General Film Distributors (GFD), later known asJ. Arthur Rank Film Distributors andRank Film Distributors Ltd., was aBritish film distribution company based in London. It was active between 1935 and 1996, and from 1937 it was part ofthe Rank Organisation.
General Film Distributors was created in 1935 by the British film distributorC. M. Woolf (1879–1942),J. Arthur Rank and the paper magnateLord Portal followingGaumont British's poor handling of Rank's first filmTurn of the Tide (1935).[1] Woolf had resigned from Gaumont British and closed his distribution companyWoolf & Freedman Film Service.[2][3] C.M. Woolf's secretary devised the company'sMan-with-a-Gong trademark which was later adopted byThe Rank Organisation when it was founded in 1937.[3]
In 1936, General Cinema Finance Corporation (GCFC) was formed and became the parent company of GFD as well as acquiring shares inUniversal Pictures, giving it the British distribution rights for all Universal titles.[1][4][5] One year later GFD became the cornerstone in The Rank Organisation.[citation needed]
In 1941, GCFC bought control of Metropolis and Bradford Trust giving the group control of Gaumont-British Picture Corporation. In 1944, D & P Holdings was formed as a subsidiary of GCFC to acquireBritish and Dominions Film Corporation.[5]
GFD kept its own name within the Rank Organisation until 1955, when it was renamedJ. Arthur Rank Film Distributors,[6] which in turn was renamedRank Film Distributors Ltd. in 1957.[7] During the 20 years GFD had its original name, the company distributed over 450 mainstream films.
Rank Film Distributors was acquired byCarlton Communications in 1997 and closed.[8]
A British DVD distributor, active since 2005,[citation needed] uses the same name, but as a DVD distributor, GFD is possibly related to the original company.[citation needed]
