Frank Marshall

As we remember the great Steve “Maz” Maslow, we wanted to share a personal photograph taken on April 1st, 1981 of Maslow seated at the console the day after the team’s Academy Award win for “Best Sound” on The Empire Strikes Back. A personal caption of the photo shared by Maslow to Skywalker Sound’s Jacob Riehle in 2012 read: “This is the picture of the console taken the day after the Oscars for “Empire”.

We were saddened to learn of the passing of the great James Tolkan, known best to us at ILM as Principal Gerald Strickland and U.S. Marshal James Strickland in the Back to the Future trilogy. Our thoughts are with his wife Parmelee Welles, and all who knew him across his memorable life and career.

The Warriors (1979) Based on Sol Yurick’s 1965 novel (itself inspired by the ancient Greek Anabasis), the film was originally envisioned as a western before being adapted into a gritty urban odyssey. It was shot on location across New York City during a period of real-life urban decay, which provided an authentic, "nightmarish" backdrop for its fictional gangs. Despite being produced on a modest budget of roughly $4 million, it grossed over $22.5 million worldwide. It opened strong with a $3.5 million weekend, proving highly popular with young, working-class audiences. Success was marred by reports of real-life gang violence and vandalism at screenings. This led Paramount Pictures to temporarily halt advertising and release theater owners from their contracts to show the film. The film’s longevity was solidified by its 1980 VHS release, which allowed it to find a massive audience through word-of-mouth and midnight screenings. It has since seen numerous re-releases, including the 2005 "Ultimate Director's Cut" (which added comic book-style transitions) and high-definition versions on Blu-ray and 4K. It is celebrated for its vivid visual language—specifically the theatrical, themed gang costumes like the Baseball Furies—and iconic dialogue such as "Warriors, come out to play-i-ay!"