Biography

Growing into his age gracefully, he developed his acting fame into an Oscar-winning career as a director, and producer where he made a name for himself as one of Hollywood’s most respected filmmakers and his record includes Ordinary People (1980),  A River Runs Through It (1992) and Quiz Show (1994)

True to his life-time commitment to environmental and political causes he is an ardent conservationist and environmentalist, a man who stands for social responsibility and political involvement and an artist and businessman who is a staunch supporter of un-compromised creative expression.  He has become a patron saint to independent filmmakers by establishing the Sundance Film Festival and Sundance Institute, a non-profit organization built to assist aspiring filmmakers and theater artists in developing their talent.

Early Life

Born : Charles Robert Redford Jr., on August 18, 1937, in Santa Monica, California.
Father: Charles Robert Redford. Standard oil accountant, born in November 1914 in Rhode Island; died on April 2, 1991 in California; remarried after first wife s death
Half-brother: William Redford. born in June 1956
Mother: Martha Hart born in April 1914; died in May 1955, when Robert was 18 yrs old.
He attended Van Nuys High School in Los Angeles, California, graduated in 1954, and received a baseball scholarship to the University of Colorado, where he was a pitcher,but had a hard time coping with his mothers death and lost the scholarship.

Redford studied at the Pratt Institute of Art in Brooklyn and then travelled to Europe, taking painting classes in Italy and living the painter’s life in Europe for a year. Eventually, he went back to USA, and and took classes in theatrical set design at the American Academy of Dramatic Arts in New York.

Family

Robert and Lola Redford

Redford married Lola Van Wagenen,born in 1940, who dropped out of college to marry Redford on September 12, 1958 but they divorced in 1985
They had four children, one of whom died of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS).
Daughter Shauna Redford, born November 15, 1960, is a painter who married Eric Schlosser on October 5, 1985, in Provo, UT. Her first child, born in January 1991, made Redford a grandfather.
Son James Redford AKA Jamie Redford, a screenwriter, was born May 5, 1962. He has spoken out in favor of organ donations as he underwent two liver transplants in 1993; founded the James Redford Institute for Transplant Awareness in 1995; married in 1988; has two children, son Dylan (born in 1991) and daughter Lena (born in 1996)
Daughter Amy Redford, an actress; was born October 22, 1970. Married photographer Mark Mann on June 25, 2000 in Utah

Robert Redford and Sibylle Szaggars

After his divorce Redford had  relationsships with Kathy O Rear, and Sonia Braga.

Redford married Sibylle Szaggars (51) his longtime partner,on 15th of July 2009. Szaggars is a German abstract artist whose work has been exhibited in many places all over the world.

Carrier highlights

Theatre and television

Redford’s first acting job came in 1959, when the stage manager for the Broadway production of  Tall Story asked him to audition for a small part after another actor left the project. Over the next several years, Redford combined stage work in such Broadway plays as The Highest Tree, (1959) ,  The Iceman Cometh, (1959) and Sunday in New York (1961) but his biggest Broadway success was the role of Paul Bratter, the stuffy newlywed husband of Elizabeth Ashley in Neil Simon’s Barefoot in the Park (1963). He also recreated that stage role in the film version in 1967.

In those years Redford combined the stage work on television and he had a number of guest appearances on popular series like, The Untouchables, Whispering Smith, Perry Mason, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, Route 66, Dr.Kildare, Playhouse 90, Tate,and The Twilight Zone, among others.

He had a  breakhrough TV-role when guest starring role of a Nazi soldier, opposite Charles Laughton, in the final installment of CBS’s Playhouse 90, In the Presence of Mine Enemies(1960) and earned an Emmy nomination as Best Supporting Actor for his performance in The Voice of Charlie Pont (ABC, 1962). One of his last television appearances was on October 7,1963, on the ABC medical drama about psychiatry, Breaking Point.

Films

1960´s

with Paul Newman in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance kid

1962 War Hunt – this was his film acting debut,an anti-war film set during the Korean conflict, co-starring with Sydney Pollack and Tom Skerrit
1963 The Voice of Charlie Pont – aired on Alcoa Premiere (ABC) ; Received Emmy nomination for supporting role
1965 Inside Daisy Clover – first film with Natalie Wood, where he portrayed a bisexual movie star ; Golden Globe Award for : “The Most Promising Newcomer-Male”
1966 The Chase – initial screen teaming with Jane Fonda
1966 This Property Is Condemned – reteamed with Natalie Wood, directed by Sydney Pollack
1967 Barefoot in the Park – recreated stage role of uptight newlywed Paul Bratter in film version of Neil Simons play, now opposite Jane Fonda
1969 Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. Breakthrough screen role as The Sundance Kid, co-starring Paul Newman; directed by George Roy Hill and scripted by William Goldman.The Film won 4 Oscars, 17 another wins and 11 nominations
1969 Producing debut with Downhill Racer -  where Redford served as executive producer and dealt with the American mentality of winnning at any cost
1969 Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here – won 2 BAFTA Film Awards

1970´s

with Paul Newman in The Sting

1970 Little Fauss and Big Halsy -  Redford and Michael J. Pollard as motorcycle racers
1972 The Candidate -  Cast as a Kennedyesque politician, scripted by Oscar-winner Jeremy Larner
1972 The Hot Rock - Played a jewel thief in the comedy , scripted by William Goldman
1972 Jeremiah Johnson - Starred as a frontiersman, directed by Sydney Pollack
1973 The Sting - Reteamed with Paul Newman and director George Roy Hill for the period caper comedy  ; Redford received Best Actor Oscar nomination and the movie received 10 Academy Award nominations  and  won in several major categories, including Best Director and Best Picture
1973 The Way We Were – Starred opposite Barbra Streisand in the romantic drama, helmed by Sydney Pollack
1974 The Great Gatsby – Played the title character in Francis Ford Coppol´s film adaption of F Scott Fitzgerald´s much loved novel, costarring Mia Farrow and Sam Waterson
1975 The Great Waldo Pepper - Reunited with director George Roy Hill and screenwriter William Goldman for the period comedy-drama and played a barnstorming pilot
1976 All the President s Men - Portrayed Washington Post journalist Bob Woodward (to Dustin Hoffman s Carl Bernstein) in the political drama, written by William Goldman
1979 The Electric Horseman -  Reteamed with Jane Fonda in the romantic comedy

1980´s

with Meryl Streep in "Out of Africa"

1980 Directorial debut with Ordinary People which starred America’s Sweetheart Mary Tyler Moore, Donald Sutherland and Timothy Hutton, picked up four Oscars,including one Best Director for Redford. Additionally, Redford nabbed a Golden Globe and a National Board of Review for Best Director, as well as a Directors Guild of America for Outstanding Motion Picture Director
1980 Bruebaker – Played Henry Bruebaker, a Prison Warden of a small prison farm in Arkansas

1984 The Natural – Starred as former golden boy player Roy Hobbs who returns to the majors to give hope to a struggling team in the screen adaptation of Barry Levinson’s entrancing baseball fantasy
1985 Out of Africa -  Portrayed Denys Finch Hatton, a British adventurer who romances author Isak Dinesen (Meryl Streep) in the Oscar-winning Best Picture ; directed by Sydney Pollack
1986 Legal Eagles - Returned to screen comedy as a lawyer
1987 Executive producer on Promised Land, which was fostered by the Sundance Institute
1988 Directed second film, The Milagro Beanfield War

1990´s

1990 Havana - Starred with Lena Olin. Diredted by Sidney Pollack
1992 Directed third feature A River Runs Through It, the adaptation of Norman MacLean s autobiographical novella  ; also produced and did uncredited narration
1992 Executive produced and narrated the documentary Incident at Ogala, directed by Michael Apted

"Sneakers" Phoenix,Aykroyd,Poitier,Redford and Strathairn

1992 Sneakers - was an entertaining comedy/drama with Redford as the leader of a team of rogue security operatives – including Sidney Poitier, Ben Kingsley, River Phoenix and Dan Aykroyd, who tangle with nefarious government types

1993 Executive produced Steven Soderbergh s underrated King of the Hill
1993 Indecent Proposal - Starred opposite Demi Moore and Woody Harrelson as a wealthy man who offers $1 million to a couple for one night with the wife
1994 Directed the period drama Quiz Show , about the 1950s TV quiz show scandals; film received four Academy Award nominations including Best Picture and Best Director
1996 Up Close and Personal - Played a veteran newsman who mentors and romances an rising talent (Michelle Pfeiffer)
1996 Executive producer of She s the One, Edward Burns second film
1998 The Horse Whisperer – marked the first time Redford directed, produced and starred in the same picture. The film, about a horse trainer (Redford) who helps a young rider (Scarlett Johansson) recover from a traumatic injury, received mixed reviews but scored major ticket sales.
1998 Executive produced Edward Burns No Looking Back
1998 Produced A Civil Action, starring John Travolta and Robert Duvall

2000´s

2000 Directed  The Legend of Bagger Vance, a period drama about a Southern golfer and his mysterious caddy starring Will Smith and Matt Damon
2000 Executive produced the well-received festival-screened How to Kill Your Neighbor s Dog
2001 Spy Game – Co-starred with Brad Pitt
2001 The Last Castle - Co-starred with James Gandolfini and Mark Ruffalo
2004 The Clearing -  Cast opposite Helen Mirren in a thriller
2005 An Unfinished Life -  Co-starred with Jennifer Lopez and Morgan Freeman in the Lasse Hallström drama
2006 Voiced the role of Ike the Horse in the feature adaptation of E.B. White s classic novel Charlotte s Web
2007 Lions for Lambs – Directed first film in seven years about America’s role in the Afgahn War and also starred with Tom Cruise and Meryl Streep

In production

2010 Stars  Untitled Jackie Robinson Project where he plays Brooklyn Dodgers general manager Branch Rickey in the The life story of Jackie Robinson and his history-making signing with the Brooklyn Dodgers.

In development

2011 Produces and stars A Walk in the Woods - an adaptation of Bill Bryson’s best-selling 1998 travelogue. Barry Levinson (What Just Happened?, Wag the Dog) will be directing the movie, which will adapt Bryson’s story about his attempt to do the 2,100 mile Appalachian Trail with a recovering alcoholic friend
2011 Directs Against All Enemies – a political drama starring Bruce Willis. A counterterrorism adviser to the past three presidents charges that the Bush administration prioritized Iraq above threats from al Qaeda before and after the September 11, 2001 attacks
2010 Produces, directs and stars  The Company You Keep a thriller about an activist who goes into hiding after his identity is revealed in order to protect his daughter

Environmentalist and Businessman

1969  Bought land in Utah and created Sundance Village, a mountain community dedicated to environmental conservation and art.  Redford named the community after his character in the movie Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid.
1981 Founded Sundance Institute and its film and theater development lab. The nonprofit organization continues to discover and develop independent film and theater artists, as well as aspiring filmmakers
1983 Founded the IRM Institute for Resource Management,  an environmental organization which sponsors conferences on environmental issues
1985 Sundance Film Festival relaunched (former Utah/U.S Film Festival) -  has served as the premiere American showcase for new independent films, attracting nearly 20,000 people every year and launching the careers of a number of talented filmmakers.
Years later, a cable channel and chain of theaters –all bearing the Sundance brand – were launched in 1996 and 2005, respectively.

Robert Redford’s financial and political empire, comprising non-profits Sundance Institute and Sundance Preserve, Inc., and business interests Sundance Channel, Sundance Resort,Sundance Catalog, and Sundance Cinemas is now run under  Redford’s central control group : The Sundance Group, LLC.

Awards

2009 The USC School of Theatre is proud to announce the first annual Robert Redford Award for Engaged Artists. The award will be presented to Mr. Redford at a gala benefit dinner to be held on Thursday, November 5, 2009, at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel. Proceeds will benefit the School of Theatre’s Scholarship Fund.The Robert Redford Award for Engaged Artists has been created to honor those who have distinguished themselves not only in the exemplary quality, skill and innovation of their work,but also in their public commitment to social responsibility, to increasing awareness of global issues and events, and to inspiring and empowering young people
2008 Robert Redford received an honorary Doctorate of Fine Arts from Brown University at the 240th Commencement exercises on May 25
2008 ShoWest Convention, USA – Visionary Award
in December, he received honors at the Kennedy Center for his contributions to American culture. The Honors recipients are recognized for their lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts: whether in dance, music, theater, opera, motion pictures or television
Karlovy Vary International Film Festival  – Special Prize for Outstanding Contribution to World Cinema
2002 Honorary Award – Actor, director, producer, creator of Sundance, inspiration to independent and innovative filmmakers everywhere. (Oscar statuette))
2001 Nashville Film Festival  – Freedom in Film Award
1996 Screen Actors Guild Awards – Life Achievement Award
1995 Received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Bard College
1994 Golden Globes, Cecil B. DeMille Award
1994 Kinema Junpo Awards – Readers’ Choice Award  – Best Foreign Language Film for: A River Runs Through It (1992)
1983 Received an Honorary Degree from University of Colorado, where he attended the in the 1950s
1981 Oscar – Best Director for: Ordinary People (1980)
1981 – Golden Globe Best Director – Motion Picture – for: Ordinary People (1980)
Kansas City Film Critics Circle KCFCC Award – Best Director – for: Ordinary People (1980)
1981 DGA (Directors Guild of America) Award – Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures for: Ordinary People (1980)
Shared with:Ronald L. Schwary (unit production manager) (plaque)Steve Perry (first assistant director) (plaque)Michael Britton (second assistant director) (plaque)
1980 National Board of Review, USA  -  NBR Award Best Director for: Ordinary People (1980)
1978 Golden Globe – Henrietta Award – World Film Favorite – Male
1977 Golden Globe – Henrietta Award – World Film Favorite – Male
1975 Golden Globe – Henrietta Award – World Film Favorite – Male
1974 David di Donatello Awards – Best Foreign Actor (Migliore Attore Straniero) for: The Sting (1973) Tied with Al Pacino for Serpico (1973)
1973 – Golden Apple Awards -  Golden Apple Male Star of the Year
1973 Western Heritage Awards – Bronze Wrangler – Theatrical Motion Picture for: Jeremiah Johnson (1972)Shared with: Joe Wizan (producer) Sydney Pollack (director) John Milius (writer)
Edward Anhalt (writer) Will Geer (actor) Delle Bolton (actor)
1970 BAFTA Film Award  – Best Actor – for: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969),  Tell Them Willie Boy Is Here (1969) and Downhill Racer (1969)
1966 Golden Globe Most Promising Newcomer – Male – for: Inside Daisy Clover (1965)