Person Biography:
Al Adamson was a renowned producer, director, and screenwriter, known for his prolific output of low-budget exploitation features in the 1960s and 1970s. Born on July 25, 1929, in Hollywood, California, Adamson was the son of actress Dolores Booth and actor/director Victor Adamson, who specialized in B-grade Westerns in the 1920s and 1930s.
Adamson's early foray into filmmaking was helping his father as director and producer on the film Halfway to Hell in 1953. In the mid-1960s, he co-founded Independent-International Pictures with fellow producer/distributor Samuel M. Sherman, and went on to produce and direct a wide range of films, including scuzzy biker movies, grungy Westerns, smarmy sex comedies, funky blaxploitation films, ridiculous science fiction dross, and lurid horror fare.
Adamson's films often featured a cast of oddball but enthusiastic amateurs and faded professional thespians, including Kent Taylor, Russ Tamblyn, Lon Chaney Jr., and the ubiquitous John Carradine. He frequently gave his wife, Regina Carrol, sizable parts in his films and was a mentor to future schlock directors Greydon Clark and John 'Bud' Cardos. Adamson also played a significant role in launching the careers of ace cinematographer Gary Graver and fellow top cinematographers László Kovács and Vilmos Zsigmond.
Tragically, Adamson's life came to a brutal and untimely end at the age of 66 when he was murdered by his live-in contractor, Fred Fulford, on August 2, 1995. Despite his untimely demise, Adamson's legacy as a prolific and influential filmmaker continues to be celebrated by fans of cult cinema.
