Ted Hartley, the film and stage actor and former CEO and Chairman of RKO Pictures, has died at 100.
The Hamptons resident passed away October 10 in New York City, according to the East Hampton Star.
Hartley and his wife, Dina Merrill, are known for merging their Pavilion Communications business with RKO Pictures Corporation in 1991.
Born on November 6, 1924, in Omaha, NE, Hartley was a Navy officer and fighter pilot before becoming an actor in Hollywood in the 1960s. He played Reverend Jerry Bedford in ABC soap opera Peyton Place and was cast in Chopper One, a show based around police helicopters, for the same network.
On the big screen, he had parts in films such as Clint Eastwood starrer High Plains Drifter, Barefoot in the Park, and Caddyshack II. His most recent acting role was in 2012’s A Late Quartet, which starred Philip Seymour Hoffman, Catherine Keener and Christopher Walken.
In 1987, Hartley joined Pavilion Communications, which four years later acquired 51% of RKO, which released the likes of Citizen Kane and King Kong during its golden era. He would lead the company as Chairman and CEO.
The new-look RKO produced the likes of Mighty Joe Young remake for Disney, Ritual for Miramax and noir pic Shade in the late 1990s and early 2000s. Hartley also produced Broadway musicals Never Gonna Dance, Curtains, Gypsy and 13, and Top Hat, which won a Laurence Olivier Award for Best New Musical in 2013. Curtains was twice nominated for Tony Awards.
Hartley sold RKO Pictures just this year to Concord Originals, as we revealed back in June. The deal gave Concord derivative rights to over 5,000 titles, which include the remake, sequel, story, stage and copyrights of the company’s storied film library. RKO has continued to operate as its own imprint under Concord Originals, and Hartley even remained as lead producer and chief storyteller on a slate of projects, while also acting as Chairman Emeritus.