occurring through our institutions." Carlino formed a partnership with Dubin and producer Martin Poll. In February 1969 Carlino announced he had written two films that would be made by producer Martin Poll the following year: The Catalyst, about a wealthy man whose search for meaning leads him to start a revolution in Africa, and The Mechanic. He said The Mechanic was about "professionals who dispassionately murder people by contract" and was "a look at the nature of violence and counter-violence in our society." In April 1969 it was announced Cliff Robertson would star with Ted Dubin to produce alongside Poll for Universal. Filming was delayed. Eventually the film was sold to Chartoff-Winkler who had a deal with United Artists. Carlino was paid $100,000 plus one-third of 50% of the profits. Monte Hellman was scheduled to direct The Mechanic. He and screenwriter Lewis John Carlino worked on the script for several weeks before producers switched studios and hired Michael Winner to direct. In Carlino's original script, the relationship between Arthur Bishop and Steve McKenna was explicitly gay. Producers had difficulty securing financing and several actors, including George C. Scott, flatly refused to consider the script until the homosexuality was removed. Carlino described The Mechanic as "one of the great disappointments of my life", continuing: In November 1971 it was announced Charles Bronson would star under the direction of Michael Winner for producers Chartoff and Winkler. Filming was to begin December 6, 1971. Jan Michael Vincent's casting was announced early December 1971. Filming Filming took place in Los Angeles and in Italy. The film's martial arts scenes were shot in one day at the dojo of Takayuki Kubota who also appears in the film. The shooting required 65 camera setups. The scenes were cut short in the final edit, because, according to associate producer Henry Gellis, their inclusion made the film seem like an installment in the James Bond series. "It's pretty violent," said Vincent. "Bronson is totally nonverbal. So I can't say that much about him." Music The score and source music, by Jerry Fielding, were recorded at CTS (Cine-Tele Sound) Studios in London, England, between August 7 and 11, 1972. The orchestrations were by Lennie Niehaus And Greg McRitchie. The Recording Engineer was Dick Lewzey. The source music consists of pieces composed by Ludwig van Beethoven — String Quartet, Opus 18, No 6 and Grosse Fuge: Opus 133 — as