Robert Downey Sr.
Robert Downey Sr. (born June 24, 1936 as Robert John Elias in New York City , † July 7, 2021 ) was an American director , screenwriter and actor .
Career
Downey initially did his military service, playing baseball and writing pieces for off-off Broadway productions. At the age of 22 he entered the film industry. His first steps as a screenwriter and director were low-budget productions. The first Downey film to hit major cinemas was Putney Swope in 1969 . The New York Magazine had the satire in the top 10 of their film list for years.
For American television, Downey directed the play Sticks and Bones , which, like his surrealist film Greaser's Palace, led to heated controversy. He also directed three episodes of the mystery series The Twilight Zone for television , starred in another series contribution and appeared in the court series Matlock .
Downey was known for his irreverent, biting sense of humor. He has appeared several times on popular talk shows such as those by Johnny Carson and Dick Cavett and has often hosted film festivals in the United States.
Private life
Downey was married in his first marriage from 1962 to 1975 with Elsie Downey (1934-2014), with whom he has a son, the actor Robert Downey Jr. and a daughter, the actress Allyson Downey. In his second marriage, he was married from 1991 to his colleague Laura Ernst (1957-1994), who died of the consequences of ALS . In 1998 he married Rosemary Rogers, with whom he lived in New York City . Downey Sr. died in July 2021 at the age of 85 of complications from Parkinson's disease .
Filmography (selection)
as director:
- 1961: Balls Bluff (short film)
- 1964: A Touch of Greatness
- 1964: Babo 73
- 1965: Sweet Smell of Sex
- 1966: Chafed Elbows
- 1968: No More Excuses
- 1969: Putney Swope
- 1970: Pound
- 1972: Greaser's Palace
- 1973: Sticks and Bones
- 1975: moment to moment
- 1980: Up the Academy
- 1986: America
- 1988: Rented Lips
- 1991: Too Much Sun
- 1997: Hugo Pool
- 2005: Rittenhouse Square
as an actor
- 1985: Live and Die in LA (To Live and Die in LA)
- 1988: Johnny be Good
- 1994: Julius Caesar Superstar (Hail Caesar)
- 1997: Boogie Nights
- 1999: Magnolia
- 2004: From Other Worlds
- 2011: Temporary gangster (Tower Heist)
Web links
- Robert Downey Sr. in the Internet Movie Database (English)
Individual evidence
- ^ A b Carmel Dagan: Robert Downey Sr., Director and Father of Actor Robert Downey Jr., Dies at 85. In: Variety. July 7, 2021, accessed July 7, 2021 .
- ^ Wheeler Winston Dixon: Robert Downey Sr. In: Gerald Duchovnay (Ed.): Film Voices: Interviews from Post Script. Suny, Albany (New York), 2012, ISBN 1-4237-3998-1 , p. 131.
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Downey, Robert Sr. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Elias, Robert John (full name) |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American director, screenwriter and film actor |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 24, 1936 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | New York City |
| DATE OF DEATH | July 7, 2021 |
| PLACE OF DEATH | New York City |