Richard D. Zanuck: Difference between revisions
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{{Short description|American film producer (1934–2012)}} | {{Short description|American film producer (1934–2012)}} | ||
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'''Richard Darryl Zanuck''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|z|æ|n|ə|k}}; December 13, 1934 – July 13, 2012) was an American film producer. His 1989 film ''[[Driving Miss Daisy]]'' won the [[Academy Award for Best Picture]]. He was also instrumental in launching the career of director [[Steven Spielberg]], who described Zanuck as a "director's producer" and "one of the most honorable and loyal men of our profession."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-xpm-2012-jul-13-la-et-mn-filmmakers-producers-remember-richard-zanuck-20120713-story.html |title=Filmmakers, producers remember Richard Zanuck |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=13 | '''Richard Darryl Zanuck''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|z|æ|n|ə|k}}; December 13, 1934 – July 13, 2012) was an American film producer. His 1989 film ''[[Driving Miss Daisy]]'' won the [[Academy Award for Best Picture]]. He was also instrumental in launching the career of director [[Steven Spielberg]], who described Zanuck as a "director's producer" and "one of the most honorable and loyal men of our profession."<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/movies/la-xpm-2012-jul-13-la-et-mn-filmmakers-producers-remember-richard-zanuck-20120713-story.html |title=Filmmakers, producers remember Richard Zanuck |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=July 13, 2012 |access-date=December 31, 2018 |first1=Claudia |last1=Eller |first2=John |last2=Horn |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306035256/http://articles.latimes.com/2012/jul/13/entertainment/la-et-mn-filmmakers-producers-remember-richard-zanuck-20120713 |archive-date=March 6, 2016}}</ref> | ||
==Early life and career== | ==Early life and career== | ||
Richard Darryl Zanuck was born in Los Angeles to actress [[Virginia Fox]] and [[Darryl F. Zanuck]], then head of production for [[20th Century Fox]]. He was the youngest of three children. He had two elder sisters, Darrylin (1931–2015)<ref>{{Cite web|last=Holmes|first=Mannie|date=2015 | Richard Darryl Zanuck was born in Los Angeles to actress [[Virginia Fox]] and [[Darryl F. Zanuck]], then head of production for [[20th Century Fox]]. He was the youngest of three children. He had two elder sisters, Darrylin (1931–2015)<ref>{{Cite web|last=Holmes|first=Mannie|date=October 8, 2015|title=20th Century Fox Founder's Daughter, Darrylin Zanuck de Pineda, Dies at 84|url=https://variety.com/2015/biz/news/darrylin-zanuck-de-pineda-dead-dies-daughter-20th-century-fox-founder-1201613780/|access-date=February 13, 2022|website=Variety}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Barnes|first=Mike|date=October 8, 2015|title=Darrylin Zanuck de Pineda, Daughter of the Founder of 20th Century Fox, Dies at 84|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/movies/movie-news/darrylin-zanuck-de-pineda-dead-830885/|access-date=February 13, 2022|website=The Hollywood Reporter}}</ref> and Susan (1933–1980).<ref>{{Cite web|title=Richard Zanuck obituary {{!}} Movies {{!}} The Guardian|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2012/jul/15/richard-zanuck|access-date=February 13, 2022|website=amp.theguardian.com}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last1=McLellan|first1=Dennis|last2=July 14|first2=Los Angeles Times|last3=Pt|first3=2012 12 Am|date=July 14, 2012|title=Richard Zanuck dies at 77; Oscar-winning producer|url=https://www.latimes.com/local/obituaries/la-me-richard-zanuck-20120714-story.html|access-date=February 13, 2022|website=Los Angeles Times|language=en-US}}</ref> While studying at [[Stanford University]], he began his career in the film industry working for the 20th Century Fox story department. In 1959, Zanuck had his first shot at producing with the film ''[[Compulsion (1959 film)|Compulsion]]''. In the 1960s, Zanuck became the president of 20th Century Fox. One year of his tenure was chronicled by [[John Gregory Dunne]] in ''The Studio''.<ref>{{cite book |first=John Gregory |last=Dunne |author-link=John Gregory Dunne |title=The Studio |location=New York |publisher=[[Farrar, Straus & Giroux]] |year=1969 |isbn=0-375-70008-0 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=syIIAQAAMAAJ}}</ref> After failures like 1967's ''[[Doctor Dolittle (1967 film)|Doctor Dolittle]]'', he was dismissed by his father and joined [[Warner Bros.]] as Executive Vice President. | ||
In 1972, Zanuck joined with [[David Brown (producer)|David Brown]] to form an independent production company called the Zanuck/Brown Company at [[Universal Pictures]]. Their first big hit was ''[[The Sting]]'' (1973), which won the [[Academy Awards|Academy Award]] for [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]] in [[46th Academy Awards|April 1974]]. The two men produced a pair of [[Steven Spielberg]]'s early films, ''[[The Sugarland Express]]'' (1974) and ''[[Jaws (film)|Jaws]]'' (1975). They subsequently produced such box office hits as ''[[Cocoon (film)|Cocoon]]'' (1985) and ''[[Driving Miss Daisy]]'' (1989) before dissolving their partnership in 1988. They were jointly awarded the [[Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award]] by the [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] in 1990. He worked with [[Tim Burton]] six times, producing Burton's adaptation of ''[[Planet of the Apes (2001 film)|Planet of the Apes]]'' (2001), ''[[Big Fish]]'' (2003), ''[[Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (film)|Charlie and the Chocolate Factory]]'' (2005), ''[[Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007 film)|Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street]]'' (2007), ''[[Alice in Wonderland (2010 film)|Alice in Wonderland]]'' (2010), and ''[[Dark Shadows (film)|Dark Shadows]]'' (2012). He and Burton connected immediately, and Zanuck was Burton's producer of choice.<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=[[Telegraph (newspaper)|Telegraph]] |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/culture-obituaries/film-obituaries/9404130/Richard-Zanuck.html |title=Obituary of Richard Zanuck |date=16 | In 1972, Zanuck joined with [[David Brown (producer)|David Brown]] to form an independent production company called the Zanuck/Brown Company at [[Universal Pictures]]. Their first big hit was ''[[The Sting]]'' (1973), which won the [[Academy Awards|Academy Award]] for [[Academy Award for Best Picture|Best Picture]] in [[46th Academy Awards|April 1974]]. The two men produced a pair of [[Steven Spielberg]]'s early films, ''[[The Sugarland Express]]'' (1974) and ''[[Jaws (film)|Jaws]]'' (1975). They subsequently produced such box office hits as ''[[Cocoon (film)|Cocoon]]'' (1985) and ''[[Driving Miss Daisy]]'' (1989) before dissolving their partnership in 1988 when he partnered with Jerry Perenchio to start The Zanuck Company.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Fabrikant |first=Geraldine |date=March 6, 1990 |title=How Major Studios Missed a Hit |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/03/06/business/how-major-studios-missed-a-hit.html |access-date=June 10, 2025 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}</ref> They were jointly awarded the [[Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award]] by the [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] in 1990. He worked with [[Tim Burton]] six times, producing Burton's adaptation of ''[[Planet of the Apes (2001 film)|Planet of the Apes]]'' (2001), ''[[Big Fish]]'' (2003), ''[[Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (film)|Charlie and the Chocolate Factory]]'' (2005), ''[[Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007 film)|Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street]]'' (2007), ''[[Alice in Wonderland (2010 film)|Alice in Wonderland]]'' (2010), and ''[[Dark Shadows (film)|Dark Shadows]]'' (2012). He and Burton connected immediately, and Zanuck was Burton's producer of choice.<ref>{{cite news |newspaper=[[Telegraph (newspaper)|Telegraph]] |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/obituaries/culture-obituaries/film-obituaries/9404130/Richard-Zanuck.html |title=Obituary of Richard Zanuck |date=July 16, 2012 |access-date=December 31, 2018 |publisher=[[Telegraph Media Group Limited]]}}</ref> In a May 2012 interview, Zanuck told ''Variety'': "A producer should contribute from the very beginning until the very end, in all aspects. I'm there at the set every day, on every shot. Not that the director, particularly Tim [Burton], needs me, but just in case."<ref name=Variety>{{cite news |last=Chagollan |first=Steve |title=Oscar-winning producer Richard Zanuck dies at 77 |url=https://www.variety.com/article/VR1118056567.htm |magazine=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=July 13, 2012 |access-date=December 31, 2018 |archive-url=https://variety.com/2012/film/news/oscar-winning-producer-richard-zanuck-dies-at-77-1118056567/ |archive-date=January 5, 2018 }}</ref> | ||
==Personal life== | ==Personal life== | ||
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| publisher = [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] | | publisher = [[Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences]] | ||
| date = September 29, 1999 | | date = September 29, 1999 | ||
| url = http://www.oscars.org/press/pressreleases/1999/99.09.29.html | |||
| access-date = July 16, 2008 | | access-date = July 16, 2008 | ||
}}</ref> | |||
==Death== | ==Death== | ||
Zanuck died on July 13, 2012, of | Zanuck died from a heart attack at his home on July 13, 2012, at the age of 77.<ref name=Variety/><ref>{{cite news |url=http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-07-14/news-interviews/32674647_1_steven-spielberg-darryl-zanuck-tooth-and-nail |title=Hollywood producer Richard Zanuck dies at 77 |date=July 14, 2012 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20130126191413/http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-07-14/news-interviews/32674647_1_steven-spielberg-darryl-zanuck-tooth-and-nail |archive-date=January 26, 2013 |newspaper=[[The Times of India]] |publisher=[[Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd.]] |url-status=dead |access-date=December 31, 2018}}</ref> His mansion, located in the [[Beverly Park]] section of Los Angeles, was sold for $20.1 million later that year.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424127887324735104578117420675127526 |title=L.A. Home of Richard Zanuck Sells for $20.1 Million |date=November 12, 2012 |newspaper=[[The Wall Street Journal]] |access-date=December 31, 2018}}</ref> On February 25, 2014, [[20th Century Fox]] opened the Richard D. Zanuck Production Building at its Los Angeles studios. "Richard was a true giant of our industry for over five decades", Fox chairman and CEO [[Jim Gianopulos]] said at the dedication ceremony. "He was family, and an integral part of our legacy. We couldn't find a building worthy of him, so we built one."<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/old-hollywood-turns-richard-d-683892 |first=Pamela |last=McClintock |title=Old Hollywood Turns Out for Richard D. Zanuck Building Dedication at Fox |journal=[[The Hollywood Reporter]] |date=February 26, 2014 |access-date=December 31, 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |url=https://variety.com/2014/scene/news/20th-century-fox-dedicates-production-building-to-richard-d-zanuck-1201121363/ |first=Nikara |last=Johns |title=20th Century Fox Dedicates Production Building to Richard D. Zanuck |journal=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]] |date=February 26, 2014 |access-date=December 31, 2018 }}</ref> The ceremony was attended by Zanuck's widow, Lili Fini Zanuck, his sons, and four of his nine grandchildren.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://uk.celebrity.yahoo.com/photos/twentieth-century-fox-celebrates-dedication-20140226-051456-435.html |title=Dedication of the Richard D. Zanuck Production Building at the Twentieth Century Fox Studios |work=[[Yahoo! Celebrity]] |date=February 26, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140715001138/https://uk.celebrity.yahoo.com/photos/twentieth-century-fox-celebrates-dedication-20140226-051456-435.html |archive-date=July 15, 2014 |access-date=December 31, 2018 |publisher=[[Yahoo]]}}</ref> | ||
==Filmography== | ==Filmography== | ||
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[[Category:Producers who won the Best Picture Academy Award]] | [[Category:Producers who won the Best Picture Academy Award]] | ||
[[Category:Golden Globe Award–winning producers]] | [[Category:Golden Globe Award–winning producers]] | ||
[[Category:American people of Swiss descent]] | |||
Revision as of 02:50, 15 June 2025
Template:Short description Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Script error: No such module "infobox".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".Script error: No such module "Check for clobbered parameters".Template:Wikidata image Richard Darryl Zanuck (Template:IPAc-en; December 13, 1934 – July 13, 2012) was an American film producer. His 1989 film Driving Miss Daisy won the Academy Award for Best Picture. He was also instrumental in launching the career of director Steven Spielberg, who described Zanuck as a "director's producer" and "one of the most honorable and loyal men of our profession."[1]
Early life and career
Richard Darryl Zanuck was born in Los Angeles to actress Virginia Fox and Darryl F. Zanuck, then head of production for 20th Century Fox. He was the youngest of three children. He had two elder sisters, Darrylin (1931–2015)[2][3] and Susan (1933–1980).[4][5] While studying at Stanford University, he began his career in the film industry working for the 20th Century Fox story department. In 1959, Zanuck had his first shot at producing with the film Compulsion. In the 1960s, Zanuck became the president of 20th Century Fox. One year of his tenure was chronicled by John Gregory Dunne in The Studio.[6] After failures like 1967's Doctor Dolittle, he was dismissed by his father and joined Warner Bros. as Executive Vice President.
In 1972, Zanuck joined with David Brown to form an independent production company called the Zanuck/Brown Company at Universal Pictures. Their first big hit was The Sting (1973), which won the Academy Award for Best Picture in April 1974. The two men produced a pair of Steven Spielberg's early films, The Sugarland Express (1974) and Jaws (1975). They subsequently produced such box office hits as Cocoon (1985) and Driving Miss Daisy (1989) before dissolving their partnership in 1988 when he partnered with Jerry Perenchio to start The Zanuck Company.[7] They were jointly awarded the Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in 1990. He worked with Tim Burton six times, producing Burton's adaptation of Planet of the Apes (2001), Big Fish (2003), Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005), Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007), Alice in Wonderland (2010), and Dark Shadows (2012). He and Burton connected immediately, and Zanuck was Burton's producer of choice.[8] In a May 2012 interview, Zanuck told Variety: "A producer should contribute from the very beginning until the very end, in all aspects. I'm there at the set every day, on every shot. Not that the director, particularly Tim [Burton], needs me, but just in case."[9]
Personal life
Zanuck married three times. On January 14, 1958, he married Lili Charlene Gentle (b. March 4, 1940), an actress from Birmingham, Alabama, and a second cousin of actress Tallulah Bankhead. The marriage, which produced two daughters, Virginia Lorraine Zanuck (born 1959) and Janet Beverly Zanuck (born 1960), was dissolved in 1968.
On October 26, 1969, Zanuck and his protégé, actress Linda Harrison, together with his friend, producer Sy Bartlett, and Harrison's sister Kay, flew to Las Vegas, where Zanuck married Harrison on a balcony of the Sands Hotel.[10][11][12] The marriage became difficult after Harrison failed to garner the role of the wife in Zanuck's production of Jaws.
In mid-1977, as a result of his second wife's entanglement with a 65-year-old "guru", Vincentii Turriziani of the Risen Christ Foundation, and the alleged guru's claims and demands for money from Zanuck, he filed for divorce and was awarded custody of his two sons, Harrison Richard Zanuck (born 1971) and Dean Francis Zanuck (born 1972).[13][14][15]
In a 1985 interview, Zanuck said that career problems contributed to his two failed marriages. "Both girls were actresses, and neither one was well established," he said. As head of 20th Century Fox, "It was tough to try to be fair to the project and also try to help them in their careers. If I didn't give them the role, then I had to explain why they weren't right for it. It wasn't the major problem in the marriages, but it was an underlying source of discomfort."[16]
On September 23, 1978, Zanuck married his third wife, Lili Fini (born 1954), a former World Bank employee and Carnation Co. office manager, who helped him raise his sons from his second marriage, and would co-produce some of his most memorable films, including Cocoon (1985), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), and Reign of Fire (2002). When the Zanucks won the Best Picture Oscar in 1989 for Driving Miss Daisy, Lili Fini Zanuck was only the second woman in history to have earned an Oscar for Best Picture. In 1998, she directed an episode of the HBO miniseries From the Earth to the Moon, titled "We Have Cleared the Tower",Script error: No such module "Unsubst". and in 2000, Richard and Lili Fini Zanuck co-produced the 72nd Academy Awards ceremony.[17]
Death
Zanuck died from a heart attack at his home on July 13, 2012, at the age of 77.[9][18] His mansion, located in the Beverly Park section of Los Angeles, was sold for $20.1 million later that year.[19] On February 25, 2014, 20th Century Fox opened the Richard D. Zanuck Production Building at its Los Angeles studios. "Richard was a true giant of our industry for over five decades", Fox chairman and CEO Jim Gianopulos said at the dedication ceremony. "He was family, and an integral part of our legacy. We couldn't find a building worthy of him, so we built one."[20][21] The ceremony was attended by Zanuck's widow, Lili Fini Zanuck, his sons, and four of his nine grandchildren.[22]
Filmography
He was a producer in all films unless otherwise noted.
Film
Credited as producer
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- Compulsion (1959)
- Sanctuary (1961)
- The Chapman Report (1962)
- Willie Dynamite (1974)
- The Sugarland Express (1974)
- The Girl from Petrovka (1974)
- Jaws (1975)
- Jaws 2 (1978)
- The Island (1980)
- Neighbors (1981)
- The Verdict (1982)
- Cocoon (1985)
- Target (1985)
- Cocoon: The Return (1988)
- Driving Miss Daisy (1989)
- Rush (1991)
- Rich in Love (1992)
- Clean Slate (1994)
- Wild Bill (1995)
- Mulholland Falls (1996)
- Deep Impact (1998)
- True Crime (1999)
- Rules of Engagement (2000)
- Planet of the Apes (2001)
- Road to Perdition (2002)
- Reign of Fire (2002)
- Big Fish (2003)
- Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (2005)
- Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street (2007)
- Yes Man (2008)
- Alice in Wonderland (2010)
- Dark Shadows (2012) (final film)
- Hidden (2015) (posthumous, uncredited)
Credited as executive producer
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- The Sound of Music (1965) (uncredited)
- Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) (uncredited)
- Sssssss (1973)
- The Sting (1973) (uncredited)
- The Black Windmill (1974)
- The Eiger Sanction (1975)
- MacArthur (1977)
- Chain Reaction (1996)
- Clash of the Titans (2010)
Other film credits
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1963 | Cleopatra | Studio executive | Uncredited |
| 1965 | The Sound of Music | ||
| 1966 | The Sand Pebbles | ||
| 1967 | Doctor Dolittle | ||
| 1969 | Patton | ||
| 1970 | M*A*S*H | ||
| 1970 | Tora! Tora! Tora! | ||
| 1971 | The French Connection |
| Year | Film | Role | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | Tora! Tora! Tora! | Executive in charge of production | Uncredited |
| Year | Film | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 2013 | The Zero Theorem | In the memory of the great |
| 2014 | The Grand Budapest Hotel | Special thanks: Our old friends |
| 2014 | Escobar: Paradise Lost | In loving memory of |
Television
| Year | Production | Credit | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | CBS Summer Playhouse | Executive producer | |
| 1992 | Driving Miss Daisy | Executive producer | Television film |
| 2000 | 72nd Academy Awards | Television special | |
| 2004 | Dead Lawyers | Executive producer | Television film |
| 2015 | Bessie | Executive producer | Television film Posthumous credit |
Awards and nominations
References
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- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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- ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ The Cumberland News, October 28, 1969, p. 3.
- ↑ The Milwaukee Journal: Show Business, Part II, Monday October 27, 1969, p. 12.
- ↑ Richard Warren Lewis, In Bracken's World Live Beautiful People, Including..., TV Guide, February 14, 1970, p. 28.
- ↑ Stephen M. Silverman, The Fox That Got Away: The Last Days of the Zanuck Dynasty at Twentieth Century-Fox (L. Stuart 1988), p. 143.
- ↑ Lakeland Ledger, Tipoff, July 26, 1977, p. 2.
- ↑ The Montreal Gazette, November 18, 1974, p. 28.
- ↑ Bob Thomas. Producing 'Cocoon' was a family affair, The Associated Press, Nashua Telegraph, June 27, 1985, p. 22.
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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External links
- Template:PAGENAMEBASE at IMDbTemplate:EditAtWikidataScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
- The Zanucks: Reel Royalty
Script error: No such module "navboxes". Template:Academy Award Best Picture Producers Template:David O. Selznick Achievement Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures Template:Thalberg AwardScript error: No such module "navboxes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". Template:Darryl F. Zanuck
- Pages with script errors
- 1934 births
- 2012 deaths
- Businesspeople from Los Angeles
- Film people from Beverly Hills, California
- Stanford University alumni
- Film producers from California
- American film studio executives
- 20th Century Studios people
- Warner Bros. people
- Primetime Emmy Award winners
- Producers who won the Best Picture Academy Award
- Golden Globe Award–winning producers
- American people of Swiss descent