The Studio Exec Who Broke Marvel Into the Big Time Has Passed Away

Storied movie and tv enforcement Frank Price passed distant connected August 25, 2025, astatine property 95. Besides being 1 of the superior developers of the TV movie and miniseries concepts, Price was himself a communicative editor/writer of 1950s programs similar The Virginian and Tales of Wells Fargo earlier becoming the caput of Universal Television wherever helium oversaw shows similar Kojak, Baretta, and The Rockford Files. He segued into the movie concern successful 1978 arsenic president of the movie part astatine Columbia Pictures, greenlighting classics similar Kramer vs. Kramer, Gandhi, The Karate Kid, and Ghostbusters. In precocious 1984 helium moved to Universal wherever helium ported implicit Columbia projects similar Back to the Future and Out of Africa to go monster hits.

I archetypal encountered Price arsenic 1 of the enforcement figures successful Jack Matthews' classical behind-the-scenes exposé The Battle of Brazil (about the struggle betwixt manager Terry Gilliam and Universal implicit that film), and past overmuch aboriginal arsenic a fig of value for my ain non-fiction book, A Masterpiece successful Disarray, astir David Lynch's Dune, which Price supervised the merchandise of. After being generous with his clip connected that book, I got to talk to Price again past twelvemonth wherever the taxable of his fortuitous – and arguably important – engagement successful bringing Marvel Comics to live-action came up.

"I deliberation I americium indirectly liable for the full Marvel happening due to the fact that of the Incredible Hulk tv series," Price told maine successful June of 2024. "I did that astatine Universal, and Marvel was fundamentally going retired of business. We could person bought Marvel for $50 cardinal astatine that point, but [Universal boss] Sid [Sheinberg] decided against it. Today that's worthy billions."

Taking a Chance connected Stan

Marvel Comics properties person been arguably the dominant unit successful movies since the motorboat of X-Men successful 2000, with films successful the interconnected Marvel Cinematic Universe unsocial accounting for $32 cardinal successful planetary concern since 2008. A comic publication instrumentality since childhood, Price had known Stan Lee and by the mid-1970s was consenting to instrumentality a accidental connected Marvel's sprawling beingness of characters successful a live-action milieu.

"I had 10 of the Marvel comics," Price stated. "I had an enactment woody with Marvel wherever of their 110 oregon 120 characters I could prime 10, truthful I had the prime of the litter. This is conscionable earlier I near to spell to Columbia, and truthful I didn't get each of them done. Fortunately the happening I got from Bob Wessler, who was caput of CBS, was a committedness of 10 two-hour movies connected these superheroes. The mode I did it was I had our creation section marque life-size [cardboard] cartoons of these characters. I took them each implicit to a gathering astatine CBS, enactment them astir the country to transportation this, and helium bought it. He committed to the two-hour movies. The archetypal 1 was Incredible Hulk."

To bring Lee and Jack Kirby's The Incredible Hulk to beingness connected the tiny screen, Price went to 1 of Universal Television's newest large producers, Kenneth Johnson, who was caller disconnected of creating The Bionic Woman (a spin-off from Harve Bennett's The Six Million Dollar Man), which ran for 3 seasons.

Price said, "I did Six Million Dollar Man and Bionic Woman, and that was earlier Incredible Hulk, truthful I similar the superhero things. There are definite basal things you request to observe to support the premise, right? On my superhero worldly I had rules, that if the Six Million Dollar Man had the spot of 20 men, that means 21 tin flooded it. That's the information point. You've ever got to person a susceptible superhero."

"Frank called maine and helium said, 'Look, we conscionable acquired the rights to 5 of the Marvel Comics superheroes. Which 1 would you similar to do?'" Johnson told IGN successful the aftermath of Price's death. "He was giving maine the archetypal choice, which was flattering, but I said, 'Gee, Frank, thanks, but nary of them.'"

Johnson did not needfully privation to beryllium pigeonholed arsenic a subject fabrication guy, incapable to place with Marvel's slate of "spandex and superior colors" characters. At the clip determination was truthful small request for them successful Hollywood that Price got the rights for a song, with Johnson claiming the fig was astir $7K for each title. Although Universal had the rights to 10 of the superheroes, the imaginable archetypal question had been whittled down to five, which consisted of The Hulk, Captain America, The Human Torch, Namor the Sub-Mariner, and Ms. Marvel. The second 2 would person been competing straight with akin TV fare similar NBC's short-lived Man From Atlantis starring Patrick Duffy and Lynda Carter's Wonder Woman.

Frank Price successful 2013. (Photo by Araya Doheny/WireImage)

"I had a batch of respect for him, but I conscionable didn't privation to spell down that roadworthy with Marvel stuff," Johnson continued. "But astatine the time, I was speechmaking a publication my woman Susie gave to maine called Les Miserables, truthful I had the fugitive conception rattling astir successful my caput with the inspector pursuing him. Sitting determination astatine night, I thought, 'I stake I could instrumentality a small spot of Victor Hugo and a small spot of Robert Louis Stevenson's Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and instrumentality this ludicrous happening called The Incredible Hulk and crook it into an big intelligence drama. Not a comic publication show.' I went backmost to Frank with that conception and helium said, 'Okay, that's great.' We were going to bash 2 movies, that was the bid CBS had successful mind: A genesis movie wherever we amusement however it begins/how the concern arose, and past a two-hour follow-up movie astir however this could beryllium an episodic."

Part of Johnson's woody with Price progressive him making the 2 Hulk movies successful speech for a "one for me" that would support him from being pigeonholed arsenic a sci-fi guy, i.e. a melodramatic four-hour miniseries based connected Sir Walter Scott's Ivanhoe.

Said Johnson, "We shook hands connected it and Bob's your uncle. Then I sat down and successful 7 days wrote the communicative and screenplay for the aviator movie of The Incredible Hulk. Frank was great, helium wholly near maine alone. We changeable the achromatic pages of my archetypal draught screenplay, which was a rarity astatine that time… inactive is. I besides insisted connected casting it myself, penning it with Bill Bixby successful mind. I had seen a show Bill had done successful a TV movie called Steambath, truthful he'd ever been successful my head. I wrote, produced, and directed the aviator that Universal aboriginal released arsenic a overseas theatrical, which I had nary idea. I got a telephone 1 time from Universal, 'Hey, congratulations, you person the top-grossing movie successful Europe!'

“Then I began moving connected the publication for Ivanhoe, but by the clip the publication was written, Frank had near the studio. The caller feline who had travel successful to regenerate Frank said, 'Well, we're not going to bash that.' I said, 'I shook Frank's hand,' and helium said, 'Yeah, good Frank's manus is nary longer present to motion the check.' Welcome to Hollywood, Kenny."

Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno arsenic David Banner/The Incredible Hulk.

A Hulk-Sized Hit

While Ivanhoe ne'er happened, November 1977's archetypal The Incredible Hulk TV movie turned into an unthinkable ratings occurrence story, cashing successful connected the sci-fi roar initiated by that year's Star Wars, arsenic good arsenic the Hulk comics themselves. Lasting for 5 seasons (80 episodes) from 1977 to 1982, the amusement benefitted hugely from the quiescent charisma of prima Bill Bixby arsenic good arsenic his Hulk signifier portrayed by bodybuilder/human peculiar effect Lou Ferrigno, the second alternating betwixt sympathetic and terrifying. Johnson wanted to swap the Hulk's colour from greenish (derisively referring to it arsenic "the envious Hulk") to reddish and mislaid that battle, but was capable to alteration the sanction of Bruce Banner to David Banner to debar the alliterative signifier of different Marvel heroes (Peter Parker, Reed Richards, Bucky Barnes, etc.). Jack Colvin supplied the Inspector Javert vibes arsenic the paper antheral antagonist successful changeless pursuit of Banner. The aviator movie is simply a self-contained calamity with tons of pathos and overmuch much of a Frankenstein-ian fearfulness space than the remainder of the bid had. However, it took immoderate convincing to get that archetypal bid committedness from the network.

"Frank and I were virtually enarthrosis to enarthrosis astatine CBS, and it took america 3 meetings to get this feline to spell with our beliefs that this could beryllium a deed show," remembers Johnson. "The CBS president astatine that clip didn't get it. He said, 'I don't spot however this could perchance beryllium a series.' We said, 'What are you talking about?' It was wide however it's a communicative based connected Greek tragedy, a leader who brings down a curse upon himself tampering with things amended near to the gods. It was precise wide to america however it could beryllium an ongoing series, however helium would determination done the satellite trying to find a mode to cure himself of this occupation of not letting his choler get retired of control. After 3 meetings this man yet said, 'Okay, well, look, I'll springiness you a mid-season replacement for 10 episodes.' We did it and it truly took off!"

Produced and developed by Johnson, the show's archetypal play came successful astatine #26 for the 1977-1978 season, tying with Hawaii Five-O. It continued to beryllium a coagulated performer crossed 5 seasons, often winning its Friday timeslot. Due to its complexity (changing locales/VFX/make-up), The Incredible Hulk became 1 of the archetypal shows wherever each occurrence was changeable implicit 8 days alternatively of the emblematic 6-7 time docket of astir ’70s episodics. It besides spawned a paper comic portion and a fashionable committee game. Even aft the amusement ended successful 1982, it continued to bash precise good successful syndication, yet becoming a mainstay of niche cablegram networks similar Sci-Fi Channel, MeTV, and the El Rey Network.

"Frank was ever precise wide to maine that what we did connected the Hulk was what truly broke Marvel into the large time," said Johnson. "Stan Lee told maine galore times implicit the years however helium was truthful pleased with what we had done with The Incredible Hulk, due to the fact that that was the archetypal Marvel comic quality that broke out. Just earlier his death, determination was a large gathering successful Hollywood for Stan's upcoming 94th birthday. He asked maine to beryllium connected signifier with him and helium said, 'The enactment that Kenny and his squad did connected The Incredible Hulk is what jump-started the full Marvel Universe.'"

"That worked," Price beamed. "Where I deed the close enactment was that they were doing spoofs of the superheroes similar Batman, right? 'Wham, bam,' that stuff. I took a superior attack to it and that worked overmuch better. I deliberation that stimulated the Marvel thing. Unfortunately, Bob Wessler got fired for the deal, due to the fact that [CBS bigwig] Bill Paley didn't privation his web to go a cartoon web and the occurrence of Incredible Hulk looked similar it could spell that way."

Spidey, Doctor Strange, Cap… and a Duck

While the Hulk roared to a ratings bonanza, CBS's attempts to emulate its occurrence with different Marvel shows successful Price's lack fell flat. Actually airing earlier the Hulk pilot, a TV movie of The Amazing Spider-Man starring Nicholas Hammond arsenic Peter Parker led to a series, which began concurrently with the Bixby amusement connected the web but lone lasted 13 episodes. In September of 1978, a azygous TV movie based connected Doctor Strange starring Peter Hooten arsenic the Sorcerer Supreme aired to mediocre Nielsen ratings. January and November of 1979 saw 2 Captain America TV movies featuring Reb Brown arsenic Steve Rogers, neither of which led to a bid and yet ended CBS' infatuation with bringing much Marvel to TV.

1978's The Amazing Spider-Man. (Photo by CBS via Getty Images)

If these different non-Hulk properties had been hits, determination could surely person been cross-pollination imaginable with heroes guest-starring successful each other's shows. However, Price himself was not personally a instrumentality of interconnected cinematic universes.

"No, I astir apt wouldn't person done that due to the fact that I deliberation that makes it much juvenile, each the crossovers with the superheroes," helium said. "I deliberation erstwhile you premix them up you deterioration them out. If you dainty Spider-Man the mode you should dainty Superman oregon Batman, past support them arsenic superheroes and don't person 10 different superheroes coming in. At that constituent you commencement straining credulity. I travel from the subject fabrication satellite wherever if you found a definite premise upfront beryllium accordant to that premise. As a kid I enjoyed Superman and Batman and Green Lantern. When I was 8 oregon 9 years aged those kinds of books started hitting, truthful I was fascinated by that. If you've got a superhero, I similar to travel up with the supervillain that they're against and person a spell that way. If you person Superman and you support Superman and you don't screw it up, you tin spell connected everlastingly with that."

Peter Hooten arsenic Dr. Strange. (Photo by CBS via Getty Images)

After a tantalizing "almost was" teaming Hulk with Nicholas Hammond's Spider-Man, NBC would yet spell down that roadworthy with 2 aboriginal TV movies: The Incredible Hulk Returns, which teamed Bixby's Hulk with Thor, and The Trial of the Incredible Hulk, which crossed implicit with Daredevil. Both served arsenic backdoor pilots for bid that ne'er happened. (IGN covered some films with an extended video you tin ticker here.) While not enamored with the Marvel Cinematic Universe benignant of storytelling, Price was besides not a instrumentality of however Marvel Studios portrayed the Hulk quality successful their aboriginal films, including 2008's The Incredible Hulk that serves arsenic a partial tribute to the Bixby series. It each came down to relatability.

Opined Price, "I didn't similar what they did successful the Incredible Hulk movies due to the fact that there's truthful overmuch powerfulness determination that what's the point? He tin alert and each this… our Incredible Hulk couldn't fly. I thought we made a bully intelligence happening retired of it, that erstwhile our leader got huffy helium turned into this Incredible Hulk. Well, that's similar erstwhile you get huffy you crook into a rage!"

Of course, Marvel Comics characters weren't consistently Price's beardown suit. While moving with George Lucas connected the publication that would go Radioland Murders successful the mid-’70s, writers Willard Huyck and Gloria Katz were taken to a comic publication store Lucas owned astatine the clip and shown Steve Gerber's satirical Howard the Duck bid for Marvel. The screenwriters loved it and tried to enactment Howard, but recovered that Universal had purchased it arsenic portion of their tv bundle with the comics group. Another movie effort successful the aboriginal ’80s with a Howard puppet designed by Stan Winston failed to launch, but past Huyck and Katz optioned it and, according to a 1986 San Francisco Examiner article, pitched it to Price arsenic the recently installed Chairman of MCA/Universal’s Motion Picture Group. His response? "My God, I cognize astir Howard the Duck – I erstwhile owned Howard the Duck."

Reb Brown arsenic Captain America.

With Lucas folded successful arsenic an enforcement shaper and ILM doing the VFX, Price fast-tracked Howard the Duck arsenic Universal's large movie of summertime 1986 with Huyck directing, but the last movie bombed with critics and astatine the container office, grossing lone $16M connected a $30M+ budget. On September 17, a month-and-a-half aft Howard the Duck's release, Price resigned from Universal contempt 2 years near connected his $3M-per-year contract. Variety reported it – connected the aforesaid time they ran a celebratory nonfiction connected 25 years of the Marvel Universe – with the infamous header "DUCK COOKS PRICE'S GOOSE."

That was hardly the extremity of Price's workplace career, though. In 1990 helium returned to Columbia aft Sony took ownership, and during his 2nd reign arsenic workplace main helium greenlit A League of Their Own, Bram Stoker's Dracula, Groundhog Day, and the groundbreaking Boyz n the Hood. He was besides instrumental successful 1 past spot of Marvel business…

"When I went backmost to Columbia the 2nd clip I remembered Spider-Man," recalled Frank Price. "I hadn't been capable to get him due to the fact that the rights were split. Columbia owned a third, Golan-Globus owned a third, and there's a 3rd elsewhere. What I said was, 'Clear the rights there. We privation to get them.' So I cognize we got the Golan-Globus, and past I near Columbia again, past they yet got the different third… truthful I near them a bully present."

"I truly liked him," Kenneth Johnson concludes astir the precocious Price. "He was 1 of the fewer executive-level guys successful the manufacture who'd really been a shaper and writer. He was idiosyncratic that knew what we were going through. He wasn't idiosyncratic that had travel to it from selling oregon determination else. He understood movie accumulation and tv production. Frank was a fantastic quality being. He was jovial. You could laughter and scratch with him, and I deliberation it came from the information that helium had been successful our shoes arsenic a producer. Oftentimes a batch of studios don't similar to person idiosyncratic similar Frank heading up an enactment similar that, due to the fact that they deliberation that idiosyncratic successful that presumption volition beryllium excessively sympathetic to the originative aspects and not arsenic financially sound. Frank managed to straddle that and marque a terrific vocation retired of being an executive."