Robert L. Lippert has to be one of the most dynamic men in the Motion Picture Industry. He was born March 11, 1909 and was left the same day on the doorstep at San Francisco Catholic Charities Orphanage. Robert was adopted 22 months later by Leonard and Esther Lippert of Alameda, California. Robert spent his youth growing up in Alameda. He graduated from Lincoln grammar school. Mr. Lippert left school at the beginning of his senior year in Alameda High School to elope with Ruth F. Robinson. Both of them were only 17 years young.
His entry into the theatre business started when he was 14 years old, playing the pump organ to accompany the pictures flashing on the magic screen. He alos ran the motion picture projectors and cleaned up the theatre after the patrons had gone. When “Talkies” were introduced in 1929, Lippert rented some portable new sound equipment and went on tour showing the new sensation in grammar and high school auditoriums throughout eleven of the western United States.
From 1936 to 1940, to attract theatre patrons during the depression years, Mr. Lippert started selling and promoting “Dish Night” and “Book Night” across the entire United States. In his travels during these years, he personally met ninety percent of all theatre owners and motion picture distributors. The Robert L. Lippert Theatre Circuit started in 1942 with the opening of the Grand Theatre in Richmond, California. Mr. Lippert pioneered Drive-In Theatres in 1945, starting in Fresno, California. Combining in-door and drive-in theatres the circuit now has 118 operations.
During the expansion of his theatre circuit in the early 1940’s, Lippert started his own motion picture distribution company in San Francisco called Screen Guild Productions, later to be named Lippert Pictures, Inc. In the ensuing period of 10 years Lippert Pictures grew to 28 regional offices in the United States and as many offices in foreign countries. Lippert Pictures produced, co-financed and distributed more than 175 full-length motion pictures in the years of its existence.
Being connected with world-wide theatrical distribution and financing of motion pictures, Lippert personally moved right into producing motion pictures for his own company as producer or executive producer. He made 121 features between 1946 and 1955.
In 1955, Mr. Lippert dissolved his distribution company and moved to 20th Century Fox Film Corporation as producer and executive producer to make and deliver 121 full-length features. Besides 20th Century Fox, he produced 4 additional motion pictures for Paramount, Warner Bros., United Artist and American International Pictures.
Mr. Lippert started the quality science-fiction and horror films by making Rocketship XM and the classic The Fly. His other big box office hits were The Dog of Flanders, The Baron of Arizona, Valley Of The Eagles, Steel Helmet, Hellgate, China Gate, Desire In The Dust Little Big Horn, Tall Texan, Murder Inc., The Big Show and Cabinet Of Caligari.
Robert L. Lippert produced 246 full-length motion pictures from 1946 to 1966. His 20th Century-Fox production budgets were set at 10 million dollars per year for ten years. Lippert Pictures and Fox monies based on the gold standard of those years exceeded 125 million dollars. This was a lot of money vested in the judgement of one man.
Lippert is responsible for a host of our stars today having given them their first starring or break in the movies. Stars like John Ireland, Charles Bronson, Peter Falk, Jack Nicholson, Hugh O’Brian, Richard Chamberlin, Angie Dickenson, Julie Adams, James Arness, Raymond Burr and Lloyd Bridges.
Many of the industry’s top producers, directors, and writers came up from the ranks guided by Bob Lippert, who saw their creative abilities and gave them their chance. Elmo Williams, Sam Fuller, Charles Marquis Warren, Howard Koch, Andrew V McLaglen, Burt Kennedy James Clavell, Gene Fowler Jr. and Terence Young.
Having spent better than 20 years in Hollywood and also building new and better in-door and drive-in theatres, Lippert returned to his home, Alameda. His first love of the theatre business has always been his theatres. 1965 was the year that Lippert built, from the ground up, the first multiple theatre, located in Alameda, California. The idea of showing two, three four and five films at once in the same building, using one projectionist, one cashier and one manager as a cost saving, plus the multiplicity of choice of pictures to the patrons. This man changed the entire exhibition industry.
Robert L. Lippert died suddenly of a massive heart attack at the age of 67, on the morning of November 16,1976. Alameda, California.
YES, Mr. Robert L. Lippert was a dynamic man.
