Robert Towne

Robert Towne

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).

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Welcome to the Basement

Welcome to the Basement

2012

Screenplay

Ask the Dust

Ask the Dust

2006

Director, Screenplay

Mission: Impossible II

Mission: Impossible II

2000

Screenplay

Without Limits

Without Limits

1998

Writer, Director

Mission: Impossible

Mission: Impossible

1996

Screenplay

Love Affair

Love Affair

1994

Screenplay

The Firm

The Firm

1993

Screenplay

The Two Jakes

The Two Jakes

1990

Writer, Characters

Days of Thunder

Days of Thunder

1990

Screenplay, Story

Tequila Sunrise

Tequila Sunrise

1988

Screenplay, Director

Frantic

Frantic

1988

Additional Writing

Tough Guys Don't Dance

Tough Guys Don't Dance

1987

Additional Writing

The Bedroom Window

The Bedroom Window

1987

Executive Producer

8 Million Ways to Die

8 Million Ways to Die

1986

Additional Writing, Writer

Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes

Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes

1984

Writer

Deal of the Century

Deal of the Century

1983

Additional Writing

Personal Best

Personal Best

1982

Director, Producer, Writer

Heaven Can Wait

Heaven Can Wait

1978

Additional Writing

Shampoo

Shampoo

1975

Writer

The Yakuza

The Yakuza

1974

Screenplay

Chinatown

Chinatown

1974

Writer

The Parallax View

The Parallax View

1974

Additional Writing

The Last Detail

The Last Detail

1973

Screenplay

The New Centurions

The New Centurions

1972

Additional Writing

Cisco Pike

Cisco Pike

1972

Additional Writing

McCabe & Mrs. Miller

McCabe & Mrs. Miller

1971

Additional Writing

Drive, He Said

Drive, He Said

1971

Additional Writing

Villa Rides

Villa Rides

1968

Screenplay

Bonnie and Clyde

Bonnie and Clyde

1967

Additional Writing

The Tomb of Ligeia

The Tomb of Ligeia

1964

Screenplay

The Outer Limits

The Outer Limits

1963

Writer

The Lloyd Bridges Show

The Lloyd Bridges Show

1962

Writer

Last Woman on Earth

Last Woman on Earth

1960

Screenplay

Battle of Britain

Battle of Britain

Screenplay

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