Bert Schneider
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Bert Schneider | |
---|---|
Born | Berton Schneider May 5, 1933 New York City, New York, United States |
Died | December 12, 2011 Los Angeles, California, United States | (aged 78)
Cause of death | Natural causes |
Alma mater | Cornell University |
Spouse(s) | Judith (divorced); three subesquent marriages |
Children | Two (with Judith) |
Parent | Abraham Schneider |
Relatives | Harold Schneider (brother) |
Berton "Bert" Schneider (May 5, 1933– December 12, 2011) was an American film and television producer.
He was responsible for several important and topical films of the late 1960s and early 1970s,[1] including the road film Easy Rider (1969), directed by Dennis Hopper
Early life and education
He was born Berton Schneider New York City, New York,[2] the son of one-time Columbia Pictures president Abraham Schneider.
The younger Schneider tended toward the rebellious politics of the day. Briefly a student at Cornell University, located in Ithaca, New York, he was expelled.[3][4]
His brother, Harold Schneider, would become a film producer as well.
Career
In the early 1960s, he worked for Screen Gems, Columbia's television division. In 1965, Schneider formed a partnership with the film director Bob Rafelson, creating Raybert Productions. The duo brought to television The Monkees (1966–1968), a situation comedy about a fictional rock band (who became a real group, The Monkees, to meet public demand, and their own aspirations).
The success of The Monkees allowed Schneider and Rafelson to break into feature films, first with the counterculture film Head (1968), starring The Monkees, directed by Rafelson and featuring a screenplay co-written Rafelson and Jack Nicholson. The film bombed in its initial release, with Monkees fans disappointed that the disjointed, stream-of-consciousness ring of stories was not just an expanded episode, and "hipper" audiences staying away in droves. A retrospective showing in 1973 helped turn critical opinion around, and today Head is largely praised and enjoyed as a 1960s period piece.[citation needed]
They had their first major success with Easy Rider, which ushered in the era of New Hollywood. Then followed with the drama film Five Easy Pieces (1970), which Rafelson directed.
Following Five Easy Pieces, Schneider and Rafelson added a partner, Stephen Blauner, and Raybert turned into BBS Productions.
They subsequently made a series of films, including the drama films The Last Picture Show (1971), directed by Peter Bogdanovich; The King of Marvin Gardens (1972), directed by Rafelson.
Awards
In 1975, Schneider received an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature for producing Hearts and Minds (1974), a documentary film about the Vietnam War, directed by Peter Davis.[5]
Private life and death
Schneider was married and divorced from his first wife, Judith, with whom he had two children, Jeff and Audrey, and later married three more times.[citation needed]
Death
He died of natural causes, aged 78, in Los Angeles, California. He was survived by his son and daughter.[6][7][8]
In popular culture
Peter Fonda based his character, Terry Valentine, in the crime film The Limey (1999) partly on Schneider, according to Fonda's interview on the film's DVD.
Filmography and television work
Year | Title | Genre | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
1966–1968 | The Monkees | television situation comedy | |
1968 | Head | ||
1969 | Easy Rider | road film | producer |
1970 | Five Easy Pieces | drama film | |
1971 | The Last Picture Show | drama film | |
1972 | The King of Marvin Gardens | drama film | |
1974 | Hearts and Minds | documentary film | |
1978 | Days of Heaven | drama film |
See also
References
External links
- Articles with bare URLs for citations from January 2012
- 1933 births
- 2011 deaths
- 20th-century American people
- 20th-century men
- 21st-century American people
- 21st-century men
- Businesspeople from Los Angeles, California
- Businesspeople from New York City
- Cornell University alumni
- Disease-related deaths in California
- Film producers from California
- The Monkees
- Television producers from California