Robert Evans (film producer)
Encyclopedia
Robert Evans is an American
film producer
, best known for his work on Rosemary's Baby
, Love Story
, The Godfather
, and Chinatown.
. He grew up on New York City's Upper West Side during the 1930s, where he was better off than most people living during the Great Depression
. In his early years, he did promotional work for Evan-Picone, a fashion
company founded by his brother Charles
, in addition to doing voice work on radio shows.
He was spotted by actress Norma Shearer
next to the pool at The Beverly Hills Hotel
on election day 1956; she successfully touted him for the role of her late husband Irving Thalberg
in Man of a Thousand Faces
. The same year, Evans also caught the eye of Darryl F. Zanuck
, who cast him as Pedro Romero in a film adaptation
of Ernest Hemingway
's The Sun Also Rises
, against the wishes of co-star Ava Gardner
and Hemingway himself. In 1959, he appeared in Twentieth Century Fox's production of The Best of Everything
with Hope Lange
, Diane Baker
, and Joan Crawford
.
starring Frank Sinatra
, Lee Remick
, Jack Klugman
, Robert Duvall
and Jacqueline Bisset
, in 1968. Peter Bart
, a writer for The New York Times
, wrote an article about Evans’ aggressive production style. This got Evans noticed by Charles Bluhdorn
, who was head of the Gulf+Western
conglomerate, and hired Evans as part of a shakeup at Paramount Pictures
.
When Evans took over as Head of Production for Paramount, the foundering studio was the ninth largest. Despite Evans’ inexperience, he was able to turn the studio around. He made Paramount the most successful studio in Hollywood and transformed it into a very profitable enterprise for Gulf+Western. During his tenure at Paramount, the studio turned out films such as Barefoot in the Park
, The Odd Couple
, Rosemary's Baby
, The Italian Job
, True Grit, Love Story
, Harold and Maude
, The Godfather
, Serpico
, Save the Tiger
, The Conversation
, The Great Gatsby
, and many others.
Dissatisfied with his financial compensation, and desiring to produce films under his own banner, Evans struck a deal with Paramount that enabled him to stay on as studio head while also working as an independent producer. Other producers at Paramount felt this gave Evans an unfair advantage. Eventually Evans stepped down, which enabled him to produce films on his own. He went on to produce such films as Chinatown, Marathon Man
, Black Sunday
, Popeye
, Urban Cowboy
, The Cotton Club
, The Two Jakes
, Sliver
, Jade
, The Phantom, The Saint
, and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
.
Evans continues to produce; the last film that he produced was released in 2003. He also produced and provided the voice for his eponymous character in the animated series Kid Notorious
. Evans currently hosts the Sirius Satellite Radio
show In Bed with Robert Evans.
Evans is currently in development on a film about the life of iconic auto executive John DeLorean. Brett Ratner
is attached to direct and James Toback
is currently writing the screenplay. In addition, an HBO
miniseries titled The Devil and Sidney Korshak is being developed with writer Art Monterastelli adapting.
(1969–1972), Phyllis George
(1977–1978), Catherine Oxenberg
(1998), Leslie Ann Woodward (2002–2004) and Victoria White (2005–2006). Evans' marriage to Oxenberg was annulled after nine days. He married White in Mexico on August 2005, shortly after his 75th birthday; she filed for divorce on June 16, 2006, citing irreconcilable differences. In the film adaptation of the autobiography The Kid Stays in the Picture
only Ali MacGraw is discussed, and their relationship is discussed at length.
Evans has one son, Josh Evans
, also a producer, from his marriage to MacGraw.
Joe Eszterhas
repeatedly describes his friend, Evans, as "the devil" in his book, Hollywood Animal, and goes on to say that "all lies ever told anywhere about Robert Evans are true."
Meredith Rhule, his personal in-home movie projectionist, indicates that Evans absolutely knows how to impress potential movie backers. "I have seen almost every movie star, top models, heads of studios and heads of states walk into his home. Bob Evans is the Godfather of Hollywood."
, a Washington, D.C.
spin doctor
distracts the electorate from a U.S. presidential sex scandal by hiring a Hollywood producer played by Dustin Hoffman
. Hoffman's character was based directly upon Robert Evans. Hoffman emulated Evans' work habits, mannerisms, quirks, clothing style, hairstyle, and his large square-framed eyeglasses. The real Evans is said to have declared, "I'm magnificent in this film!"
Bob Ryan, a recurring character in the HBO
series Entourage
is based on Evans. The character, portrayed by Martin Landau
, was a successful movie producer in the 1970s who now chafes at no longer being considered a major Hollywood player. While Evans reportedly declined an offer to play the part himself, he did agree to allow his home to be used in the show as Bob Ryan's home.
Evans similarly served as the inspiration for a Mr. Show
sketch, in which Bob Odenkirk
portrays God
recording his memoirs, dressed as and speaking like Evans. Odenkirk also attributes Evans as his primary influence on his portrayal of lawyer Saul Goodman in Breaking Bad
.
Smuggler Films
has acquired the stage rights to Evans' memoirs, The Kid Stays in the Picture
and its sequel, The Fat Lady Sang, which will be published in conjunction with the debut of the play. Award-winning director Sir Richard Eyre
is set to direct with Jon Robin Baitz
, in place to pen the stage play.
Evans plays himself in the movie An Alan Smithee Film Burn Hollywood Burn (1998). His "character", like those of other real-life personages in the film, such as Whoopi Goldberg
and Jackie Chan
, comprises parodical
exaggerations of his personality traits.
Michael Douglas
' character in the 2009 film Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, Wayne Mead, is an obvious parody of Evans, capitalizing on his well known hair, glasses, style of dress and reputation as a ladies' man who frequently entertained celebrity
performers.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
film producer
Film producer
A film producer oversees and delivers a film project to all relevant parties while preserving the integrity, voice and vision of the film. They will also often take on some financial risk by using their own money, especially during the pre-production period, before a film is fully financed.The...
, best known for his work on Rosemary's Baby
Rosemary's Baby (film)
Rosemary's Baby is a 1968 American horror film written and directed by Roman Polanski, based on the bestselling 1967 novel Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin...
, Love Story
Love Story (1970 film)
Love Story is a 1970 romantic drama film written by Erich Segal and based on his novel Love Story. It was directed by Arthur Hiller. The film, well known as a tragedy, is considered one of the most romantic of all time by the American Film Institute , and was followed by a sequel, Oliver's Story...
, The Godfather
The Godfather
The Godfather is a 1972 American epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, based on the 1969 novel by Mario Puzo. With a screenplay by Puzo, Coppola and an uncredited Robert Towne, the film stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Sterling Hayden, John Marley, Richard...
, and Chinatown.
Early life and acting career
Evans was born Robert J. Shapera in New York City, New York, the son of Florence, a housewife who came from a wealthy family, and Archie Shapera, a dentist in HarlemHarlem
Harlem is a neighborhood in the New York City borough of Manhattan, which since the 1920s has been a major African-American residential, cultural and business center. Originally a Dutch village, formally organized in 1658, it is named after the city of Haarlem in the Netherlands...
. He grew up on New York City's Upper West Side during the 1930s, where he was better off than most people living during the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. In his early years, he did promotional work for Evan-Picone, a fashion
Fashion
Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...
company founded by his brother Charles
Charles Evans, Jr.
Charles Evans, Jr. is a film producer and nephew of Robert Evans. He produced Johnny Depp's directorial debut, The Brave, as well as the Howard Hughes biopic, The Aviator. He also served as a assistant director on Monkey Shines.-External links:...
, in addition to doing voice work on radio shows.
He was spotted by actress Norma Shearer
Norma Shearer
Edith Norma Shearer was a Canadian-American actress. Shearer was one of the most popular actresses in North America from the mid-1920s through the 1930s...
next to the pool at The Beverly Hills Hotel
Beverly Hills Hotel
The Beverly Hills Hotel is a hotel on Sunset Boulevard in Beverly Hills, California. It was opened on May 12, 1912 by Margaret J. Anderson and her son, Stanley S. Anderson, who had been managing the Hollywood Hotel. The original main building of The Beverly Hills Hotel was designed by Pasadena...
on election day 1956; she successfully touted him for the role of her late husband Irving Thalberg
Irving Thalberg
Irving Grant Thalberg was an American film producer during the early years of motion pictures. He was called "The Boy Wonder" for his youth and his extraordinary ability to select the right scripts, choose the right actors, gather the best production staff and make very profitable films.-Life and...
in Man of a Thousand Faces
Man of a Thousand Faces
Man of a Thousand Faces is a film detailing the life of silent movie actor Lon Chaney, in which the title role is played by James Cagney.Directed by Joseph Pevney, the film's cast included Dorothy Malone, Jane Greer and Jim Backus...
. The same year, Evans also caught the eye of Darryl F. Zanuck
Darryl F. Zanuck
Darryl Francis Zanuck was an American producer, writer, actor, director and studio executive who played a major part in the Hollywood studio system as one of its longest survivors...
, who cast him as Pedro Romero in a film adaptation
The Sun Also Rises (1957 film)
The Sun Also Rises is a 1957 film adaptation of the Ernest Hemingway novel of the same name, with the screenplay written by Peter Viertel. It starred Tyrone Power, Ava Gardner, Mel Ferrer and Errol Flynn. Much of it was filmed on location in France and Spain in Cinemascope and color by Deluxe...
of Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
's The Sun Also Rises
The Sun Also Rises
The Sun Also Rises is a 1926 novel written by American author Ernest Hemingway about a group of American and British expatriates who travel from Paris to the Festival of San Fermín in Pamplona to watch the running of the bulls and the bullfights. An early and enduring modernist novel, it received...
, against the wishes of co-star Ava Gardner
Ava Gardner
Ava Lavinia Gardner was an American actress.She was signed to a contract by MGM Studios in 1941 and appeared mainly in small roles until she drew attention with her performance in The Killers . She became one of Hollywood's leading actresses, considered one of the most beautiful women of her day...
and Hemingway himself. In 1959, he appeared in Twentieth Century Fox's production of The Best of Everything
The Best of Everything
The Best of Everything is the first novel by Rona Jaffe. It is the story of five young employees of a New York publishing company.-Adaptions:...
with Hope Lange
Hope Lange
Hope Elise Ross Lange was an American stage, film, and television actress.- Early life :Lange was born into a theatrical family in Redding, Connecticut...
, Diane Baker
Diane Baker
Diane Carol Baker is an American actress who has appeared in motion pictures and on television since 1959.-Early life:...
, and Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford
Joan Crawford , born Lucille Fay LeSueur, was an American actress in film, television and theatre....
.
Career as producer
Dissatisfied with his own acting talent, he determined to become a producer. He got his start as head of production at Paramount by purchasing the rights to a 1966 novel entitled The Detective which Evans made into a movieThe Detective (1968 film)
The Detective is a 1968 film directed by Gordon Douglas, produced by Aaron Rosenberg and starring Frank Sinatra, based on the 1966 novel of the same name by Roderick Thorp.Co-stars include Lee Remick, Jacqueline Bisset, Jack Klugman and Robert Duvall....
starring Frank Sinatra
Frank Sinatra
Francis Albert "Frank" Sinatra was an American singer and actor.Beginning his musical career in the swing era with Harry James and Tommy Dorsey, Sinatra became an unprecedentedly successful solo artist in the early to mid-1940s, after being signed to Columbia Records in 1943. Being the idol of the...
, Lee Remick
Lee Remick
Lee Ann Remick was an American film and television actress. Among her best-known films are Anatomy of a Murder , Days of Wine and Roses , and The Omen .-Early life:...
, Jack Klugman
Jack Klugman
Jacob Joachim "Jack" Klugman is an American stage, film and television actor known for his roles in sitcoms, movies, and television and on Broadway...
, Robert Duvall
Robert Duvall
Robert Selden Duvall is an American actor and director. He has won an Academy Award, two Emmy Awards, four Golden Globe Awards and a BAFTA over the course of his career....
and Jacqueline Bisset
Jacqueline Bisset
Jacqueline Bisset is an English actress. She has been nominated for four Golden Globe Awards and an Emmy Award. She is known for her roles in the films Bullitt , Airport , The Deep , Class , and the TV series Nip/Tuck in 2006...
, in 1968. Peter Bart
Peter Bart
Peter Benton Bart is an American journalist and film producer. He perhaps best known for his lengthy tenure as the editor of Variety, an entertainment-trade magazine....
, a writer for The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, wrote an article about Evans’ aggressive production style. This got Evans noticed by Charles Bluhdorn
Charles Bluhdorn
Charles Blühdorn was a Vienna, Austria-born American industrialist.-Biography:Per a Who's Who in Ridgefield he was considered such a "hellion" that his father sent the 11-year-old to an English boarding school for disciplining...
, who was head of the Gulf+Western
Gulf+Western
Gulf and Western Industries, Inc., for a number of years known as Gulf+Western, was an American conglomerate.- History :Gulf and Western's prosaic origins date to a manufacturer named Michigan Bumper Co. founded in 1934, though Charles Bluhdorn treated his 1958 takeover of what was then Michigan...
conglomerate, and hired Evans as part of a shakeup at Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures
Paramount Pictures Corporation is an American film production and distribution company, located at 5555 Melrose Avenue in Hollywood. Founded in 1912 and currently owned by media conglomerate Viacom, it is America's oldest existing film studio; it is also the last major film studio still...
.
When Evans took over as Head of Production for Paramount, the foundering studio was the ninth largest. Despite Evans’ inexperience, he was able to turn the studio around. He made Paramount the most successful studio in Hollywood and transformed it into a very profitable enterprise for Gulf+Western. During his tenure at Paramount, the studio turned out films such as Barefoot in the Park
Barefoot in the Park (film)
Barefoot in the Park is a 1967 American comedy film.Based on Neil Simon's 1963 play of the same title, it focuses on newlyweds Corie and Paul Bratter and their adventures living in a minuscule sixth floor walk-up apartment in a Greenwich Village brownstone...
, The Odd Couple
The Odd Couple (film)
The Odd Couple is a 1968 comedy film written by Neil Simon, based on his play The Odd Couple, directed by Gene Saks, and starring Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau...
, Rosemary's Baby
Rosemary's Baby (film)
Rosemary's Baby is a 1968 American horror film written and directed by Roman Polanski, based on the bestselling 1967 novel Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin...
, The Italian Job
The Italian Job
The Italian Job is a 1969 British caper film, written by Troy Kennedy Martin, produced by Michael Deeley and directed by Peter Collinson. Subsequent television showings and releases on video have established it as an institution in the United Kingdom....
, True Grit, Love Story
Love Story (1970 film)
Love Story is a 1970 romantic drama film written by Erich Segal and based on his novel Love Story. It was directed by Arthur Hiller. The film, well known as a tragedy, is considered one of the most romantic of all time by the American Film Institute , and was followed by a sequel, Oliver's Story...
, Harold and Maude
Harold and Maude
Harold and Maude is a 1971 American dark comedy film directed by Hal Ashby and released by Paramount Pictures. It incorporates elements of dark humor and existentialist drama, with a plot that revolves around the exploits of a young man intrigued with death, Harold...
, The Godfather
The Godfather
The Godfather is a 1972 American epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, based on the 1969 novel by Mario Puzo. With a screenplay by Puzo, Coppola and an uncredited Robert Towne, the film stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Sterling Hayden, John Marley, Richard...
, Serpico
Serpico
Serpico is a 1973 American crime film directed by Sidney Lumet. It is based on the true story of New York City policeman Frank Serpico, who went undercover to expose the corruption of his fellow officers, after being pushed to the brink at first by their distrust and later by the threats and...
, Save the Tiger
Save the Tiger
Save the Tiger is a 1973 film about moral conflict in contemporary America. It stars Jack Lemmon, Jack Gilford, Laurie Heineman, Thayer David, Lara Parker and Liv Lindeland. The film is directed by John G...
, The Conversation
The Conversation
The Conversation is a 1974 American psychological thriller film written, produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Gene Hackman...
, The Great Gatsby
The Great Gatsby (1974 film)
The Great Gatsby is a 1974 romantic drama film distributed by Newdon Productions and Paramount Pictures. It was directed by Jack Clayton and produced by David Merrick, from a screenplay by Francis Ford Coppola based on F...
, and many others.
Dissatisfied with his financial compensation, and desiring to produce films under his own banner, Evans struck a deal with Paramount that enabled him to stay on as studio head while also working as an independent producer. Other producers at Paramount felt this gave Evans an unfair advantage. Eventually Evans stepped down, which enabled him to produce films on his own. He went on to produce such films as Chinatown, Marathon Man
Marathon Man (film)
Marathon Man is a 1976 thriller film based on the novel of the same name by William Goldman. The film was directed by John Schlesinger, and stars Dustin Hoffman, Roy Scheider, and Laurence Olivier. The original music score was composed by Michael Small....
, Black Sunday
Black Sunday (1977 film)
Black Sunday is a 1977 American thriller film directed by John Frankenheimer and based on the novel by Thomas Harris. The film starred Robert Shaw, Bruce Dern, and Marthe Keller and was nominated for the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture in 1978...
, Popeye
Popeye (film)
Popeye is a 1980 live-action film adaptation directed by Robert Altman and adapted from E. C. Segar's Thimble Theatre aka Popeye comic strip.Marketed with the tagline, "The sailor man with the spinach can!", the film is a musical...
, Urban Cowboy
Urban Cowboy
Released as a 2× vinyl record album, re-released on CD in 1995.Side A:#Hello Texas – Jimmy Buffett #All Night Long – Joe Walsh #Times Like These – Dan Fogelberg #Nine Tonight – Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band...
, The Cotton Club
The Cotton Club (film)
The Cotton Club is a 1984 crime-drama, centered on a famed Harlem jazz club of the 1930s, the Cotton Club.The movie was co-written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, choreographed by Henry LeTang, and starred Richard Gere, Diane Lane, and Gregory Hines...
, The Two Jakes
The Two Jakes
The Two Jakes is a 1990 American mystery film, and a sequel to the 1974 film Chinatown.Directed by and starring Jack Nicholson, it also features Harvey Keitel, Meg Tilly, Madeleine Stowe, Richard Farnsworth, Frederic Forrest, Pia Gronning, David Keith, Rubén Blades, Tracey Walter and Eli Wallach...
, Sliver
Sliver (film)
Sliver is a 1993 film based on the Ira Levin novel of the same name about the mysterious occurrences in a privately owned New York highrise apartment building. Phillip Noyce directed the film, from a screenplay by Joe Eszterhas...
, Jade
Jade (film)
Jade is a 1995 erotic thriller film written by Joe Eszterhas, produced by Robert Evans, directed by William Friedkin and starring David Caruso, Linda Fiorentino, Chazz Palminteri, Richard Crenna and Michael Biehn. The original music score was composed by James Horner...
, The Phantom, The Saint
The Saint (film)
The Saint is a 1997 film based on the character of Simon Templar created by Leslie Charteris in 1928 for a series of books published as "The Saint." The film stars Val Kilmer, Elisabeth Shue and Rade Šerbedžija...
, and How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days is a 2003 romantic comedy film, directed by Donald Petrie, starring Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey. It is based on a short cartoon book of the same name by Michele Alexander and Jeannie Long.-Plot:...
.
Evans continues to produce; the last film that he produced was released in 2003. He also produced and provided the voice for his eponymous character in the animated series Kid Notorious
Kid Notorious
Kid Notorious is an animated television series that aired for nine weeks on Comedy Central and is currently running on the UK version of Adult Swim. It starred Hollywood film producer Robert Evans as himself. Episode plots were often bizarre and absurdist in nature, featuring Evans as a James Bond...
. Evans currently hosts the Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio
Sirius Satellite Radio is a satellite radio service operating in North America, owned by Sirius XM Radio.Headquartered in New York City, with smaller studios in Los Angeles and Memphis, Sirius was officially launched on July 1, 2002 and currently provides 69 streams of music and 65 streams of...
show In Bed with Robert Evans.
Evans is currently in development on a film about the life of iconic auto executive John DeLorean. Brett Ratner
Brett Ratner
Brett Ratner is an American film director, film producer and music video director. He is best known for directing the Rush Hour film series, The Family Man, Red Dragon, X-Men: The Last Stand, and Tower Heist. He was also a producer on the Fox drama series, Prison Break.- Early life :Ratner was...
is attached to direct and James Toback
James Toback
James Lee Toback is an American screenwriter and film director.-Early life:Toback was born in New York City. His mother, Selma Judith , was a President of The League of Women Voters and a moderator of political debates on NBC. His father, Irwin Lionel Toback, was a stockbroker and former...
is currently writing the screenplay. In addition, an HBO
Home Box Office
HBO, short for Home Box Office, is an American premium cable television network, owned by Time Warner. , HBO's programming reaches 28.2 million subscribers in the United States, making it the second largest premium network in America . In addition to its U.S...
miniseries titled The Devil and Sidney Korshak is being developed with writer Art Monterastelli adapting.
Personal life
Evans has been married seven times but none of his marriages has lasted more than three years. His first was to Sharon Hugueny (1961–1962). After his first divorce came: Camilla Sparv (1963–1965), Ali MacGrawAli MacGraw
Elizabeth Alice "Ali" MacGraw is an American actress. She is known for her role in Love Story, for which she won a Golden Globe and received an Academy Award nomination.-Early life:...
(1969–1972), Phyllis George
Phyllis George
Phyllis Ann George Brown is an American businesswoman, actress and a former sportscaster. She is a former Miss Texas and Miss America of 1971.- Early life :...
(1977–1978), Catherine Oxenberg
Catherine Oxenberg
Catherine Oxenberg is an American actress known for her performance as Amanda Carrington on the 1980s American prime time soap opera Dynasty. The daughter of HRH Princess Elizabeth of Yugoslavia, Oxenberg is a descendant of the Serbian Karađorđević dynasty.-Early life:Though born in New York City,...
(1998), Leslie Ann Woodward (2002–2004) and Victoria White (2005–2006). Evans' marriage to Oxenberg was annulled after nine days. He married White in Mexico on August 2005, shortly after his 75th birthday; she filed for divorce on June 16, 2006, citing irreconcilable differences. In the film adaptation of the autobiography The Kid Stays in the Picture
The Kid Stays in the Picture
The Kid Stays in the Picture is the name of a 1994 autobiography by film producer Robert Evans. It is also the name of a 2002 film adaptation of the book directed by Nanette Burstein and Brett Morgen and released by Focus Features and USA Pictures...
only Ali MacGraw is discussed, and their relationship is discussed at length.
Evans has one son, Josh Evans
Josh Evans (film producer)
Josh Evans is an American filmmaker, screenwriter, and actor.-Life and education:Evans was born in New York City, New York, the son of actress Ali MacGraw and producer Robert Evans. He is also the nephew of the late producer Charles Evans, stepson of Steve McQueen, and the stepbrother of actor and...
, also a producer, from his marriage to MacGraw.
Joe Eszterhas
Joe Eszterhas
József A. "Joe" Eszterhas is a Hungarian-American writer, best known for his work on the pulp erotic films Basic Instinct and Showgirls. He has also written several non-fiction books, including an autobiography entitled Hollywood Animal.-Early life:Eszterhas was born in Csákánydoroszló, Hungary,...
repeatedly describes his friend, Evans, as "the devil" in his book, Hollywood Animal, and goes on to say that "all lies ever told anywhere about Robert Evans are true."
Meredith Rhule, his personal in-home movie projectionist, indicates that Evans absolutely knows how to impress potential movie backers. "I have seen almost every movie star, top models, heads of studios and heads of states walk into his home. Bob Evans is the Godfather of Hollywood."
Evans as a character in film and theater
Actors have admitted imitating Evans's distinctive mannerisms. In the 1997 movie Wag the DogWag the Dog
Wag the Dog is a 1997 black comedy film starring Dustin Hoffman and Robert De Niro, co-starring Anne Heche, Denis Leary and William H. Macy about a Washington spin doctor who, merely days before a presidential election, distracts the electorate from a sex scandal by hiring a Hollywood film producer...
, a Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
spin doctor
Spin (public relations)
In public relations, spin is a form of propaganda, achieved through providing an interpretation of an event or campaign to persuade public opinion in favor or against a certain organization or public figure...
distracts the electorate from a U.S. presidential sex scandal by hiring a Hollywood producer played by Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Hoffman
Dustin Lee Hoffman is an American actor with a career in film, television, and theatre since 1960. He has been known for his versatile portrayals of antiheroes and vulnerable characters....
. Hoffman's character was based directly upon Robert Evans. Hoffman emulated Evans' work habits, mannerisms, quirks, clothing style, hairstyle, and his large square-framed eyeglasses. The real Evans is said to have declared, "I'm magnificent in this film!"
Bob Ryan, a recurring character in the HBO
Home Box Office
HBO, short for Home Box Office, is an American premium cable television network, owned by Time Warner. , HBO's programming reaches 28.2 million subscribers in the United States, making it the second largest premium network in America . In addition to its U.S...
series Entourage
Entourage (TV series)
Entourage is an American comedy-drama television series that premiered on HBO on July 18, 2004 and concluded on September 11, 2011, after eight seasons...
is based on Evans. The character, portrayed by Martin Landau
Martin Landau
Martin Landau is an American film and television actor. Landau began his career in the 1950s. His early films include a supporting role in Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest . He played continuing roles in the television series Mission: Impossible and Space:1999...
, was a successful movie producer in the 1970s who now chafes at no longer being considered a major Hollywood player. While Evans reportedly declined an offer to play the part himself, he did agree to allow his home to be used in the show as Bob Ryan's home.
Evans similarly served as the inspiration for a Mr. Show
Mr. Show
Mr. Show with Bob and David is an American sketch comedy series featuring former Saturday Night Live writer/actor Bob Odenkirk and stand up comedian/actor David Cross...
sketch, in which Bob Odenkirk
Bob Odenkirk
Robert "Bob" Odenkirk is an American actor, comedian, writer, director and producer. He is best known as the co-creator and co-star of the HBO sketch comedy series Mr...
portrays God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
recording his memoirs, dressed as and speaking like Evans. Odenkirk also attributes Evans as his primary influence on his portrayal of lawyer Saul Goodman in Breaking Bad
Breaking Bad
Breaking Bad is an American television drama series created and produced by Vince Gilligan. Set and produced in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Breaking Bad is the story of Walter White , a struggling high school chemistry teacher who is diagnosed with advanced lung cancer at the beginning of the series...
.
Smuggler Films
Smuggler Films
Smuggler Films is a production company founded in 2009 which produces film, television and theater content.-Background:Smuggler Films was founded by Smuggler production company partners Brian Carmody and Patrick Milling Smith with veteran film and Broadway producer John N. Hart. Patrick Milling...
has acquired the stage rights to Evans' memoirs, The Kid Stays in the Picture
The Kid Stays in the Picture
The Kid Stays in the Picture is the name of a 1994 autobiography by film producer Robert Evans. It is also the name of a 2002 film adaptation of the book directed by Nanette Burstein and Brett Morgen and released by Focus Features and USA Pictures...
and its sequel, The Fat Lady Sang, which will be published in conjunction with the debut of the play. Award-winning director Sir Richard Eyre
Richard Eyre
Sir Richard Charles Hastings Eyre CBE is an English director of film, theatre, television, and opera.-Biography:Eyre was educated at Sherborne School, an independent school for boys in the market town of Sherborne in north-west Dorset in south-west England, followed by Peterhouse at the University...
is set to direct with Jon Robin Baitz
Jon Robin Baitz
Jon Robin Baitz is an American playwright, screenwriter, television producer and sometime actor.-Life and career:Baitz was born in Los Angeles, California, the son of Edward Baitz, an executive of the Carnation Company. Baitz was raised in Brazil and South Africa before the family returned to...
, in place to pen the stage play.
Evans plays himself in the movie An Alan Smithee Film Burn Hollywood Burn (1998). His "character", like those of other real-life personages in the film, such as Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg
Whoopi Goldberg is an American comedian, actress, singer-songwriter, political activist, author and talk show host.Goldberg made her film debut in The Color Purple playing Celie, a mistreated black woman in the Deep South. She received a nomination for the Academy Award for Best Actress and won...
and Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan
Jackie Chan, SBS, MBE is a Hong Kong actor, action choreographer, comedian, director, producer, martial artist, screenwriter, entrepreneur, singer and stunt performer. In his movies, he is known for his acrobatic fighting style, comic timing, use of improvised weapons, and innovative stunts...
, comprises parodical
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
exaggerations of his personality traits.
Michael Douglas
Michael Douglas
Michael Kirk Douglas is an American actor and producer, primarily in movies and television. He has won three Golden Globes and two Academy Awards; first as producer of 1975's Best Picture, One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, and as Best Actor in 1987 for his role in Wall Street. Douglas received the...
' character in the 2009 film Ghosts of Girlfriends Past, Wayne Mead, is an obvious parody of Evans, capitalizing on his well known hair, glasses, style of dress and reputation as a ladies' man who frequently entertained celebrity
Celebrity
A celebrity, also referred to as a celeb in popular culture, is a person who has a prominent profile and commands a great degree of public fascination and influence in day-to-day media...
performers.
As Head of Production at Paramount
- Barefoot in the ParkBarefoot in the Park (film)Barefoot in the Park is a 1967 American comedy film.Based on Neil Simon's 1963 play of the same title, it focuses on newlyweds Corie and Paul Bratter and their adventures living in a minuscule sixth floor walk-up apartment in a Greenwich Village brownstone...
(1967) - The Odd CoupleThe Odd Couple (film)The Odd Couple is a 1968 comedy film written by Neil Simon, based on his play The Odd Couple, directed by Gene Saks, and starring Jack Lemmon and Walter Matthau...
(1968) - The DetectiveThe Detective (1968 film)The Detective is a 1968 film directed by Gordon Douglas, produced by Aaron Rosenberg and starring Frank Sinatra, based on the 1966 novel of the same name by Roderick Thorp.Co-stars include Lee Remick, Jacqueline Bisset, Jack Klugman and Robert Duvall....
(1968) - Rosemary's BabyRosemary's Baby (film)Rosemary's Baby is a 1968 American horror film written and directed by Roman Polanski, based on the bestselling 1967 novel Rosemary's Baby by Ira Levin...
(1968) - The Italian JobThe Italian JobThe Italian Job is a 1969 British caper film, written by Troy Kennedy Martin, produced by Michael Deeley and directed by Peter Collinson. Subsequent television showings and releases on video have established it as an institution in the United Kingdom....
(1969) - True Grit (1969)
- The ConfessionThe Confession (1970 film)The Confession is a 1970 French-Italian film directed by Costa Gavras and stars Yves Montand and Simone Signoret.It is based on the true story of the Czechoslovak communist Artur London, a defendant in the Slánský trial...
(1970) - Love StoryLove Story (1970 film)Love Story is a 1970 romantic drama film written by Erich Segal and based on his novel Love Story. It was directed by Arthur Hiller. The film, well known as a tragedy, is considered one of the most romantic of all time by the American Film Institute , and was followed by a sequel, Oliver's Story...
(1970) - A New LeafA New LeafA New Leaf is a dark comedy film based on the short story The Green Heart by Jack Ritchie, starring Elaine May, Walter Matthau, George Rose and James Coco. Better known for her collaboration as a stage comedienne with The Graduate director Mike Nichols, May also wrote and directed . For this film...
(1971) - Plaza SuitePlaza Suite (film)Plaza Suite is a 1971 American comedy film directed by Arthur Hiller. The screenplay by Neil Simon is based on his 1968 play of the same title. The film stars Walter Matthau, Maureen Stapleton, Barbara Harris and Lee Grant.-Plot:...
(1971) - Harold and MaudeHarold and MaudeHarold and Maude is a 1971 American dark comedy film directed by Hal Ashby and released by Paramount Pictures. It incorporates elements of dark humor and existentialist drama, with a plot that revolves around the exploits of a young man intrigued with death, Harold...
(1971) - The GodfatherThe GodfatherThe Godfather is a 1972 American epic crime film directed by Francis Ford Coppola, based on the 1969 novel by Mario Puzo. With a screenplay by Puzo, Coppola and an uncredited Robert Towne, the film stars Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Robert Duvall, Sterling Hayden, John Marley, Richard...
(1972) - SerpicoSerpicoSerpico is a 1973 American crime film directed by Sidney Lumet. It is based on the true story of New York City policeman Frank Serpico, who went undercover to expose the corruption of his fellow officers, after being pushed to the brink at first by their distrust and later by the threats and...
(1973) - Save the TigerSave the TigerSave the Tiger is a 1973 film about moral conflict in contemporary America. It stars Jack Lemmon, Jack Gilford, Laurie Heineman, Thayer David, Lara Parker and Liv Lindeland. The film is directed by John G...
(1973) - The Great GatsbyThe Great Gatsby (1974 film)The Great Gatsby is a 1974 romantic drama film distributed by Newdon Productions and Paramount Pictures. It was directed by Jack Clayton and produced by David Merrick, from a screenplay by Francis Ford Coppola based on F...
(1974) - The ConversationThe ConversationThe Conversation is a 1974 American psychological thriller film written, produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Gene Hackman...
(1974)
As Producer
- Chinatown (1974)
- Marathon ManMarathon Man (film)Marathon Man is a 1976 thriller film based on the novel of the same name by William Goldman. The film was directed by John Schlesinger, and stars Dustin Hoffman, Roy Scheider, and Laurence Olivier. The original music score was composed by Michael Small....
(1976) - Black SundayBlack Sunday (1977 film)Black Sunday is a 1977 American thriller film directed by John Frankenheimer and based on the novel by Thomas Harris. The film starred Robert Shaw, Bruce Dern, and Marthe Keller and was nominated for the Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Motion Picture in 1978...
(1977) - Players (1979)
- Urban CowboyUrban CowboyReleased as a 2× vinyl record album, re-released on CD in 1995.Side A:#Hello Texas – Jimmy Buffett #All Night Long – Joe Walsh #Times Like These – Dan Fogelberg #Nine Tonight – Bob Seger & The Silver Bullet Band...
(1980) - PopeyePopeye (film)Popeye is a 1980 live-action film adaptation directed by Robert Altman and adapted from E. C. Segar's Thimble Theatre aka Popeye comic strip.Marketed with the tagline, "The sailor man with the spinach can!", the film is a musical...
(1980) - The Cotton ClubThe Cotton Club (film)The Cotton Club is a 1984 crime-drama, centered on a famed Harlem jazz club of the 1930s, the Cotton Club.The movie was co-written and directed by Francis Ford Coppola, choreographed by Henry LeTang, and starred Richard Gere, Diane Lane, and Gregory Hines...
(1984) - The Two JakesThe Two JakesThe Two Jakes is a 1990 American mystery film, and a sequel to the 1974 film Chinatown.Directed by and starring Jack Nicholson, it also features Harvey Keitel, Meg Tilly, Madeleine Stowe, Richard Farnsworth, Frederic Forrest, Pia Gronning, David Keith, Rubén Blades, Tracey Walter and Eli Wallach...
(1990) - SliverSliver (film)Sliver is a 1993 film based on the Ira Levin novel of the same name about the mysterious occurrences in a privately owned New York highrise apartment building. Phillip Noyce directed the film, from a screenplay by Joe Eszterhas...
(1993) - JadeJade (film)Jade is a 1995 erotic thriller film written by Joe Eszterhas, produced by Robert Evans, directed by William Friedkin and starring David Caruso, Linda Fiorentino, Chazz Palminteri, Richard Crenna and Michael Biehn. The original music score was composed by James Horner...
(1995) - The Phantom (1996)
- The SaintThe Saint (film)The Saint is a 1997 film based on the character of Simon Templar created by Leslie Charteris in 1928 for a series of books published as "The Saint." The film stars Val Kilmer, Elisabeth Shue and Rade Šerbedžija...
(1997) - The Out-of-TownersThe Out-of-Towners (1999 film)The Out-of-Towners is a 1999 film starring Steve Martin and Goldie Hawn. The movie is a remake of a 1970 film by the same name; the original version, written by Neil Simon, starred Jack Lemmon and Sandy Dennis.-As remake of 1970 film:...
(1999) - How to Lose a Guy in 10 DaysHow to Lose a Guy in 10 DaysHow to Lose a Guy in 10 Days is a 2003 romantic comedy film, directed by Donald Petrie, starring Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey. It is based on a short cartoon book of the same name by Michele Alexander and Jeannie Long.-Plot:...
(2003) - Kid NotoriousKid NotoriousKid Notorious is an animated television series that aired for nine weeks on Comedy Central and is currently running on the UK version of Adult Swim. It starred Hollywood film producer Robert Evans as himself. Episode plots were often bizarre and absurdist in nature, featuring Evans as a James Bond...
(2003, TV series) - The Devil and Sidney Korshak (2011, miniseries)
- Untitled John DeLorean Biopic (2012)
Actor
- Lydia BaileyLydia BaileyLydia Bailey is a 1952 film directed by Jean Negulesco, based on the historical novel by Kenneth Roberts. It stars Dale Robertson and Anne Francis.-Plot:...
(1952) - Man of a Thousand FacesMan of a Thousand FacesMan of a Thousand Faces is a film detailing the life of silent movie actor Lon Chaney, in which the title role is played by James Cagney.Directed by Joseph Pevney, the film's cast included Dorothy Malone, Jane Greer and Jim Backus...
(1957) - The Sun Also RisesThe Sun Also Rises (1957 film)The Sun Also Rises is a 1957 film adaptation of the Ernest Hemingway novel of the same name, with the screenplay written by Peter Viertel. It starred Tyrone Power, Ava Gardner, Mel Ferrer and Errol Flynn. Much of it was filmed on location in France and Spain in Cinemascope and color by Deluxe...
(1957) - The Fiend Who Walked the WestThe Fiend Who Walked the WestThe Fiend Who Walked the West is a Western based on the 1947 film noir Kiss of Death. The film stars Robert Evans, Hugh O'Brian, Linda Cristal, and Stephen McNally.-External links:*...
(1958) - The Best of EverythingThe Best of EverythingThe Best of Everything is the first novel by Rona Jaffe. It is the story of five young employees of a New York publishing company.-Adaptions:...
(1959) - Cannes ManCannes Man (film)Cannes Man is a 1996 independent comedy film directed and composed by Richard Martini. The film stars Seymour Cassel and Francesco Quinn. The film also features more than 15 famous Hollywood actors including Johnny Depp, Jon Cryer, Benicio del Toro, John Malkovich, Dennis Hopper, Kevin Pollak, Jim...
(1996) - Kid NotoriousKid NotoriousKid Notorious is an animated television series that aired for nine weeks on Comedy Central and is currently running on the UK version of Adult Swim. It starred Hollywood film producer Robert Evans as himself. Episode plots were often bizarre and absurdist in nature, featuring Evans as a James Bond...
(2003, TV series) - In the late 1980s, Evans was the choice for the second Jake alongside Jack NicholsonJack NicholsonJohn Joseph "Jack" Nicholson is an American actor, film director, producer and writer. He is renowned for his often dark portrayals of neurotic characters. Nicholson has been nominated for an Academy Award twelve times, and has won the Academy Award for Best Actor twice: for One Flew Over the...
in The Two JakesThe Two JakesThe Two Jakes is a 1990 American mystery film, and a sequel to the 1974 film Chinatown.Directed by and starring Jack Nicholson, it also features Harvey Keitel, Meg Tilly, Madeleine Stowe, Richard Farnsworth, Frederic Forrest, Pia Gronning, David Keith, Rubén Blades, Tracey Walter and Eli Wallach...
, the sequel to Chinatown, however he was denied the part.
Publications
- The Kid Stays in the PictureThe Kid Stays in the PictureThe Kid Stays in the Picture is the name of a 1994 autobiography by film producer Robert Evans. It is also the name of a 2002 film adaptation of the book directed by Nanette Burstein and Brett Morgen and released by Focus Features and USA Pictures...
(Hyperion Books, 1994). His autobiography, also released as an audio bookAudio bookAn audiobook or audio book is a recording of a text being read. It is not necessarily an exact audio version of a book or magazine.Spoken audio has been available in schools and public libraries and to a lesser extent in music shops since the 1930s. Many spoken word albums were made prior to the...
, read by Evans, and made into a documentary filmDocumentary filmDocumentary films constitute a broad category of nonfictional motion pictures intended to document some aspect of reality, primarily for the purposes of instruction or maintaining a historical record...
in 2002.
External links
- Robert Evans web show on JumpBoxTV
- Life Magazine profile on Robert Evans, published March 7, 1969