Robert Downey, Sr.
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| Robert Downey, Sr. | |
|---|---|
| Born | Robert John Elias 1937 (age 72–73) United States |
| Occupation | Director, actor, screenwriter, producer, cinematographer |
| Years active | 1961–present |
| Spouse(s) | Elsie Downey (div. 1975) Laura Ernst (1991–1994) Rosemary Rogers (1998–present) |
Robert John Downey, Sr. (born in 1937) is an American actor, writer, film director and father of actor Robert Downey, Jr. He is known as the director and writer of the cult classic feature film Putney Swope, a biting satire on the New York Madison Avenue advertising world.
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[edit] Personal life
Downey's father was Jewish and his mother was Irish Catholic.[1][2][3] He was born "Robert Elias", but changed his last name to "Downey" (after his stepfather James Downey) when he was a minor and wanted to enlist in the Army.[4][5] He is the father of actor Robert Downey, Jr. and actress–writer Allyson Downey, both children from his first marriage to actress Elsie Downey. They were divorced in 1975. Downey, Sr.'s second marriage, to the actress-writer Laura Ernst, ended with her 1994 death from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis. He currently lives in New York City with his wife, Rosemary Rogers, whom he married in 1998.
[edit] Career
By the age of 22, Downey had served in the Army, played minor league baseball, become a Golden Gloves champion and an Off-Off-Broadway playwright. In 1961, working with the film editor Fred von Bernewitz, he began writing and directing low-budget 16mm films which gained an underground following, beginning with Ball's Bluff (1961), a fantasy short about a Civil War soldier who awakens in Central Park in 1961.
He moved into big-budget filmmaking with the surrealistic Greaser's Palace (1972).[6] His most recent film was Rittenhouse Square (2005), a documentary capturing life in a Philadelphia park.
[edit] Filmography
- Balls Bluff (1961) (short film)
- A Touch of Greatness (1964)
- Babo 73 (1964)
- Sweet Smell of Sex (1965)
- Chafed Elbows (1966)
- No More Excuses (1968)
- Putney Swope (1969)
- Pound (1970)
- Greaser's Palace (1972)
- Sticks and Bones (1973)
- Moment to Moment (1975)
- Up the Academy (1980)
- To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)
- America (1986)
- Rented Lips (1988)
- Too Much Sun (1991)
- Hail Caesar (1994)
- Boogie Nights (1997)
- Hugo Pool (1997)
- Rittenhouse Square (2005)
[edit] References
- ^ Interfaith Celebrities: On Jake Gyllenhaal's Jewish-ishness and Robert Downey Jr. the Jubu
- ^ Daisy Fried (1 May 1997). "Senior Class". Philadelphia City Paper. http://www.citypaper.net/articles/042497/article017.shtml. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
- ^ Jamie Diamond. "Robert Downey Jr. Is Chaplin (on Screen) and a Child (Off)". The New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE2DB1039F933A15751C1A964958260. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
- ^ Diamond, Jamie. (1992-12-20). "FILM; Robert Downey Jr. Is Chaplin (on Screen) and a Child (Off)". New York Times. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9E0CE2DB1039F933A15751C1A964958260.
- ^ "Rosemary Rogers, Robert Downey". New York Times. 1998-05-10. http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9906E3D61331F933A25756C0A96E958260&sec=&spon=. Retrieved 2008-08-01.
- ^ Vincent Canby. "Review: Greaser's Palace". The New York Times. http://movies2.nytimes.com/mem/movies/review.html?title1=&title2=Greaser%27s%20Palace%20%28Movie%29&reviewer=VINCENT%20CANBY&pdate=19720801. Retrieved 2008-06-17.
