A bit of a maniac - but maybe he had to be - he swam with the sharks and he was massively successful. He had imagination - he gave us "Conan" and "Flash Gordon" and "Dune".
I have a TV programme about Dino I taped a few years ago. Here are a few lines from it:
John Milius: Dino was as tough as you could ever get. The difference between him and studio executives today is that today they're tough because they're all scared - but Dino was BIG. He had total confidence in himself. He had that killer instinct!
Dino: The way I work, I'm very straight. I'm no Machiavelli. I tell very clear to the director how the picture is to be done. If we disagree... "Goodbye", and I go with somebody else. If we agree, we make the picture together.
John Milius: You know, he'd say, "You must a-do this!", "You must a-do that!"... and I just wouldn't listen. I'd just go do what I wanted, and most of the time I'd get away with it. But he'd always try and catch me. He'd always try and find me doing something wrong so he could have something over me, and threaten me with it! Then he'd tell everybody else he was gonna threaten to fire me, and stuff - and he was ruthless!
Raffaella De Laurentiis: John loves fighting. He just likes to challenge any authority figure around. It's just a style he has. And of course Dino loves it too. And on "Conan", the two of them, every day - it's like the typical "Who's got the bigger dick?" thing...
Dino: Well, I fight to put things right if something is wrong. But always John and I come in agreement. We decide what is best for the picture.
Milius: So he said, "If you make a-this movie a hit, I give you a golden sword. Bulgari make a-you a golden sword!" The trouble is, the movie WAS a hit - and I said, "Where's my golden sword?" He gave me the finger! "THERE's your golden sword!!!" That's Dino!
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Subject: Dino De Laurentiis RIP 
He will be missed for contributions even if you didnt like him. 
