Richard Donner

Richard Donner
Donner in 1979
Born
Richard Donald Schwartzberg

(1930-04-24)April 24, 1930
New York City, New York, U.S.
DiedJuly 5, 2021(2021-07-05) (aged 91)
West Hollywood, California, U.S.
Alma materNew York University
Occupations
  • Film director
  • producer
Years active1957–2021
Notable work
Spouse
​
(m. 1985)​

Richard Donner (born Richard Donald Schwartzberg; April 24, 1930 – July 5, 2021) was an American film director and producer. Described as "one of Hollywood's most reliable makers of action blockbusters",[1][2] Donner directed some of the most financially-successful films of the 1970s and 1980s.[3] His 50-year career crossed genres and influenced trends among filmmakers across the world.

Donner began his career in 1957 as a television director. In the 1960s, he directed episodes of the series The Rifleman, The Man from U.N.C.L.E., The Fugitive, The Twilight Zone, The Banana Splits, and many others. Donner made his film debut with the low-budget aviation drama X-15 in 1961, but had his critical and commercial breakthrough with the horror film The Omen in 1976. He directed the landmark superhero film Superman in 1978,[4][5] which provided an inspiration for the fantasy film genre to eventually gain artistic respectability and commercial dominance. Donner later went on to direct films in the 1980s such as The Goonies and Scrooged, while reinvigorating the buddy cop film genre with the Lethal Weapon series.

Donner and his wife, Lauren, owned a production company, The Donners' Company, which is most successful for producing the Free Willy and X-Men film franchises. Donner also produced Tales from the Crypt and co-wrote several comic books for Superman publisher DC Comics. In 2000, Donner received the President's Award from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films.

  1. ^ "Michael Barson". Encyclopaedia Brittanica. Retrieved September 20, 2023.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Barson was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Hipes, Patrick (July 5, 2021). "Richard Donner Dies: 'Superman', 'Lethal Weapon' And 'The Goonies' Director Was 91". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  4. ^ DiLeo, Adam (December 15, 2018). "Why Superman is the Most Important Comic Book Movie of All Time". IGN. Retrieved July 13, 2021.
  5. ^ Newby, Richard (December 14, 2018). "Why 'Superman' Is So Hard to Leave in the Past". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved July 13, 2021.