Howard Kazanjian

Kazanjian was born in Los Angeles County, California, and is of Armenian descent. He graduated from the University of Southern California. While there he first met a young George Lucas, and they became not only Delta Kappa Alpha cinema fraternity brothers but also long standing friends.{{cite book |last=Pollock |first=Dale |date=2009 |title=Skywalking: The Life and Films of George Lucas |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=c2uctr9bU7wC&pg=PA51 |location=New York |publisher=Da Capo Press |page=51 |isbn=978-0-306-80904-0}} They were members of a clique of filmmakers known to the Hollywood system and the university circuit as The Dirty Dozen.{{sfn|Pollock|2009|p=48}} During those college years, Kazanjian and Lucas both met their respective future wives, and the couples would often double date.

Kazanjian's early credits include being First Assistant Director on Alfred Hitchcock's Family Plot and Second Assistant Director on Sam Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch. He later worked with director Robert Wise on his production of The Hindenburg. Kazanjian eventually moved into film production rather than directorial work. He later stated, "The films offered to me I don't want to direct. The films I want to direct are not offered."{{cite web |url=http://www.starwarsaficionado.com/f/HOWARD_KAZANJIAN_INTERVIEW_2009.pdf |title=HOWARD KAZANJIANAN EXCLUSIVE INTERVIEW WITH ONE OF THE KEY PLAYERS BEHIND THE CREATION OF THE STAR WARS / INDY UNIVERSES |website=Star Wars Aficionado |date=2009 |access-date=September 2, 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130603141659/http://www.starwarsaficionado.com/f/HOWARD_KAZANJIAN_INTERVIEW_2009.pdf |archive-date=June 3, 2013}}

As Lucasfilm's Vice President of Production, Howard Kazanjian was intimately involved in the day-to-day strategic and practical operations of Lucasfilm during the times immediately after the 1977 release of Star Wars until approximately 1984 or 1985.{{cite web |url=https://starwarsinterviews.com/star-wars-crew/howard-kazanjian-producer/ |title=Howard Kazanjian (Producer) |last=Pellegrom |first=Dennis |date=January 2010 |website=Star Wars Interviews |access-date=June 1, 2019}}{{cite web |url=http://starwarsinterviews1.blogspot.com/2010/01/howard-kazanjian-interview.html |title=Howard Kazanjian interview |website=Star Wars Interviews 1 |access-date=June 1, 2019}}

Kazanjian is most notable for having served as executive producer on Raiders of the Lost Ark and producer on Return of the Jedi. He is also recognized as an uncredited producer on The Empire Strikes Back, replacing producer Gary Kurtz midway through the production.{{cite web |url=https://makingstarwars.net/2018/09/remembering-star-wars-producer-gary-kurtz/ |title=Remembering Star Wars producer Gary Kurtz. |last=Ward |first=Jason |date=October 2, 2018 |website=Making Star Wars |access-date=June 1, 2019}}{{cite web |url=https://www.scifistation.com/lucas/lucas_index.html |title=George Lucas |last=Leibovit |first=Arnold |website=Sci-Fi Station |access-date=June 1, 2019}} For Jedi he came up with the idea of shooting the production under a fake name, Blue Harvest, in order to forestall any attempts at price gouging by suppliers. Blue Harvest was purported to be a horror film with the tag line "horror beyond imagination". Hats and T-shirts were printed up for the crew to wear and to further add to the authenticity of the ruse.{{cite web |url=https://brianjayjones.com/2010/07/26/project-blue-harvest-revealed/ |title=Project Blue Harvest Revealed |date=July 26, 2010 |website=Brian Jay Jones |access-date=June 1, 2019}}

During the casting of Raiders, Kazanjian heavily campaigned for Harrison Ford to be cast as Indiana Jones, to the point he almost lost his job over it. Jones was intended to be a smoker and a drinker, but Kazanjian convinced Lucas and Steven Spielberg to remove that. The scene where sunlight passing through the Headpiece to the Staff of Ra reveals the location of the Well of the Souls was proposed by Kazanjian, who was inspired by the golden statues of Ramesses II at the Abu Simbel temples in Egypt. The temple was positioned so that sunlight would penetrate the sanctuary and illuminate the statues once a year.

The issue of whether Ford would reprise his role of Han Solo for the third Star Wars film arose during pre-production. Kazanjian was responsible for getting him to return:

I played a very important part in bringing Harrison back for Return of the Jedi. Harrison, unlike Carrie Fisher and Mark Hamill signed only a two picture contract. That is why he was frozen in carbonite in The Empire Strikes Back. When I suggested to George we should bring him back, I distinctly remember him saying that Harrison would never return. I said what if I convinced him to return. George simply replied that we would then write him in to Jedi. I had just recently negotiated his deal for Raiders of the Lost Ark with Phil Gersh of the Gersh Agency. I called Phil who said he would speak with Harrison. When I called back again, Phil was on vacation. David, his son, took the call and we negotiated Harrison's deal. When Phil returned to the office several weeks later he called me back and said I had taken advantage of his son in the negotiations. I had not. But agents are agents.

The ending scene of Return of the Jedi was originally only going to show the Force ghosts of Obi-Wan Kenobi and Yoda, but two days before the scene was shot, Kazanjian suggested that the ghost of Anakin Skywalker appear as well.

Kazanjian has authored books with Chris Enss. In 2004, they collaborated on The Cowboy and the Senorita: A Biography of Roy Rogers and Dale Evans {{ISBN|0-7627-3053-6}} and Happy Trails: A Pictorial Celebration of the Lives of Roy Rogers and Dale Evans {{ISBN|0-7627-3089-7}}; In 2006, The Young Duke: The Early Life of John Wayne {{ISBN|0-7627-3898-7}}; in 2009, Thunder over the Prairie: The True Story of a Murder and a Manhunt by the Greatest Posse of All Time {{ISBN|0-7627-4493-6}}.{{cite web |url=https://truewestmagazine.com/history-taught-howard-kazanjian/ |title=What History Has Taught Me: Howard Kazanjian |last=Kazanjian |first=Howard |date=May 29, 2017 |website=True West Magazine |access-date=June 1, 2019 |archive-date=June 1, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190601005818/https://truewestmagazine.com/history-taught-howard-kazanjian/ |url-status=dead }}

He has been an instructor at "Act One", a group designed to train Christians entering into film and television,[http://www.actoneprogram.com/executivefaculty.htm Act One] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081006083147/http://www.actoneprogram.com/executivefaculty.htm |date=October 6, 2008 }} and was named by Beliefnet as one of the twelve most powerful Christians in Hollywood.{{cite web |url=http://in.christiantoday.com/articles/mel-gibson-named-%5Cmost-powerful-christian%5C-in-hollywood/2384.htm |title=Mel Gibson Named 'Most Powerful Christian' in Hollywood |publisher=In.christiantoday.com |date=October 18, 2007 |access-date=February 3, 2013 |archive-date=February 18, 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120218140816/http://in.christiantoday.com/articles/mel-gibson-named-%5Cmost-powerful-christian%5C-in-hollywood/2384.htm |url-status=dead }}

Kazanjian is an active member of the Armenian charity and cultural community, and a USC alumnus.{{cite web |url=http://pasadenaarmenianchurch.com/blog/event/mens-forum-howard-kazanjian-inside-view-of-the-motion-picture-and-television-industry/ |title=Men's Forum – Howard Kazanjian – Major Motion Picture Producer & Director |website=St. Gregory Armenian Church of Pasadena |access-date=June 1, 2019 |archive-date=June 1, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190601005822/http://pasadenaarmenianchurch.com/blog/event/mens-forum-howard-kazanjian-inside-view-of-the-motion-picture-and-television-industry/ |url-status=dead }}

Since 1998, Kazanjian has been co-chairman and 50% shareholder of Tricor Entertainment, Inc, an independent production company, which owns and operates a 19,000+ seat theater chain in Southeast Asia and a film distribution company.{{cite news |last=Hindes |first=Andrew |date=April 21, 1999 |title=Distrib Tricor shouts Good Morning, Vietnam |url=https://variety.com/1999/film/news/distrib-tricor-shouts-good-morning-vietnam-1117493474/ |work=Variety |access-date=June 1, 2019}}{{cite web |url=https://occidentalentertainment.com/news/darian.pdf |title=The Dealmaker & The Filmmaker |last=Nazaretyan |first=Ani |date=March–April 2011 |website=Occidental Entertainment |access-date=June 1, 2019}}

In 2023, Kazanjian attended book signing events hosted by Armenian Film Society.{{cite web |url=https://cinema.usc.edu/news/article.cfm?id=69019|title=SCA Alum Launches Inaugural Armenian Film Festival|author=Benjamin Pola|date=September 28, 2023|access-date=November 19, 2024}}

Kazanjian lives and works in the community of San Marino, California with his wife Carol (née Eskijian), and three children, Peter, Noah, and Andrew.{{cite news |title=Luther Eskijian Obituary |url=https://www.legacy.com/obituaries/pasadenastarnews/obituary.aspx?n=luther-eskijian&pid=87180769 |work=Pasadena Star-News |date=April 12, 2007 |access-date=June 1, 2019}}

Kazanjian and George Lucas remain close friends to this day.

He was producer for all films unless otherwise noted.

;Second unit director or assistant director

;Miscellaneous crew

;Thanks

;As an actor

;Second unit director or assistant director

• 1982 Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Informational Series or Special for The Making of Raiders of the Lost Ark{{cite web |url=https://www.emmys.com/bios/howard-kazanjian |title=Howard Kazanjian |website=Academy of Television Arts & Sciences |access-date=June 1, 2019}}
• 1982 Inkpot Award winner{{cite web |url=https://www.comic-con.org/awards/inkpot |title=Inkpot Award |website=San Diego Comic-Con |date=December 6, 2012 |access-date=June 1, 2019}}
• 2009 Briner Impact Award{{cite web|url=http://www.frontgatemedia.com/news.php?mod=template&id=55 |title=Hollywood Legends Honored with Lifetime Achievement Award at Biola Media Conference | Christian Industry News |publisher=FrontGate Media |access-date=February 3, 2013}}
• On June 8, 2009, Howard Kazanjian was deputized as an Honorary Marshal of Dodge City, Kansas.{{cite web |url=http://www.boothill.org/honorary-marshals/ |title=Honorary Marshals |website=Boot Hill Museum |date=November 29, 2016 |access-date=June 1, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190601005823/https://www.boothill.org/honorary-marshals/ |archive-date=June 1, 2019}}

{{Reflist}}

• {{IMDb name|0443599|Howard G. Kazanjian}}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20090819075435/http://www.starwarsaficionado.com/howardkazanjianinterview.html In-depth 2009 interview with Kazanjian regarding his contributions to Lucasfilm, LTD]
• [https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:RAIDERS-QA-2010.pdf May 2010 Q&A with Howard Kazanjian at an official Paramount Studios screening of Raiders of the Lost Ark]

{{Inkpot Award 1980s}}

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Category:1942 births

Category:Living people

Category:American Christians

Category:Film producers from Los Angeles

Category:American television directors

Category:Television producers from California

Category:American people of Armenian descent

Category:USC School of Cinematic Arts alumni

Category:People from San Marino, California

Category:Lucasfilm people

Category:Primetime Emmy Award winners

Category:Inkpot Award winners

Category:Film directors from Los Angeles