Vancouver: The business partnership that most industry insiders consider the catalyzing agent for the current success of Peace Arch Entertainment on the West Coast has come to an end.

Hollywood television veteran Larry Sugar says he has split from Peace Arch. ‘I thought the partnership was no longer mutually beneficial,’ he says, declining to be more specific.

He adds that he is committed to staying in Vancouver and is negotiating a deal to affiliate with another production house, yet to be named.

In his move to Vancouver three years ago, Sugar sold his Sugar Entertainment to Peace Arch (then known as Vidatron Group) and became a major shareholder. He was responsible for bringing to Peace Arch multi-season programs such as Dead Man’s Gun and First Wave, projects that put the company on the production map.

Peace Arch still owns Sugar Entertainment.

At present, he is the producer on nbc series Just Deal.

Making the split with Peace Arch murky, however, is his executive producer credits on So Weird and First Wave, which he says are produced in partnership with Peace Arch and his new company, No Equal Entertainment. Sugar says he is negotiating another series described as a primetime soap and is dealing on a potential horror feature, based on a bestseller.

Rumors of Sugar’s departure have circulated all summer. However, Peace Arch management has until now maintained that the relationship with Sugar had not changed.

‘Peace Arch had an exclusive producing arrangement with Larry for three years,’ ceo Cameron White says, adding that the partnership has run its course. ‘The only continuing relationship with Larry is that he is producing First Wave for Peace Arch.’

In Playback’s Independent Production Report survey for 1999, Peace Arch reported independent production volumes of $50 million, service volumes of $3.7 million and distribution revenue of $15 million.

Today, Peace Arch is overseeing production of the series The Immortal and Big Sound, productions that typify the shows being created by new producer partners.

On Sept. 26, Peace Arch announced it had entered into an exclusive, two-year development and executive producing contract with director/producer/comedian David Steinberg, who is currently executive producing, directing and acting in Big Sound. He has directed episodes of Mad About You, Friends, Seinfeld, Newhart and This Is Gary Shandling’s Show.

Sugar started his career as an entertainment lawyer with Twentieth Century Fox, went on to finance, produce and/or distribute 200 feature films, and cofounded the American Film Market. Sugar has held high-profile jobs at Republic Pictures, cbs, Weintraub Entertainment Group and Lorimar International. *