Irwin Winkler

Irwin Winkler (born May 25, 1931) is an American film producer and director. He is the producer or director of over 58 motion pictures, dating back to 1967's Double Trouble, starring Elvis Presley. The fourth film he produced, They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, starring Jane Fonda, was nominated for nine Academy Awards. He won an Oscar for Best Picture for 1976's Rocky. As a producer, he has been nominated for Best Picture for four films: Rocky (1976), Raging Bull (1980), The Right Stuff (1983), and Goodfellas (1990).

Early life and education Winkler was born on May 25, 1931 to a Jewish family in New York City, to Sol and Anna Winkler. Growing up in Coney Island, one of his first jobs was on a bumper ride on the boardwalk. Winkler graduated early from high school and got into New York University, but felt out of place among the older and more mature students, many of whom were former World War II soldiers that had entered university under the G.I. Bill. At the outbreak of the Korean War, he volunteered to join the Army and was stationed in Louisiana for two years.

Early career Winkler's first job after graduating university was at the William Morris talent agency. Among his first clients as an agent were comedians Sammy Shore and Jackie Vernon, though Winkler says of himself he was a "mediocre" agent.

After meeting Robert Chartoff, who managed several comedians, including Jackie Mason, the two set up their own talent management company. One of the "unsuccessful clients" Through another of their clients, Winkler and Chartoff brokered the John Schlesinger film Darling to film producer Joseph E. Levine. This deal led them from talent management to film production. and told the tale of a depressed dying man (Kevin Kline) who funnels his energies into rebuilding the dilapidated beach shack he inherited from his abusive father and, in the process, building bridges between himself and his disaffected son (Hayden Christensen). After this film received critical praise, Winkler re-teamed with Kline for the follow-up De-Lovely (2004), casting the actor as the lead in his biographical film about American composer Cole Porter, which centered on his unique relationship with his wife and muse (Ashley Judd) and was chosen as the closing night film at the 2004 Cannes Film Festival.

While his directorial career would last through 2006, Winkler continued to produce his share of films, including The Shipping News (2001), Enough (2002), the 2014 remake of The Gambler—he'd also produced James Toback's 1974 original—and his further return to the Rocky franchise with Rocky Balboa (2006) and the spin-offs Creed (2015), which was nominated for multiple awards including 6 NAACP Image Awards, winning 4, and Creed II (2018). His work with Scorsese continued on with The Wolf of Wall Street (2013), Silence (2016), and The Irishman (2019) which was Winkler's first collaboration with Netflix. The New York Times wrote: "Winkler looks back fondly on a career producing some of the most successful films of the 20th century."

Personal life Winkler married his wife Margo Winkler in 1959 while still working at WMA in New York. They moved to Los Angeles in 1966. Margo was originally from California and her parents, Irma and Charlie Melson, were former vaudeville performers. 1980 Raging Bull

1983 The Right Stuff

1990 Goodfellas

2003 American Society of Cinematographers Awards Board of Governors Award

2001 Aspen Filmfest Audience Favorite Feature Award Life as a House

2016 Awards Circuit Community Awards Best Motion Picture Silence

2015 Black Reel Awards Outstanding Film Creed

1990 British Academy Film Awards Best Film Goodfellas

1991 Cannes Film Festival Palme d'Or Guilty by Suspicion

2019 Chicago Indie Critics Awards Best Studio Film The Irishman

1989 Chicago International Film Festival Lifetime Achievement Award

2015 Christopher Awards Best Feature Film Creed

1995 Deauville American Film Festival Lifetime Achievement Award

2016 Gold Derby Awards Best Motion Picture Silence

1976

Rocky

1980 Raging Bull 1983 The Right Stuff 1990 Goodfellas

Revolution

Rocky IV 1990 Rocky V

1999 Hollywood Film Awards Outstanding Achievement in Producing

2008 Israel Film Festival Lifetime Achievement Award

1999 Joseph Plateau Awards Joseph Plateau Honorary Award

2006 National Board of Review Awards Career Achievement Award in Producing

2019 Online Film & Television Association Awards Best Picture The Irishman

2002 Palm Springs International Film Festival Lifetime Achievement Award

2016 Producers Guild of America Awards David O. Selznick Achievement Award

1985 Stinkers Bad Movie Awards Worst Picture Revolution

2003 Swiss Film Fund Helvetian Award for Extraordinary Artistic Achievement

Honors For his contribution to the motion picture industry, Winkler has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6801 Hollywood Boulevard. He was also the recipient of the 2017 Producers Guild of America's David O. Selznick Achievement Award for his work in motion pictures and was awarded the Commandeur des Arts et Lettres by France.