 The company was founded in London in 1967 as the Hemdale Company by actor David Hemmings and John Daly, naming the company from a combination of their surnames.The company produced numerous acclaimed films, often in conjunction with companies such as TriStar and Orion Pictures, including "Platoon" (1986) and "The Last Emperor" (1987), back-to-back winners of the Academy Award for Best Picture.Hemdale began as an investment company to cut the high personal taxes on British actors.