Fluent in French, German, Italian, Russian, Polish and English as well as his native Lithuanian, he found himself employed by Paramount Pictures studios in Paris where he dubbed American films into Spanish.
[5] Though critically acclaimed, his films were American box office failures that forced him to sell his theatres.
[6] Lopert Pictures first release for United Artists was Black Orpheus (1959) followed by the smash hit Never on Sunday (1960).
[8] At the 1964 Academy Awards presentation, Ilya Lopert, representing United Artists, accepted, without saying a word, the best picture Oscar for Tom Jones on behalf of the film's producers who made no move to attend, and were thus ostracized.
This trend and other factors affecting Hollywood at the end of the 1960s led United Artists to close Lopert films in 1970.