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Charles E. Sellier Jr., founder and president of Grizzly Adams Productions, Inc., was a renowned producer, writer, and director in the independent film industry. He pioneered market testing and "four-walling"—renting theaters to show his films and thus retaining all profits—earning him the distinction of having more titles in the Top 50 independent grossers during the 1970s than any other independent producer. Sellier's methods resulted in a remarkable 52% success rate in the domestic theatrical market, far surpassing the major studios' average of one in seven. Joel Kotkin wrote in the Washington Post, "Today, Charles Sellier is the first of a series of new family filmmakers hitting Hollywood right where it hurts—the box office." The Wall Street Journal noted that Sellier "cleans up by marketing films like selling soap—the Utah moviemaker pre-tests his product and hasn't failed yet." When Variety listed its "Champs Among Bantamweights" in July 1981, Sellier's name appeared more than any other producer's. Nine of his productions were listed in the top 50 films: In Search of Noah's Ark (1976), Beyond and Back (1978), The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams (1974), Chariots of the Gods (1970), The Mysterious Monsters (1975), In Search of Historic Jesus (1979), The Bermuda Triangle (1978), Hangar 18 (1980), and The Adventures of Frontier Fremont (1975). A tenth success, The Boogens (1981), soon joined the list. After a long meeting with Sellier, Orson Welles remarked, "Young man, you are light-years ahead of the rest of the industry."
Beyond his achievements in theatrical features, Sellier applied similar audience preference studies to television programming. In 1976, he created the concept for The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams, which premiered on NBC in January 1977. The series quickly became a hit, surpassing the popular The Bionic Woman within six weeks. "Grizzly Adams" entertained viewers throughout the late 1970s and established Sellier as a significant figure in prime time television. Paul Klein, NBC's programming chief at the time, praised Sellier as a "brilliant and amazing innovator."
In 1980, Sellier was nominated for an Emmy Award for the television film The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. In 1986, Universal Studios signed him as supervising producer for a series of high-rated movies-of-the-week, including the widely popular six two-hour "Desperado" specials, which earned a National Cowboy Hall of Fame award in 1989. In the early 1990s, Sellier created and produced two CBS specials—Ancient Secrets of the Bible (1992) and the pilot Miracles and Other Wonders. Both received strong ratings, leading to a multimillion-dollar contract for an additional 10 hours of prime time programming.
Beginning in 2001, Sellier focused on writing and producing investigative documentaries for television and DVD, serving both secular and Christian audiences. In 2008, he wrote and produced his final film, the wilderness feature Friends for Life (2006), which garnered over 30 independent film awards.
Alongside his prolific film career, Charles E. Sellier Jr. authored numerous best-selling books, including The Life and Times of Grizzly Adams, Hangar 18, In Search of Noah's Ark (which spent four weeks on the New York Post list), The Lincoln Conspiracy (22 weeks on the New York Times list), The Conspiracy to Kill the President, and Miracles and Other Wonders, among others.
Charles E. Sellier was deeply passionate about filmmaking, served as an innovative industry leader, and acted as a mentor and role model to many throughout a career spanning over four decades. He passed away on January 31, 2011, survived by his wife, Julie Magnuson, and son, William Sellier. Though deeply missed, his legacy endures through the characters he brought to life, the careers he launched, and the stories he authored.
