Showing posts with label rotsler. Show all posts
Showing posts with label rotsler. Show all posts

Wednesday, July 22, 2015

William Rotsler Obituary - Excerpt From Locus Magazine, November 1977

(from the William Rotsler site)



William Rotsler, 1926 - 1997

William Rotsler, author, artist, sculptor, photographer, and cartoonist extraordinaire, died suddenly October 18, 1997, at the home of his friend, Paul Turner. He recently had throat cancer surgery. In the last few years, he had a heart attack and bypass surgery, and various other severe illnesses.

Rotsler's cartoons and drawings delighted and amazed friends and fans for 50 years. In 1996, he was given Hugo and Retro-Hugo awards for work 50 years apart. He won his fifth Best Fan Artist Hugo Award just this year. His spare, laconic drawing style masked an ability to look at life, described by Harry Warner in A Wealth of Fable, as "funny on the surface, terrifying a millimeter beneath to anyone whose eye could penetrate."

William Rotsler was born 3 July 1926 in Los Angeles, California. He worked on a ranch in Camarillo as a teenager, and served in the U.S. Army from 1944 to 1945, learning the profession of photographer. He discovered fandom in the mid-'40s and was part of the Los Angeles fan scene for over 50 years. He attended Los Angeles County Art Institute, 1947-50, and worked as a sculptor of mainly outdoor modern work from 1950 to 1959, then gave it up to become a photographer, filmmaker, producer, director of commercials, documentaries, etc. He worked mainly in the "erotic" industries, selling photos to Playboy, writing columns for Knight and other men's magazines, writing, directing, or acting(!) -- or some combination of these -- in such movies as The Agony of Love (1966), Notorious Daughter of Fanny Hill (1966), Shannon's Women (1969), and The Secret Sex Life of Romeo and Juliet (1970). He frequently used fan friends as extras in his movies. This part of his career mostly ended by the '70s. During all this, his prodigious output of cartoons and drawings continued unabated. He was fan Guest of Honor at the World SF Convention in 1973.

He also became a professional writer in the '70s, first producing non-fiction book Contemporary Erotic Cinema (1973) and then his first and best novel, Patron of the Arts (1974). To the Land of the Electric Angels (1976) was also noteworthy. He collaborated with Gregory Benford on Shiva Descending (1980). Most of his books were movie and TV tie-ins or children's fiction such as Tom Swift books with Sharman DiVono under the name of Victor Appleton, Jr. His most recent book was Science Fictionaries (1995), a collection of sayings and quotes from SF writers.

(posted 21 Oct; excerpted from the obituary to appear in Locus Magazine, November 1997)




Saturday, June 13, 2015

DPS RE-RELEASES WILLIAM ROTSLER'S CLASSIC The Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema (1959-1972)


FIRST TIME IN 40 YEARS
DPS RE-RELEASES WILLIAM ROTSLER'S CLASSIC
The Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema (1959-1972)

William Rotsler’s book "from the start of the porno-chic age provides contemporary perspectives and valuable insights into soft- and hard-core." -John Minson, Bright Lights Film Journal

Digital Parchment Services and the estate of William Charles Rotsler are proud to announce the republication of The Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema (1959-1972) (originally published as Contemporary Erotic Cinema) – a groundbreaking examination and celebration of early adult films by the man who helped make those years so special!

William Rotsler (b. 1926 – d. 1997) was truly a renaissance man: acclaimed sculptor, filmmaker, photographer, reporter, novelist, illustrator, cartoonist, and the recipient of multiple awards and award nominations.

But first and foremost, William Rotsler was a visionary erotic filmmaker, acclaimed for such "cult classics" (Wikipedia) as Agony of Love, Lila (Mantis In Lace), Street of a Thousand Pleasures, The Godson, and Like It Is!, among others. During the 1960s he directed dozens of short and feature length films. Frequently working with Harry Novak of Boxoffice International fame, William Rotsler filmed many of the legendary actresses and models of his time, including Diane Webber, Virginia Gordon, Vincene Wallace, Pat Barrington, Gloria Saunders, Cathy Crowfoot, Joanne Rotolo, and Vicky Dee.

Back in print for the first time in 40 years, The Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema is William Rotsler's view of the rise and flowering of adult filmmaking in the 1960s, beginning with the films of Russ Meyer, through to the phenomenal success of Deep Throat – the movie that put adult films on the map – to Behind the Green Door, and so many others. It takes readers behind the scenes for a look at the making of erotic movies, presents up-close-and-personal interviews with stars and producers, and concludes with an "Erotic Cinema Checklist" rating the heat level and and quality of over 100 erotic movies of the era!

Over the years since its original publication The Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema has as achieved the status of a classic on its subject. Eric Schaefer, Associate Professor of Visual and Media Arts at Emerson College hails the book for its "valuable insights" and unique lived perspective..."

And William Rotsler was a man uniquely qualified to write it. "His experience [as writer and director] within the sexploitation industry made him a prominent commentator on the screen's explicit sexual realism," writes David Church in "Between Fantasy and Reality: Sexploitation, Fan Magazines and William Rotsler's 'Adult Only' Career." In his writings, Church says '...Rotsler knowledgably ... championed the underground cinema movement for creating 'sexy and beautiful' films that 'say ... important things' as a visible part of broader social changes in sexual mores..."

Join William Rotsler as he takes you behind-the-scenes of Golden Age adult films to cover:

Deep Throat
Behind the Green Door
The Devil In Miss. Jones
Linda Lovelace
Russ Myer
The Mitchell Brothers
Marilyn Chambers

–And much much more!

The republication of The Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema is a major event. It’s a "must-have" for any one interested in erotic films, their history and making.

The Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema (1959-1972)
http://amzn.com/B00XYWRTBO
$5.99
FREE on Amazon Unlimited for a limited time
Paperback edition coming soon!

#

The estate-authorized William Charles Rotsler site (http://www.williamcharlesrotsler.com)

The estate-authorized William Charles Rotsler site – featuring his adult films and photography (http://rotsler-erotic-cinema.blogspot.com)

Digital Parchment Services (http://digitalparchmentservices.com)

For information please feel free to contact mchristian@digitalparchmentservices.com

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

The Celebration Of The Re-Release of Bill Rotsler's Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema Was A Hit - and Then Some!

(from the William Charles Rotsler site)

Thanks to the Center For Sex And Culture, the Estate Of William Rotsler, The William Rotsler Virtual Museum, and all the great folks who came out over the last three weeks to check out some great Bill Rotsler's artwork and photographs, enjoy his marvelous adult movies - and help celebrate the re-release, after 40 years, of The Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema!

We'll be posting pictures, videos and a lot more very soon but in the meantime check out these shots - and be sure and pick up a copy of this beautiful new edition of Bill Rotsler's definitely book on The Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema ... out now!





Thursday, May 21, 2015

Setting Up For the Celebration Of William Rotsler's Adult Films And Photographs - And The ReRelease of Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema!

(from the William Charles Rotlser site)

Check out these fun photos of our prep for the very fun three week celebration of William Rotsler's adult photos and films ... as well as the new edition of his groundbreaking Golden Age Of Erotic Cinema.  

The event should be fun-and-then-some!  See you then for a video tribute to Bill Rotsler, some of his adult films and shorts, a gallery of his magazine work and photos, door prizes and so much more!