Robert Towne
Writing
Robert Towne (born Robert Bertram Schwartz; November 23, 1934 - July 1, 2024) was an American screenwriter, producer, director and actor. He was part of the New Hollywood wave of filmmaking. He is best known for his Academy Award-winning original screenplay for Roman Polanski's Chinatown (1974), which is widely considered one of the greatest screenplays ever written. He later said it was inspired by a chapter in Carey McWilliams's Southern California Country: An Island on the Land (1946) and a West magazine article on Raymond Chandler's Los Angeles. Towne also wrote the sequel, The Two Jakes (1990); the Hal Ashby comedy-dramas The Last Detail (1973) and Shampoo (1975); and the first two Mission: Impossible films. Towne directed the sports dramas Personal Best (1982) and Without Limits (1998), the crime thriller Tequila Sunrise (1988), and the romantic crime drama Ask the Dust (2006). Description above from the Wikipedia article Robert Towne, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
Known for
Writing25
tvWelcome to the Basement
2012
Screenplay
movieAsk the Dust
2006
Screenplay
movieMission: Impossible II
2000
Screenplay
movieWithout Limits
1998
Writer
movieMission: Impossible
1996
Screenplay
movieLove Affair
1994
Screenplay
movieThe Firm
1993
Screenplay
movieThe Two Jakes
1990
Writer, Characters
movieDays of Thunder
1990
Screenplay, Story
movieTequila Sunrise
1988
Screenplay
moviePersonal Best
1982
Writer
movieShampoo
1975
Writer
movieThe Yakuza
1974
Screenplay
movieChinatown
1974
Writer
movieThe Last Detail
1973
Screenplay
movieThe Godfather
1972
Story Editor
movieVilla Rides
1968
Screenplay
movieThe Tomb of Ligeia
1964
Screenplay
tvThe Outer Limits
1963
Writer
movieLast Woman on Earth
1960
Screenplay
Battle of Britain
Screenplay
Acting22
movieSalinger
2013
Self - Screenwriter
movieSuspect Zero
2004
Professor Dates (uncredited)
Reel Radicals: The Sixties Revolution in Film
2002
Self (uncredited)
tvCadillac Desert
1997
Self - Screenwriter, 'Chinatown'
movieHalloween Monster Bash
1991
Sparks Moran (archive footage)
movieShampoo
1975
Party Guest (uncredited)
movieDrive, He Said
1971
Richard
movieThe Zodiac Killer
1971
Man in Bar #3
movieCreature from the Haunted Sea
1961
Sparks Moran / Agent XK150 / Narrator
movieLast Woman on Earth
1960
Martin Joyce
Crew11
movieFrantic
1988
Additional Writing
movieTough Guys Don't Dance
1987
Additional Writing
movie8 Million Ways to Die
1986
Additional Writing
movieDeal of the Century
1983
Additional Writing
movieHeaven Can Wait
1978
Additional Writing
movieThe Parallax View
1974
Additional Writing
movieThe New Centurions
1972
Additional Writing
movieCisco Pike
1972
Additional Writing
movieMcCabe & Mrs. Miller
1971
Additional Writing
movieDrive, He Said
1971
Additional Writing
movieBonnie and Clyde
1967
Additional Writing
Directing4
movieAsk the Dust
2006
Director
movieWithout Limits
1998
Director
movieTequila Sunrise
1988
Director
moviePersonal Best
1982
Director
Production3
tvMad Men
2007
Consulting Producer
movieThe Bedroom Window
1987
Executive Producer
moviePersonal Best
1982
Producer