Curtain Rises on Tartikoff’s New Role

The Brandon Tartikoff era at Paramount Pictures was ushered in with the requisite Hollywood pomp and circumstance Thursday in a press conference and social gathering on the studio lot.

Tartikoff, who was named studio chief this week, joined Paramount Communications Inc. Chairman Martin S. Davis and President Stanley Jaffe in an hourlong press conference in which plans for the studio were broadly outlined. Seated in the audience were dozens of agents, producers and executives who probably will work with Tartikoff in his new capacity.

Tartikoff, the former NBC programming whiz, said there are no financial constraints on the type of movies he can make. He said he did not anticipate any immediate shake-up in management at Paramount, which has released a string of disappointing films in recent months.

Jaffe confirmed that Tartikoff would be given full autonomy. “We didn’t ask Brandon to come here to tell him how to make pictures,” Jaffe said. “It is his company to run.”

Tartikoff confirmed that Paramount executives briefly discussed the idea of buying NBC during its talks with him. But Davis called the rumors “pure nonsense” and “a figment of somebody else’s imagination.” The Paramount chairman confirmed that the company is considering acquisitions but would not say what properties are being studied.