Cryptonym: LPCHRIS

104-10119-10305: MOVIE OR TV SERIES ON CIA BASED ON BOOKS BY ST. JOHN

05/08/72: Memo for the record from Martin J. Lukoskie, CCS/CCB: Subject: Possibility of Meeting of DCI and President of LPCHRIS at MPAA Headquarters the Evening of 8 May 1972: "1. Mr. Martin Davis, Senior Vice President of LPCHRIS, telephonically informed Mr. Lukoskie of CCB on the morning of 8 May that there is to be a showing of the movie 'Godfather' at the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) headquarters in Washington on the evening of 8 May 1972. Among those who are expected to be present are Mr. Helms and a delegation from the White House, including Mr. Erlichman, and Mr. Charles Bluhdorn, President of LPCHRIS. 2. Mr. Davis informed Mr. Lukoskie that there was conversation between LPCHRIS and Mr. Kern of the New York office of DCS about a month and one-half ago concerning the possibility of a TV series on the CIA similar to that on the FBI. The suggestion for the series was made by Mr. Bluhdorn through Mr. Davis. Mr. Davis said that the final word from Mr. Kern who checked with the Agency was that it was believed that such a series was impractical and unwise. 3. Mr. Davis believed the screening would be for a small intimate group and suggested that possibly Mr. Bluhdorn might mention either the cover arrangement or the CIA series to Mr. Helms, and that it might be wise to have Mr. Helms forewarned in the event he was not already aware of the cover arrangement and discussions concerning the CIA series. 4. The above information was given verbally to Mr. Angus Thuermer, Assistant to the DCI, at 1400 hours on 8 May, and he said he would have Mr. Helms informed."

https://www.upi.com/Archives/1983/02/21/Charles-Bluhdorn-Gulf-Western-board-chairman-dead-at-56/4027414651600/

02/21/1983: Article on UPI website: Headlined: Charles Bluhdorn, Gulf & Western board chairman, dead at 56. "NEW YORK -- Charles G. Bluhdorn, who guided Gulf & Western Industries Inc. from its beginning as a small auto parts manufacturer-distributor to the multi-billion-dollar company it is today, died of a heart attack. He was 56. Bluhdorn, a Manhattan resident, died Saturday in a corporate jet en route from the Dominican Republic to corporate headquarters in New York City, said Gulf & Western spokesman Jerry Sherman. Bluhdorn presided as chairman of the board and chief executive officer of Gulf & Western Industries, Inc., since the day it was founded in 1958. The germ of Gulf & Western was planted in 1956 when Bluhdorn bought an interest in Michigan Plating and Stamping, a small automobile component manufacturer. The company was merged in 1958 by Bluhdorn and his associates with a Houston automotive parts distribution firm to form Gulf & Western. Bluhdorn was born in Vienna, Austria, on Sept. 20, 1926. He emigrated to the United States in 1942 where he studied at City College of New York and Columbia University before joining the U.S. Army Air Corps. After the end of World War II, Bluhdorn entered the export-import business and in 1949 formed his own company which he operated until he purchased an interest in Michigan Plating and Stamping. During Bluhdorn's stewardship, Gulf & Western mushroomed into a giant corporation, a multi-billion-dollar firm with operations divided into seven groups -- apparel and home furnishings, automotive replacement parts, consumer and agricultural products, financial services, leisure time, manufacturing, natural resources and building products..."

https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1999-oct-06-fi-19337-story.html

10/06/1999: Obituary by James Bates in the Los Angeles Times on Martin Davis: Headlined: Martin Davis Dies; Reshaped Paramount: "Martin S. Davis, the tough, crusty New Yorker who headed Paramount Communications until it was taken over by Viacom Inc. in 1994, died late Monday in New York of a heart attack. Jerry Sherman, a former Paramount vice president under Davis, said the executive apparently collapsed as he was walking back to his office in Rockefeller Center after having dinner. Davis, 72, most recently was managing partner of the New York investment firm Wellspring Capital Management. Once proclaimed one of the 'Ten Toughest Bosses in America' by Fortune magazine, Davis was considered one of the more volatile personalities in the entertainment industry’s executive ranks. The number of top executives who once worked for Davis--and who typically left after butting heads with him--reads like a 'Who’s Who' of today’s media moguls. They include Walt Disney Chairman Michael Eisner, USA Networks chief Barry Diller and DreamWorks SKG partner Jeffrey Katzenberg. Eisner and Katzenberg left Paramount to join Walt Disney, where they revived the company. Diller left to start the Fox network for Rupert Murdoch. Davis became head of Gulf+Western, later renamed Paramount Communications, in 1983 following the death of company chief Charles Bluhdorn. After taking over, Davis launched a massive corporate restructuring, which drew praise from Wall Street for enhancing shareholder value. Gulf+Western had been the quintessential 1960s-era conglomerate, a mishmash of companies that included auto parts, agriculture, cigars, paper products, chemicals, engineering and movies. From 1983 to 1989, Davis sold about 150 companies with a total of about $6 billion in sales..."

Dirty Tricks: Nixon, Watergate, and the CIA by Shane O'Sullivan (2018)

Pages 160-161: ..."Meanwhile, on May 9, Paramount invited Helms, Ehrlichman, and a White House delegation to a preview screening of The Godfather. A year earlier, Paramount had proposed a TV series to Helms about the CIA. The Agency felt it 'unwise' but offered Paramount first refusal if they changed their mind. Wires then crossed after the screening when Jack Valenti gave studio boss Charles Bluhdorn several David St. John paperbacks he'd received from Helms. Bluhdorn thought this was a sign Helms now wanted to do the TV series. Meanwhile, the CIA's Central Cover Staff (CCS) were developing, a 'cover placement' with Paramount's parent company, Gulf and Western (LPCHRIS), and began to investigate Helms' secret initiative regarding the David St. John novels. Valenti claimed he had talked to Helms 'about six months ago and again two or three weeks ago concerning the possibility of a movie or TV series on CIA based on the David St. John books and/or other material provided by the Agency.' Valenti also said 'he had interviewed David St. John (Hunt) recently at the request of Mr. Helms.' On May 19, Helms met with the Chief of CCS and the case officer for Gulf and Western, Martin Lukoskie, to clear up the matter. He explained that 'approximately three years ago,' he had discussed the matter with Valenti, thinking the St. John books 'gave a favorable impression of the Agency and might be exploitable for the movies.' He heard nothing further 'until several weeks ago when Mr. Valenti expressed an interest in the books' and then re-pitched them to an executive at Paramount ahead of the Bluhdorn meeting. A month later, Hunt's name would be in the headlines for very different reasons.'..."

Scorpions' Dance: The President, the Spymaster, and Watergate by Jefferson Morley (2022)

Page 163: ..."Helms had not forgotten his buddy, not at all. In May 1972. he and Cynthia attended a screening of the new hit movie The Godfather at the invitation of Paramount Pictures. It was a small intimate gathering at the headquarters of the Motion Picture Association of America. Helms mingled with MPAA chief Jack Valenti and White House staffers, including John Ehrlichman. Picking up on the popularity of a new TV spy series, Mission Impossible, Paramount executives had proposed a series about the CIA. Agency officials decided such a show would be 'unwise' but gave Paramount the right of first refusal if they changed their mind. Helms still liked the idea of a movie series. He brought along several of Hunt's Peter Ward novels and passed them to Charles Bludhorn, chairman of Gulf & Western, a corporate conglomerate that owned Paramount and assisted the CIA under a program code-named LPCHRIS. Bludhorm. in turn, passed the books to Martin Davis, his senior vice president..."

https://www.britannica.com/money/Gulf-Western-Inc

"Gulf + Western Inc.,, corporation that was founded in 1958 by Charles Bluhdorn and became one of the most highly diversified conglomerates in the United States. Gulf + Western took control of the Paramount Pictures Corporation (q.v.) in 1966. Gulf + Western changed its name to Paramount Communications Inc. in 1989 and was acquired by the media conglomerate Viacom Inc. (q.v.) in 1994..."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gulf_and_Western_Industries