Books by Michael R. Pitts

Founded by Robert M. Savini in 1933, Astor Pictures Corporation distributed hundreds of films in its 32 years of production. The company distributed over 150 first run features in addition to the numerous re-releases for which it became famous. This volume provides the first in-depth look at Astor Pictures with thorough coverage of its releases.

The western genre touched on ideals of honor, conquest, and freedom of spirit, and its stories packed cinemas of the early sound era. This volume covers 30 western film series produced from the mid 1930s to the early 1950s. It contains a plot synopsis and analysis of each series' place in cinema history, many photographs and illustrations and a detailed filmography.

Covers more than 200 Columbia feature films within these genres, among them Close Encounters of the Third Kind, Seventh Voyage of Sinbad, Earth vs. The Flying Saucers and The Revenge of Frankenstein. Also discussed are films starring horror icons Boris Karloff, Bela Lugosi, and John Carradine.