Richard Del Belso, who helped revolutionize movie-market research and whose unique ability to explain data often influenced a film’s final cut, died on March 5 in Los Angeles after a year-long battle with lung cancer. He was 76. His death was confirmed by his husband, jazz singer and lyricist Mark Winkler.
Del Belso began his career in the early ‘70s in New York at Benton & Bowles before moving to Grey Advertising, where he handled aspects of major automobile and national brand packaged-goods campaigns. In 1976, Universal Pictures brought him to Los Angeles as their Research Director. Among the films he worked on there were “Animal House,” “The Wiz,” “The Jerk,” Oscar Best Picture contender “Coal Miner’s Daughter,” and Oscar Best Picture winner “The Deer Hunter.”
In 1978, Del Belso sought the outside services of Joe Farrell and Catherine Paura, partners in the newly-formed National Research Garoup. Together, he and NRG were the first to take research methods used in their previous fields – political research at The Harris Poll and traditional advertising – and creatively apply them to movies. Those new techniques changed the face of movie market research and are now standard practice – test screenings, trailer and TV commercial testing, seasonal preferences by audience, socio-demographics analyses, as well as then patented weekend tracking studies predicting opening box-office numbers.
Del Belso moved to Warner Bros. in 1980 as Vice President of Market Research and over time was elevated to Senior Vice President of Market Research and Strategy Development at Warner Bros. Pictures. He was part of every major Warner title for the next 25 years, including four Academy Award Best Pictures – “Chariots of Fire,” “Driving Miss Daisy,” “Unforgiven,” and “Million Dollar Baby” – as well as the franchises of “Mad Max,” “Harry Potter,” “Batman,” “Superman,” “Lethal Weapon,” and “The Matrix.”
In communicating data results to filmmakers and executives, Del Belso was unbiased, constructive, analytical, and non-judgmental. When the situation warranted, though, he could be blunt (he once told a producer, “Let’s face it. It’s a turkey!”). His perspective came from his world travels and extensive knowledge and love of the arts – from classical music to jazz, art, opera, theatre and classic films. His reports, always signed “RDB,” were clear and concise.
Former Warner Bros. Chairman Bob Daly said, “Richard was the best research guy I’ve ever come across. He was smart and thorough; he spoke his mind, and he was right 90 percent of the time. He was also just a really good person. He certainly will be missed.”
Filmmakers Richard Donner (“Superman,” “Lethal Weapon,” “The Goonies”) and Lauren Shuler Donner (“Free Willy,” “Dave,” “You’ve Got Mail”) have made many movies at Warner Bros. Donner noted, “Richard was very special. On a personal level, he was just fun to be around; on an executive level, his research and insightful interpretations were absolutely invaluable to Lauren and me during our post-production and marketing phases.”
An active member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Del Belso served on the Screening Committees for Foreign Films and Animated Features and was board president of the 18th Street Arts Center, Santa Monica’s artist residency program. He was an avid movie poster aficionado with a collection that totals more than 2500, including film noir, Westerns, Hollywood musicals, and the films of Bette Davis, Marilyn Monroe, Rita Hayworth, Federico Fellini, François Truffaut, and Michael Powell, among others.
Richard Michael Del Belso was born on August 9, 1939, in Albany, New York. He attended Vincentian Institute where he was the valedictorian of his graduating class, then earned a Bachelor’s degree from Fordham University and a Master’s degree in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from New York University School of Arts and Entertainment. In addition to his husband and partner of 35 years, he is survived by a sister, Laraine Del Belso of Albany; two brothers-in-law, Richard Winkler of Sherman Oaks, Calif. and Robert Winkler of Thousand Oaks, Calif.; and a nephew Michael Winkler of Los Angeles. His parents Angelo and Margaret, and a sister, Beverly, predeceased him.
A celebration of Del Belso’s life is scheduled for Wednesday, March 23, 11am, at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery, 6000 Santa Monica Blvd. in Los Angeles with a reception following nearby at Catalina’s Jazz Club. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in his name to the Washington Humane Society (support.washhumane.org), The American Film Institute (afi.com/membership), and The American Cancer Society (donate.cancer.org).
