Award winning actor, director, and producer Sydney Pollack passed away Monday afternoon surrounded by family at his home in Pacific Palisades, CA. He was in the midst of producing the WWII drama The Reader starring Kate Winslet and Ralph Fiennes, a film being co-produced by friend Anthony Minghella when he passed away in April, following complications from surgery for throat cancer. The 73 year old Pollack was diagnosed nine months ago with stomach cancer, which had reportedly metastasized, leaving very few treatment options.
As an actor, he was most recently seen as Patrick Dempsey’s father in Made of Honor and as George Clooney’s boss in Michael Clayton. Other notable acting performances include Will’s dad on Will & Grace, Dustin Hoffman’s agent in Tootsie, Jack in Woody Allen’s Husbands and Wives, and Tom Cruise’s boss in Stanley Kubrick’s Eyes Wide Shut.
But Pollack was best known as an accomplished director, beginning his career in television back in the early 1960s with such series as Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Ben Casey, Bob Hope Presents, and The Fugitive. From there he moved into films with his 1965 feature debut The Slender Thread starring Sidney Poitier and Anne Bancroft, nominated for three Academy Awards (screenplay, art direction, costume design). Not a bad way to start. He worked steadily from there on, leaving behind a legacy of impressive visual storytelling alongside some of Hollywood’s greatest names. A career retrospective follows the jump.
This Property Condemed (1966) – Based on the novel by Tennessee Williams, adapted by Francis Ford Coppola, produced by John Houseman, and starring Robert Redford, Natalie Wood, and Charles Bronson.
The Scalphunters (1968) – Starring Burt Lancaster, Shelley Winters, Ossie Davis, and Telly Savalas.
They Shoot Horses, Don’t They? (1969) – Based on the novel by Horace McCoy, produced by Irwin Winkler, and starring Jane Fonda, Gig Young, Susannah York, and Bruce Dern. The film was nominated for nine Academy Awards (directing, editing, acting, screenplay, art direction, costume design, music), winning one for Gig Young as Best Supporting Actor.
The Way We Were (1973) – Written by Arthur Laurents, starring frequent collaborator Robert Redford, Barbra Streisand, with music by Marvin Hamlisch. Nominated for six Academy Awards (actress, art direction, costume design, cinematography, music) with Hamlisch taking home two Oscars for Song and Score.
The Yakuza (1974) – Pollack began stretching his talents with this throwback to classic 1940s noir, starring Robert Mitchum and Brian Keith.
Three Days of the Condor (1975) – The action motif continued in this CIA drama written by Lorenzo Semple and starring Robert Redford, Faye Dunaway, Cliff Robertson, and Max Von Sydow, with music by another frequent collaborator, jazz man Dave Grusin.
The Electric Horseman (1979) – Pollack reteams Robert Redford with Jane Fonda for this quintessential ’80s romantic drama, which also saw the acting debut of country legend Willie Nelson.
Absence of Malice (1981) – His fascination with the legal process took hold here, as Paul Newman and Sally Field fronted a mafia drama which garnered three Academy Award nominations for Best Actor, Supporting Actress (Melinda Dillon), and Screenplay.
Tootsie (1982) – Pollack’s first foray into comedy struck Oscar gold with 10 nominations (picture, director, acting, writing, editing, cinematography, music) and an Academy Award for Jessica Lange (Best Actress). It also cemented Sydney as a viable revenue generator for the studios, with the film taking in more than $175 Million at the box office.
Out of Africa (1985) – Three years later he was back in the spotlight with the Robert Redford, Meryl Streep period drama that was nominated for 11 Academy Awards and took home seven for Best Picture, Director, Screenplay, Art Direction, Sound Design, and Score (John Barry). The film also grossed $240 Million worldwide.
Havana (1990) – After a five year break from hands on directing, Pollack once again teamed with Redford for a look at high stakes gambling in pre-Castro Cuba. While both a critical and box office disappointment, the film did garner yet another Oscar nomination for composer Dave Grusin.
The Firm (1993) – Following another short break which found him producing some rather forgetful films (King Ralph, anyone?), Pollack returned to his fascination with the law by teaming with Tom Cruise on this adaptation of John Grisham’s best-selling novel. The film put him back on the A-list with two Academy Award nominations — musical score (Dave Grusin) and supporting actress (Holly Hunter) — and more than $250 Million in box office receipts.
Sabrina (1995) – His next film, a remake of the Billy Wilder/Audrey Hepburn classic, fell well short of expectations but did give us the big screen debut of actor Greg Kinnear and earned composer John Williams another two Oscar nominations.
Random Hearts (1999) – Pollack’s continued collaboration with Harrison Ford bore little fruit. This adaptation of Warren Adler’s novel had trouble deciding what kind of film it wanted to be and its convoluted plot didn’t help the cause.
The Interpreter – Following a six year absence from the director’s chair, Pollack teamed with Sean Penn and Nicole Kidman on this political action thriller. Yet despite meeting with box office success ($150 Million), the film failed to wow audiences, lacking the tense storytelling he brought forth in The Firm.
Sketches of Frank Ghery – Strangely enough, Pollack’s final film as a director was a documentary on noted architect/artist Frank Ghery, whose personal story was captured as a favor to his friend. An odd and yet somehow poetic end to a career that, much like that of painter or sculptor, left us with a collection whose pieces tell the story of an artist continually exploring his own interests while refusing to churn out the same product just to make a quick buck.
Pollack’s friends and colleagues remember him as thus…
Martin Landau: “We started together in New York and he always excelled at everything he set out to do, his friendships and his humanity as much as his talents.”
George Clooney: “Sydney made the world a little better, movies a little better, and even dinner a little better. A tip of the hat to a class act. He’ll be missed terribly.”
Quincy Jones: “Sydney Pollack’s immense talents as a director were only surpassed by the compassion that he carried in his soul for his fellow man. Today we’ve lost not only one of our greatest filmmakers, but a great human being.”
Sally Field: “Having the opportunity to know Sydney and work with him was a great gift in my life. He was a good friend and a phenomenal director and I will cherish every moment that I ever spent with him.”
The Indiana native and theater-loving Pollack is survived by his wife, two daughters, and six grandchildren.
Sleep well.
Source: ( Associated Press )
Source: ( NPR )
Source: ( Emulsion Compulsion )
