Robert Towne

Robert Towne (born Robert Bertram Schwartz; November 23, 1934 – July 1, 2024) was an American screenwriter and director. He started writing films for Roger Corman, including ''The Tomb of Ligeia'' in 1964, and was later part of the New Hollywood wave of filmmaking.

Towne wrote and won the Academy Award-winning original screenplay for Roman Polanski's ''Chinatown'' (1974); starring Jack Nicholson, widely considered one of the greatest screenplays ever written, as well as its sequel, ''The Two Jakes'' (1990). For Hal Ashby, he penned the dramedies ''The Last Detail'' (1973) and ''Shampoo'' (1975). He collaborated with Tom Cruise on the films ''Days of Thunder'' (1990), ''The Firm'' (1993) and the first two installments of the ''Mission: Impossible'' franchise (1996, 2000).

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). Provided by Wikipedia