Michael Ritchie

From Wikipedia the free encyclopedia Michael Brunswick Ritchie November 28 1938 April 16 2001 was an American film director Ritchie was born in Waukesha Wisconsin the son of Patricia née Graney and Benbow Ferguson Ritchie His family later moved to Berkeley California where his father was a professor of experimental psychology at the University of California at Berkeley and his mother was the art and music librarian for the city He attended Berkeley High School before becoming interested in film and was accepted at Harvard University following high school Ritchie attracted attention in his senior year at Harvard in 1960 by directing the original production of the Arthur Kopit play Oh Dad Poor Dad Mammas Hung You in the Closet and Im Feelin So Sad in Cambridge Massachusetts His work on Kopits play led to a job offer from Robert Saudek the producer of the Omnibus television series Ritchie also directed episodes of Profiles in Courage and such TV series as The Man From UNCLE Dr Kildare and Felony Squad prior to making his Hollywood featurefilm debut in 1969 with Downhill Racer His sister Elsie Ritchie acted in two of his films The Candidate and Smile In 1994 Ritchie purchased the haciendastyle house at 12305 Fifth Helena Drive in the Brentwood district of Los Angeles where Marilyn Monroe died in 1962 He bought it for 995000 In 1994 Ritchie moved to Manhattan with his wife Jimmie B Ritchie and daughters Lillian b 1986 and Miriam b 1988 His additional children include a son Steven b 1973 daughters Lauren b 1966 and Jessica b 1973 and two stepchildren Nelly Bly and Billy Bly Ritchie died at age 62 of complications from prostate cancer on April 16 2001 in New York Description above from the Wikipedia article Michael Ritchie film director licensed under CCBYSA full list of contributors on Wikipedia