Robert Downey Sr.
Robert Downey Sr. | |
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File:Robert John Downey Sr.jpg | |
Born | Robert Elias Jr. June 24, 1936[1] New York City, U.S.[1] |
Died | Script error: The function "death_date_and_age" does not exist. New York City, U.S |
Occupation | Actor, director, producer, writer, cinematographer |
Years active | 1953–2013 |
Spouse(s) |
|
Children | 2; including Robert Jr. |
Parent(s) | Robert Elias Sr. Elizabeth McLauchlen |
Robert John Downey Sr. (born Robert Elias Jr.; June 24, 1936 – July 7, 2021) was an American actor, director, producer, writer, cinematographer, and the father of actor Robert Downey Jr. He is known for having written and directed the underground film Putney Swope, a satire on the New York Madison Avenue advertising world. According to film scholar Wheeler Winston Dixon, Downey Sr.'s films during the 1960s were "strictly take-no-prisoners affairs, with minimal budgets and outrageous satire, effectively pushing forward the countercultural agenda of the day."[3]
Early life
Robert John Downey Sr. was born in Manhattan, New York City, the son of Elizabeth (née McLauchlen), a model, and Robert Elias Sr., who worked in management of motels and restaurants.[1] His paternal grandparents were Lithuanian Jews,[4] while his mother was of half Irish and half Hungarian-Jewish ancestry.[5][6][7][8][9] Downey was born Robert Elias Jr., and later changed his surname for his stepfather, James Downey, when he wanted to enlist in the United States Army, but was underage at the time.[10][9]
Career
Robert Downey Sr. initially made his mark creating basement budget, independent films aligning with the Absurdist movement, coming of age in counterculture anti-establishment 1960s America. His work in the late 1960s and 1970s was quintessential anti-establishment, reflecting the nonconformity popularized by larger counterculture movements and given impetus by new freedoms in films, such as the breakdown of codes on censorship. In keeping with the underground tradition, his 1970s films were independently made on shoestring budgets and were relatively obscure in the Absurdist movement, finding culture notoriety.[11]
In 1961, working with the film editor Fred von Bernewitz, he began writing and directing low-budget 16mm films that 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).[12] His last film was Rittenhouse Square (2005), a documentary capturing life in a Philadelphia park.[13]
Downey's films were often family affairs. His first wife, Elsie, appears in four of his movies (Chafed Elbows, Pound, Greaser's Palace, Moment to Moment), as well as co-writing one (Moment to Moment). Daughter Allyson and son Robert Jr. each made their film debuts in the 1970 absurdist comedy Pound at the ages of 7 and 5, respectively; Allyson would appear in one more film by her father, Up the Academy. Robert Jr.'s lengthy acting résumé includes appearances in eight films directed by his father (Pound, Greaser's Palace, Moment to Moment, Up the Academy, America, Rented Lips, Too Much Sun, Hugo Pool), as well as two acting appearances in movies where his father was also an actor (Johnny Be Good, Hail Caesar).[citation needed]
Personal life
Downey was married three times. His first marriage was to actress Elsie Ann Downey (née Ford) (1934–2014), with whom he had two children: actress-writer Allyson Downey (born 1963) and actor Robert Downey Jr. (born 1965). The marriage ended in divorce in 1975. His second marriage, to actress-writer Laura Ernst, ended with her January 27, 1994 death from Lou Gehrig's disease. In 1998 he married his third wife, Rosemary Rogers, author of Random House bestseller Saints Preserve Us! and seven other books. They lived in New York City.[14]
Downey Sr. died in his sleep at his residence in New York City on July 7, 2021. He was 85.[15]
Filmography
Year | Film | Role | Credit | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|
1953 | The American Road[16] | Cinematographer | Short film | |
1961 | Balls Bluff[17] | Civil War Union soldier | Director, writer, and producer | Short film |
1964 | A Touch of Greatness[18] | Director, producer, and cinematographer | Documentary | |
1964 | Babo 73[18][19] | Director, writer, and producer | ||
1965 | Sweet Smell of Sex[19] | Director, writer, and cinematographer | ||
1966 | Chafed Elbows[18][19] | Director, writer, and producer | ||
1966 | Literature Au-Go-Go | Cinematographer and editor | ||
1968 | No More Excuses[18][19] | Pvt. Stewart Thompson | Director, writer, and producer | |
1969 | Putney Swope[18][19] | Director and writer | Voice, uncredited | |
1969 | Naughty Nurse | Desk Clerk | Short film | |
1970 | Pound[18][19] | Director and writer | ||
1971 | You've Got to Walk It Like You Talk It or You'll Lose That Beat[19] | Head of Ad Agency | ||
1971 | Is There Sex After Death?[17][19] | Himself | Mockumentary and mondo film | |
1971 | Cold Turkey[19] | Second unit director | ||
1972 | Greaser's Palace[18][19] | Director and writer | ||
1973 | Sticks and Bones[17] | Director and writer | Television film | |
1975 | Moment to Moment[18][20] | Director and writer | Retitled Two Tons of Turquoise to Taos Tonight |
|
1980 | Up the Academy[18][19] | Director | ||
1980 | The Gong Show Movie[18][19] | Co-writer | ||
1985 | To Live and Die in L.A.[18][19] | Thomas Bateman | ||
1985–1986 | The Twilight Zone | Mr. Miller | Director | Directed 3 episodes acted in segment: "Wordplay" |
1986 | America[18][19] | Director and co-writer | ||
1986 | Matlock[18] | Judge Warren Anderson | Episode: "Judge Warren Anderson" | |
1988 | Rented Lips[18][19] | Director | ||
1988 | Moving Target[18][19] | Weinberg | Television film | |
1988 | Johnny Be Good[19][21] | NCAA Investigator Floyd Gondoli | ||
1988–1989 | 1st & Ten | Mike McDonald / Reporter #4 / Reporter / Sports Writer |
4 episodes | |
1991 | Too Much Sun[18][19] | Director and co-writer | ||
1993 | Tales of the City[17][19] | Edgar's Doctor | Miniseries; 1 episode | |
1994 | Hail Caesar | Butler | ||
1996 | Sunchaser[17][20] | Telephone voices | ||
1997 | Hugo Pool[18][21] | Director and co-writer | ||
1997 | Boogie Nights[17][19] | Burt | ||
1999 | Magnolia[17][19] | WDKK Show Director | ||
2000 | The Family Man[17][19] | Man in House | ||
2004 | From Other Worlds[18][19] | Baker | ||
2005 | Rittenhouse Square[18][21] | Director | Documentary | |
2011 | Tower Heist[17][19] | Judge Ramos |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Wheeler Winston Dixon, Rutgers University Press, July 11, 2007, Film Talk: Directors at Work, Retrieved November 10, 2014 (see page xi Introduction paragraph 3), ISBN 978-0-8135-4077-1
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Robert Downey Jr. – Inside The Actors Studio Pt. 1 on YouTube
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ 17.0 17.1 17.2 17.3 17.4 17.5 17.6 17.7 17.8 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 18.00 18.01 18.02 18.03 18.04 18.05 18.06 18.07 18.08 18.09 18.10 18.11 18.12 18.13 18.14 18.15 18.16 18.17 18.18 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 19.00 19.01 19.02 19.03 19.04 19.05 19.06 19.07 19.08 19.09 19.10 19.11 19.12 19.13 19.14 19.15 19.16 19.17 19.18 19.19 19.20 19.21 19.22 19.23 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
- Articles with short description
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- 1935 births
- 2021 deaths
- 20th-century American male actors
- 21st-century American male actors
- American film directors
- American male film actors
- American male television actors
- American people of Irish descent
- American people of Lithuanian-Jewish descent
- Male actors from New York (state)
- American people of Hungarian-Jewish descent
- Ashkenazi Jews
- People from Manhattan