Mike Nichols

Mike Nichols

Born: November 6, 1931
Died: November 19, 2014
in Berlin, Germany
Mike Nichols (born Mikhail Igor Peschkowsky; November 6, 1931 – November 19, 2014) was a German-born American film and theatre director, producer, actor and comedian. He was noted for his ability to work across a range of genres and an aptitude for getting the best out of actors regardless of their acting experience. Nichols began his career in the 1950s with the comedy improvisational troupe, The Compass Players, predecessor of The Second City, in Chicago. He then teamed up with his improv partner, Elaine May, to form the comedy duo Nichols and May. Their live improv acts were a hit on Broadway resulting in three albums, with their debut album winning a Grammy Award.

After Nichols and May disbanded their act in 1961, Nichols began directing plays. He soon earned a reputation as a skilled Broadway director with a flair for creating innovative productions and the ability to elicit polished performances from actors. His debut Broadway play was Neil Simon's Barefoot in the Park in 1963, with Robert Redford and Elizabeth Ashley. He next directed Luv in 1964 and in 1965 directed another Neil Simon play, The Odd Couple. Nichols received a Tony Award for each of those plays. Nearly five decades later, he won his sixth Tony Award as best director with a revival of Death of a Salesman in 2012. During his career, he directed or produced over twenty-five Broadway plays.

In 1966, Warner Brothers invited Nichols to direct his first film, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, starring Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. The groundbreaking and acclaimed film led critics to declare Nichols the "new Orson Welles". The film garnered 13 Academy Award nominations, winning five. It was also a box office hit and became the number 1 film of 1966. His next film was The Graduate in 1967, starring then unknown actor Dustin Hoffman, alongside Anne Bancroft and Katharine Ross. The film was another critical and financial success, becoming the highest-grossing film of 1967 and receiving seven Academy Award nominations, winning Nichols the Academy Award for Best Directing. Among the other films he directed were Catch-22 (1970), Carnal Knowledge (1971), Silkwood (1983), Working Girl (1988), Wolf (1994), The Birdcage (1996), Closer (2004), and Charlie Wilson's War (2007).

Along with an Academy Award, Nichols won a Grammy Award (the first for a comedian born outside the United States), four Emmy Awards and nine Tony Awards. He was also a three-time BAFTA Award winner. His other honors included the Lincoln Center Gala Tribute in 1999, the National Medal of Arts in 2001, the Kennedy Center Honors in 2003 and the AFI Life Achievement Award in 2010. His films garnered a total of 42 Academy Award nominations and seven wins.

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Movies for Mike Nichols...

Arthur Miller: Writer
Title: Arthur Miller: Writer
Character: Self (archive footage)
Released: December 8, 2017
Type: Movie
One of the greatest playwrights of the 20th century, Arthur Miller created such celebrated works as Death of a Salesman and The Crucible, which continue to move audiences around the world today. He also made headlines for being targeted by the House Un-American Activities Committee at the height of the McCarthy Era and entering into a tumultuous marriage with Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe. Told from the unique perspective of his daughter, filmmaker Rebecca Miller, Arthur Miller: Writer is an illuminating portrait that combines interviews spanning decades and a wealth of personal archival material, and provides new insights into Miller’s life as an artist and exploring his character in all its complexity.
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Mike Nichols: An American Master
Title: Mike Nichols: An American Master
Character: Self
Released: January 29, 2016
Type: Movie
With charm and wit, Nichols discusses his life and 50-year career as a performer and director.
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Becoming Mike Nichols
Title: Becoming Mike Nichols
Character: Himself
Released: January 28, 2016
Type: Movie
This intimate portrait of director, producer, and improvisational comedy icon Mike Nichols shows his final and historic interviews filmed just months before his death. Director Douglas McGrath documents Nichols’s early life, as he opens up to his friend, director Jack O’Brien, about the storied beginnings of his career.
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Everything Is Copy
Title: Everything Is Copy
Character: Self
Released: September 29, 2015
Type: Movie
A candid portrait of writer/director Nora Ephron, directed by her son, journalist Jacob Bernstein.
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Inventing David Geffen
Title: Inventing David Geffen
Character: Self
Released: November 19, 2012
Type: Movie
Notoriously press and camera-shy, David Geffen reveals himself for the first time in this unflinching portrait of a complex and compelling man. His far-reaching influence - as an agent and manager, record industry mogul, Hollywood and Broadway producer, and billionaire philanthropist - has helped shape American popular culture for the past four decades. This documentary offers a rare insight into the world of the man responsible for launching the early successes of Joni Mitchell, Tom Cruise, and Guns N’ Roses; co-founded DreamWorks; produced Cats and Dreamgirls; and is one of the largest contributors to the fight against AIDS. (SBS AU) Geffen narrates his unorthodox rise from working class Brooklyn boy to billionaire entertainment power broker in extensive interviews. American Masters explores the highs and the lows in Geffen’s professional and personal life through more than 50 new interviews with his friends, colleagues and clients, as well as other media luminaries. (PBS)
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The Madness of Boy George
Title: The Madness of Boy George
Character: Self
Released: October 17, 2006
Type: Movie
Documenting the days and weeks preceding Boy George's appearance in a New York courtroom in June 2006 for cocaine possession and his subsequent sentencing to 5 days community service as a street cleaner by order of the US justice department.
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Wrestling with Angels: Playwright Tony Kushner
Title: Wrestling with Angels: Playwright Tony Kushner
Character: Self
Released: January 15, 2006
Type: Movie
Filmmaker Freida Lee Mock explores the life and work of playwright Tony Kushner. Starting in 2001, when Kushner was mounting the production of his play Homebody/Kabul and running through 2004, as he worked on John Kerry's presidential campaign, got married to Mark Harris, worked with Maurice Sendak, and opened the Broadway musical Caroline, or Change.
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The Rutles 2: Can't Buy Me Lunch
Title: The Rutles 2: Can't Buy Me Lunch
Character: Self - Interviewee
Released: August 16, 2003
Type: Movie
Twenty-three years after the release of the original Beatles mockumentary, 'The Rutles: All You Need Is Cash', famous artists, actors and musicians speak out on how The Rutles influenced them.
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Love & Loyalty: The Making of 'The Remains of the Day'
Title: Love & Loyalty: The Making of 'The Remains of the Day'
Character: Self
Released: October 22, 2001
Type: Movie
The filmmakers and lead actors of The Remains of the Day (1993) discuss how they came to make the film, and the subtle power of its execution.
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The Designated Mourner
Title: The Designated Mourner
Character: Jack
Released: May 23, 1997
Type: Movie
Jack and Judy are husband and wife, and Howard is Judy's father. They live in some fictional undemocratic and repressive country, and tell us a story about their lives, mostly from Jack's point of view.
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Nichols and May: Take Two
Title: Nichols and May: Take Two
Character: Self (archive footage)
Released: May 22, 1996
Type: Movie
A documentary made for the PBS program American Masters about the comedy team Nichols and May.
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Richard Avedon: Darkness and Light
Title: Richard Avedon: Darkness and Light
Character: Self
Released: January 24, 1996
Type: Movie
Richard Avedon was one of the great geniuses of 20th century photography, famous for his fashion photography done for the likes of Vogue, Versace, and Armani, and equally famous for his black and white portraits of American people, both famous and unknown.
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Title: Inside the Actors Studio
Character: Self
Released: August 14, 1994
Type: TV
James Lipton sits down with some of the world's most accomplished actors and directors for penetrating, fascinating interviews.
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In from the Cold? A Portrait of Richard Burton
Title: In from the Cold? A Portrait of Richard Burton
Character: Self
Released: September 20, 1988
Type: Movie
Tony Palmer's award-winning feature-length documentary profile of Richard Burton.
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Title: American Masters
Character: Self
Released: June 23, 1986
Type: TV
American Masters is a PBS television series which produces biographies on enduring writers, musicians, visual and performing artists, dramatists, filmmakers, and others who have left an indelible impression on the cultural landscape of the United States.
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Bugs Bunny/Looney Tunes All-Star 50th Anniversary
Title: Bugs Bunny/Looney Tunes All-Star 50th Anniversary
Character: Self
Released: January 14, 1986
Type: Movie
Celebrities are interviewed about the social and working lives of Bugs, Daffy, Porky and the rest of the Looney Tunes.
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Title: The Kennedy Center Honors
Character: Self
Released: December 28, 1978
Type: TV
The Kennedy Center Honors is an annual honor given to those in the performing arts for their lifetime of contributions to American culture.
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King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis
Title: King: A Filmed Record... Montgomery to Memphis
Character: Self (archive footage)
Released: March 24, 1970
Type: Movie
Constructed from a wealth of archival footage, the documentary follows Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. from 1955 to 1968, in his rise from regional activist to world-renowned leader of the Civil Rights movement. Rare footage of King's speeches, protests, and arrests are interspersed with scenes of other high-profile supporters and opponents of the cause, punctuated by heartfelt testimonials by some of Hollywood's biggest stars.
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Bach to Bach
Title: Bach to Bach
Character: Man
Released: September 23, 1967
Type: Movie
A Bach recording plays in a New York apartment, while off-screen a man and a woman in bed together for the first time engage in pseudo-intellectual conversation. Based on the Nichols and May sketch.
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Title: The Merv Griffin Show
Character: Self
Released: October 1, 1962
Type: TV
The Merv Griffin Show is an American television talk show, starring Merv Griffin. The series ran from October 1, 1962 to March 29, 1963 on NBC, September 20, 1965 to August 15, 1969 in first-run syndication, from August 18, 1969 to February 11, 1972 at 11:30 PM ET weeknights on CBS and again in first-run syndication from February 14, 1972 to September 5, 1986.
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The Fabulous Fifties
Title: The Fabulous Fifties
Character: Self
Released: January 22, 1960
Type: Movie
The Fabulous Fifties, CBS, combines style, humor, and imagination. It was rich in touches of quality showmanship and equally rich in the memories of a decade which it revived. In recognition, the Peabody Television Award for entertainment is presented to The Fabulous Fifties, with a special word of praise for producer Leland Hayward and the top talent which appeared in this memorable entertainment special*. *The two-hour special featured comic takes and commentary about the previous decade by, among others, Rex Harrison and Julie Andrews, Mike Nichols and Elaine May, Dick Van Dyke, Shelley Berman, Betty Comden and Adolph Green, Jackie Gleason, Eric Severeid and Henry Fonda.
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Title: The Big Party
Character: Self
Released: October 8, 1959
Type: TV
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Title: Tonight Starring Jack Paar
Character: Self
Released: July 29, 1957
Type: TV
Tonight Starring Jack Paar is an American talk show hosted by Jack Paar under The Tonight Show franchise from 1957 to 1962. It originally aired during late-night. During most of its run it was broadcast from Studio 6B inside the RCA Building. The same studio would also host early episodes of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson, and Late Night with Jimmy Fallon. Its theme song was an instrumental version of "Everything's Coming Up Roses", and the closing theme was "So Until I See You" by Al Lerner.
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Title: The Dinah Shore Chevy Show
Character: Self
Released: October 5, 1956
Type: TV
The Dinah Shore Chevy Show is an American variety series hosted by Dinah Shore, and broadcast on NBC from October 1956 to June 1963. The series was sponsored by the Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors and its theme song, sung by Shore, was "See the U.S.A. in Your Chevrolet", which continued to be used in Chevrolet advertising for several more years after the cancellation of the show.
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Title: The Steve Allen Show
Character: Self - Comedian
Released: June 24, 1956
Type: TV
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Title: Tony Awards
Character: Self - Nominee
Released: April 1, 1956
Type: TV
The Antoinette Perry Award for Excellence in Theatre, more commonly known as a Tony Award, recognizes achievement in live Broadway theatre. The awards are presented by the American Theatre Wing and The Broadway League at an annual ceremony in New York City. The awards are given for Broadway productions and performances, and an award is given for regional theatre.
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Title: The Oscars
Character: Self
Released: March 19, 1953
Type: TV
An annual American awards ceremony honoring cinematic achievements in the film industry. The various category winners are awarded a copy of a statuette, officially the Academy Award of Merit, that is better known by its nickname Oscar.
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Title: Omnibus
Released: November 9, 1952
Type: TV
Omnibus is an American, commercially sponsored, educational television series.
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Title: What's My Line?
Character: Self - Mystery Guest
Released: February 2, 1950
Type: TV
Four panelists must determine guests' occupations - and, in the case of famous guests, while blindfolded, their identity - by asking only "yes" or "no" questions.