One of the first without Corman was the movie Airplane!, in which he was listed in the end credits as "generally in charge of a lot of things".
Working with Dante, Finnell then produced the modest hit The Howling in 1981 and the blockbuster Gremlins in 1984.
The anecdote Walas told was of Finnell engaging in long phone calls over the purchase of a kitchen knife to be used in Gremlins.
[1] Finnell continued to produce several of Dante's films, including Explorers (1985), The 'Burbs (1989), Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990), Matinee (1993) and Small Soldiers (1998).
For one of his films produced without Dante, Newsies, Finnell was nominated for a Razzie Award for Worst Picture.