H ...

, a composer who wrote the music for some of the films and series Rubinstein produced. Rubinstein received an undergraduate degree from

American University The American University (AU or American) is a private federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. Its main campus spans 90 acres (36 ha) on Ward Circle, mostly in the Spring Valley neighborhood of Northwest D.C. AU was charte ...

, and an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

from

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

Career

Rubinstein began his production career as a

production assistant A production assistant, also known as a PA, is a member of the film crew and is a job title used in filmmaking and television for a person responsible for various aspects of a production. The job of a PA can vary greatly depending on the budget ...

for television commercials. He got his first

associate producer A film producer is a person who oversees film production. Either employed by a production company or working independently, producers plan and coordinate various aspects of film production, such as selecting the script, coordinating writing, dir ...

credit in the early 1970s for the one-hour TV special ''A Night with

Nicol Williamson Thomas Nicol Williamson (14 September 1936 – 16 December 2011) was a Scottish actor, once described by playwright John Osborne as "the greatest actor since Marlon Brando". He was also described by Samuel Beckett as "touched by genius" and view ...

'', produced by

Dore Schary Isadore "Dore" Schary (August 31, 1905 – July 7, 1980) was an American playwright, director, and producer for the stage and a prolific screenwriter and producer of motion pictures. He directed just one feature film, '' Act One'', the film bio ...

. In 1973 Rubinstein produced ''The Winners'', a series of one-hour profiles about various American sports heroes, and in 1974 he independently produced a similar one-hour television special profiling O. J. Simpson.

Laurel Entertainment

In the mid-1970s, Rubinstein and horror director

co-founded the production company Laurel Entertainment. In 1979, Rubinstein took the company

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichkei ...

, to raise more money. In 1984, Romero left Laurel Entertainment to pursue his own projects, although the two would continue to collaborate. In 1986, Laurel teamed up with New World Pictures in order to co-produce the film ''

Creepshow 2 ''Creepshow 2'' is a 1987 American comedy horror anthology film directed by Michael Gornick, and the sequel to ''Creepshow''. Gornick was previously the cinematographer of the first film, and the screenplay was written by George A. Romero who was ...

''. In 1988, Rubinstein and

Aaron Spelling Aaron Spelling (April 22, 1923 June 23, 2006) was an American film and television producer and occasional actor. His productions included the TV series ''Family'' (1976–1980), '' Charlie's Angels'' (1976–1981), ''The Love Boat'' (1977–1986 ...

merged Laurel Entertainment and Spelling's own production company,

Aaron Spelling Productions Spelling Television Inc. was an American television production company that went through several name changes. It was originally called Aaron Spelling Productions, then Spelling Entertainment Inc. and eventually part of Spelling Entertainment Gro ...

as subsidiaries of a new public company, Spelling Entertainment Inc. The merger was completed on March 1, 1989. Rubinstein remained head of the Laurel Entertainment division. On October 5, 1993,

Blockbuster Entertainment Blockbuster LLC, formerly known as Blockbuster Video, was an American-based provider of home video and video game rental services. Services were offered primarily at video rental shops, but later alternatives included DVD-by-mail, streaming, ...

acquired a controlling stake in Spelling Entertainment Group., and in 1994 it in turn was bought by

Viacom Viacom, an abbreviation of Video and Audio Communications, may refer to: * Viacom (1952–2006), a former American media conglomerate * Viacom (2005–2019), a former company spun off from the original Viacom * Viacom18, a joint venture between Par ...

. In 1995, Rubinstein, who was still head of the Laurel division, left to found his own, smaller production company,

New Amsterdam Entertainment New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

in New York City. Laurel Entertainment was folded into Spelling Television the same year.

Association with George Romero

Through Laurel Entertainment, Rubinstein co-produced or executive produced a number of Romero's films, most notably ''Dawn of the Dead'' but also ''

Martin Martin may refer to: Places * Martin City (disambiguation) * Martin County (disambiguation) * Martin Township (disambiguation) Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Austral ...

'' (1978), ''

Knightriders ''Knightriders'' is a 1981 American drama film written and directed by George A. Romero and starring Ed Harris, Gary Lahti, Tom Savini, Amy Ingersoll, Patricia Tallman, and Christine Forrest. It was filmed entirely on location in the Pittsbu ...

'' (1981), ''

Creepshow ''Creepshow'' is a 1982 American horror comedy anthology film directed by George A. Romero and written by Stephen King, making this film his screenwriting debut. The film's ensemble cast includes Hal Holbrook, Adrienne Barbeau, Fritz Weaver, Le ...

'' (1982) and ''

Day of the Dead The Day of the Dead ( es, Día de Muertos or ''Día de los Muertos'') is a holiday traditionally celebrated on November 1 and 2, though other days, such as October 31 or November 6, may be included depending on the locality. It is widely obser ...

'' (1985). Rubinstein also executive produced Romero's 1984–1988 anthology horror series ''

'', which was based on the success of ''Creepshow''. After ''Tales from the Darkside'' ended, Rubinstein executive produced the similar anthology show ''

Monsters A monster is a type of fictional creature found in horror, fantasy, science fiction, folklore, mythology and religion. Monsters are very often depicted as dangerous and aggressive with a strange, grotesque appearance that causes terror and fe ...

'', which ran from 1988 to 1991, this one without involvement from Romero. Rubinstein also co-produced the 2004 remake of Romero's ''Dawn of the Dead'', again without involvement from Romero (Romero was critical of the remake, saying it was more like a "video game").

Association with Stephen King

Rubinstein's first known professional collaboration with Stephen King was the 1982

anthology film An anthology film (also known as an omnibus film, package film, or portmanteau film) is a single film consisting of several shorter films, each complete in itself and distinguished from the other, though frequently tied together by a single theme ...

'', which Rubinstein co-produced and which had a screenplay written by King, based on a combination of some of King's published short stories as well as new plots. In 1987, via Laurel Entertainment, Rubinstein executive-produced its sequel, ''

'', this time based on King's stories but written by Romero. In the 1980s, two anthology horror series that Rubinstein executive-produced, ''Tales from the Darkside'' and ''Monsters'', included episodes based on short stories by King. The 1990 anthology horror film '' Tales from the Darkside: The Movie'' also included a chapter based on a short story by King. Rubinstein co-produced the 1991 miniseries '' Golden Years'', which was written by King, based on an original concept. Rubinstein also produced a string of film and television adaptations of other written works by Stephen King, including the 1989 film ''

Pet Sematary ''Pet Sematary'' is a 1983 horror novel by American writer Stephen King. The novel was nominated for a World Fantasy Award for Best Novel in 1984, and adapted into two films: one in 1989 and another in 2019. In November 2013, PS Publishing rel ...

'', the 1994 miniseries ''

The Stand ''The Stand'' is a post-apocalyptic dark fantasy novel written by American author Stephen King and first published in 1978 by Doubleday. The plot centers on a deadly pandemic of weaponized influenza and its aftermath, in which the few surv ...

'', the 1995 miniseries '' The Langoliers'', the 1996 film '' Thinner'' and the 1997 film ''

The Night Flier "The Night Flier" is a horror short story by American writer Stephen King, first published in the 1988 anthology '' Prime Evil: New Stories by the Masters of Modern Horror'', and then in King's own 1993 ''Nightmares & Dreamscapes'' collection. ...

''. These were often co-produced with

Mitchell Galin Mitchell Galin is an American film and television producer. He is best known for his work on '' Stephen King's The Stand'' for ABC and ''Frank Herbert's Dune'' for Syfy. He currently runs Epiphany Pictures. Selected filmography * ''Tales from ...

''Dune'' series

Rubinstein held the film and television rights to the ''

Dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, f ...

'' series of books by

Frank Herbert Franklin Patrick Herbert Jr. (October 8, 1920February 11, 1986) was an American science fiction author best known for the 1965 novel '' Dune'' and its five sequels. Though he became famous for his novels, he also wrote short stories and worked a ...

since 1996. With

, Rubinstein produced the 2000 miniseries ''

Frank Herbert's Dune ''Frank Herbert's Dune'' is a three-part science fiction television miniseries based on the 1965 novel by Frank Herbert. It was written and directed by John Harrison. The cast includes Alec Newman as Paul Atreides, William Hurt as Duke Leto ...

'' and its 2003 follow-up, ''

Frank Herbert's Children of Dune ''Frank Herbert's Children of Dune'' is a three-part science fiction miniseries written by John Harrison and directed by Greg Yaitanes, based on Frank Herbert's novels ''Dune Messiah'' (1969) and ''Children of Dune'' (1976). First broadcast in t ...

''. In 2008, Rubinstein attempted to produce a film adaptation of ''Dune'' with

Paramount Pictures Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film and television production company, production and Distribution (marketing), distribution company and the main namesake division of Paramount Global (formerly ViacomCBS). It is the fifth-oldes ...

, but Paramount dropped the effort in 2011.

Legendary Pictures Legendary Pictures Productions, LLC (doing business as Legendary Entertainment or simply Legendary) is an American film production and mass media company based in Burbank, California, founded by Thomas Tull in 2000. The company has collaborated ...

and

Warner Bros. Pictures Warner Bros. Pictures is an American film production and distribution company of the Warner Bros. Pictures Group division of Warner Bros. Entertainment (both ultimately owned by Warner Bros. Discovery). The studio is the flagship producer of liv ...

later acquired the rights from Rubinstein for a new two-film adaption of ''Dune'' to be directed by

Denis Villeneuve Denis Villeneuve (; born October 3, 1967) is a Canadian filmmaker. He is a four-time recipient of the Canadian Screen Award (formerly Genie Award) for Best Direction, winning for '' Maelström'' in 2001, '' Polytechnique'' in 2009, ''Incendies ...

with the first part to be released in December 2020; Rubinstein served as executive producer for the films.

Awards and accolades

* Rubinstein received a

Monte Carlo TV Festival The Monte-Carlo Television Festival is held every year in June in the Principality of Monaco at the Grimaldi Forum, under the Honorary Presidency of H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco. The opening ceremony inaugurates each new edition, introdu ...

award and a

Christopher Award The Christopher Award (established 1949) is presented to the producers, directors, and writers of books, films and television specials that "affirm the highest values of the human spirit". It is given by The Christophers, a Christian organization ...

for ''The Vernon Johns Story'', a 1994 TV movie starring

James Earl Jones James Earl Jones (born January 17, 1931) is an American actor. He has been described as "one of America's most distinguished and versatile" actors for his performances in film, television, and theater, and "one of the greatest actors in America ...

References

External links

Richard P. Rubinstein biography
at New Amsterdam Entertainment * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rubinstein, Richard P. 1947 births People from Brooklyn Film producers from New York (state) American University alumni Columbia Business School alumni Living people