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Barry Levinson Biography (1942-)

Born April 6, 1942, in Baltimore, MD; son of Irvin (in furniture and appliance business) and Vi (maiden name, Krichinsky) Levinson; married Valerie Curtin(an actress and writer), December, 1977 (some sources cite 1975; divorced, 1982); married Diana Mona Rhodes (an artist); children: (second marriage) Jack, Sam; (stepchildren) Patrick, Michelle (an actress). Addresses: Agent: Jeremy Zimmer, United Talent Agency, 9560 Wilshire Blvd., 5th Floor, Beverly Hills, CA 90212.; Manager: Stephanie Davis, Artists Management Group, 9465Wilshire Blvd., Beverly Hills, CA 90212.; Publicist: Simon Halls, PMK/HBH, 8500 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 700, Beverly Hills, CA 90211.; Contact: c/o Directors Guild of America, 7920 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, CA 90046.

Nationality

American

Gender

Male

Occupation

Director, producer, writer, actor

Birth Details

April 6, 1942

Baltimore, Maryland, United States

Famous Works

• CREDITS
• Film Director
• Diner, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/United Artists, 1982
• The Natural, TriStar, 1984
• Young Sherlock Holmes (also known as Pyramid of Fear), Paramount, 1985
• Tin Men, Buena Vista, 1987
• Good Morning, Vietnam, Buena Vista, 1988
• Rain Man, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/United Artists, 1988
• Avalon, TriStar, 1990
• Bugsy, TriStar, 1991
• Toys, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1992
• Jimmy Hollywood, Paramount, 1994
• Disclosure, Warner Bros., 1994
• Sleepers, Warner Bros., 1996
• Wag the Dog, New Line Cinema, 1997
• Sphere, Warner Bros., 1998
• Liberty Heights, Warner Bros., 1999
• Original Diner Guys (documentary), Baltimore/Spring Creek Productions, 1999
• An Everlasting Piece, DreamWorks, 2000
• Bandits, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 2001
• Film Producer
• (With Mark Johnson) Avalon, TriStar, 1990
• (With Johnson and Warren Beatty) Bugsy, TriStar, 1991
• Toys, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1992
• (With others) Jimmy Hollywood, Paramount, 1994
• (With others) Disclosure, Warner Bros., 1994
• (With others) Sleepers, Warner Bros., 1996
• Donnie Brasco, TriStar, 1997
• Wag the Dog, New Line Cinema, 1997
• Sphere, Warner Bros., 1998
• Home Fries, Warner Bros., 1998
• Analyze This, Warner Bros., 1999
• Liberty Heights, Warner Bros., 1999
• Original Diner Guys (documentary), Baltimore/Spring Creek Productions, 1999
• An Everlasting Piece, DreamWorks, 2000
• Bandits, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, 2001
• Possession, USA Films, 2002
• Film Executive Producer
• Kafka, Miramax, 1991
• The Perfect Storm, Warner Bros., 1999
• Analyze That, Warner Bros., 2002
• Also executive producer, The Incredible Mr. Limpet, Warner Bros.
• Film Appearances
• Executive, Silent Movie, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1976
• Bellboy, High Anxiety, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1978
• Column salesperson, History of the World, Part I, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1981
• (Uncredited) Doctor, Rain Man, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/United Artists,1988
• Director of life story, Jimmy Hollywood, Paramount, 1994
• Dave Garroway, Quiz Show, Buena Vista, 1994
• Original Diner Guys (documentary), Baltimore/Spring Creek Productions, 1999
• Television Work
• Series
• Executive producer, Harry, ABC, 1987
• Editor, Homicide: Life on the Street (also known as H: LOTSand Homicide), NBC, 1993-1996
• (with Tom Fontana) Executive producer, Homicide: Life on the Street (also known as H: LOTS and Homicide), NBC, 1993-1999
• Creator and executive producer, Oz, HBO, 1997
• Executive producer, The Beat, UPN, 2000
• Executive producer, Falcone, CBS, 2000
• Executive producer, Baseball Wives, HBO, 2002
• Television Executive Producer
• Movies
• Rio Diablo, 1993
• (With Chip Diggins), The Second Civil War, HBO, 1997
• Homicide: The Movie, NBC, 2000
• Shot in the Heart, HBO, 2001
• Television Director
• Episodic
• "Gone for Goode," Homicide: Life on the Street (also known as H: LOTS and Homicide), NBC, c. 1993
• The Beat, UPN, 2000
• Also director of "The Gas Man," Homicide: Life on the Street (alsoknown as H: LOTS and Homicide), NBC.
• Television Work
• Other
• Executive producer and director, Diner (pilot), CBS, 1983
• Producer, D.P., 1985
• Executive producer and director, The 20th Century: Yesterday's Tomorrows (special), Showtime, 1999
• Executive producer, American Tragedy (miniseries), CBS, 2000
• Executive producer of Stopwatch: 30 Minutes of Investigative Ticking (special).
• Television Appearances
• Series
• Host, Stand Up Spotlight, VH1, 1993
• Specials
• Himself, Diamonds on the Silver Screen, AMC, 1992
• Inside the Academy Awards, TNT, 1995
• Robbie Robertson: Going Home (also known as Going Home), The Disney Channel, 1995
• Himself, AFI's 100 Years, 100 Laughs: America's Funniest Movies, CBS, 2000
• Himself, Unitas, HBO, 2000
• Narrator, Fiddler on the Roof: 30 Years of Tradition, 2001
• (Uncredited; in archive footage) Himself, Who Is Alan Smithee?, AMC, 2002
• Episodic
• The Lohman and Barkley Show, NBC, 1969
• The Tim Conway Comedy Hour, CBS, 1970
• The Carol Burnett Show, CBS, 1974, 1975
• "Larry's Agent," The Larry Sanders Show, HBO, 1993
• Himself, "The Documentary," Homicide: Life on the Street (also known as H: LOTS and Homicide), NBC, 1996
• Also appeared in an episode of The Directors, Encore.
• WRITINGS
• Screenplays
• (With Michael Miller) Street Girls, 1974
• (With Mel Brooks, Ron Clark, and Rudy De Luca) Silent Movie, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1976
• (With Brooks, Clark, and De Luca) High Anxiety, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1978
• (With Valerie Curtin) ... And Justice for All, Columbia, 1979
• (With Curtin) Inside Moves, Associated Film Distributors, 1980
• (Uncredited) Tootsie (also known as Would I Lie to You?), Columbia, 1982
• Diner, Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/United Artists, 1982, published in Avalon, Tin Men, Diner: Three Screenplays, Atlantic Monthly Press, 1990
• (With Curtin) Best Friends, Warner Bros., 1982
• (With Curtin and Robert Klane) Unfaithfully Yours (adapted from the Preston Sturges film of the same title), Twentieth Century-Fox, 1984
• Tin Men, Buena Vista, 1987, published in Avalon, Tin Men, Diner: Three Screenplays, Atlantic Monthly Press, 1990
• Avalon, TriStar, 1990, published in Avalon, Tin Men, Diner: Three Screenplays, Atlantic Monthly Press, 1990
• (With Curtin) Toys, Twentieth Century-Fox, 1992
• Jimmy Hollywood, Paramount, 1994
• Sleepers (based on a book by Lorenzo Carcaterra), Warner Bros., 1996
• Liberty Heights, Warner Bros., 1999
• Television Series
• Lohman and Barkley Show, NBC, 1969
• The Tim Conway Comedy Hour, CBS, 1970
• The Marty Feldman Comedy Machine, Associated Television, 1971-1972ABC, 1972
• The John Byner Comedy Hour, CBS, 1972
• The Carol Burnett Show, CBS, 1974-1975
• Books
• Avalon, Tin Men, Diner: Three Screenplays, Atlantic Monthly Press,1990
• Levinson on Levinson, edited by David Thompson, Faber & Faber(Winchester, MA), 1992

Further Reference

ADAPTATIONS

• Some episodes of Homicide: Life on the Street were based on ideasor stories by Levinson.

OTHER SOURCES

Periodicals

• Movieline, November, 2001, p. 24
• New York Times, March 11, 1990
• Playboy, March, 1989, pp. 112, 114, 134-138
• Premiere, November, 1996, pp. 59-62
• Starlog, April, 1998