Ivan Reitman, a celebrated producer and director behind some of Hollywood\u2019s biggest comedies, has died. He was 75. Reitman died peacefully in his sleep Saturday night at his home in Montecito, California, his family told The Associated Press. Reitman was behind some of the 80s and 90s most enduring comedic films, including 1984\u2019s \u201cGhostbusters,\u201d which he produced and directed.<\/p>\n
The movie was a major success and started a franchise that spanned decades, including last year\u2019s \u201cGhostbusters: Afterlife,\u201d directed by his son, Jason Reitman. Reitman directed other classics like \u201cNational Lampoon\u2019s Animal House,\u201d starring John Belushi, and \u201cStripes,\u201d starring Bill Murray, John Candy, and Harold Ramis. Reitman\u2019s directing credits also include \u201cTwins,\u201d \u201cKindergarten Cop,\u201d and \u201cJunior,\u201d all starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, and \u201cDave,\u201d starring Kevin Kline.<\/p>\n
He served as executive producer on 1992\u2019s family-friendly hit \u201cBeethoven,\u201d the sequel \u201cBeethoven\u2019s 2nd,\u201d and the 1994 TV series featuring the cherished St. Bernard. He also produced \u201cSpace Jam\u201d in 1996, with NBA legend Michael Jordan and Bugs Bunny teaming up on the court, and the 2021 version starring LeBron James. Reitman helped produce 2009\u2019s Oscar-nominated \u201cUp In The Air,\u201d which starred George Clooney and Anna Kendrick and was co-written and directed by Jason Reitman.<\/p>\n
Reitman was born in Kom\u00e1rno, Czechoslovakia, in 1946, where his father owned the country\u2019s largest vinegar factory. His mother had survived Auschwitz, and his father was in the resistance. When the communists began imprisoning capitalists after the war, the Reitmans decided to escape when Reitman was only 4.<\/p>\n
The Reitmans joined a relative in Toronto, where Ivan displayed his show biz inclinations: starting a puppet theater, entertaining at summer camps, playing coffee houses with a folk music group. He studied music and drama at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario, and started making movie shorts. With friends and $12,000, Reitman made a nine-day movie, \u201cCannibal Girls,\u201d which American International agreed to release.<\/p>\n
He produced on a $500 budget a weekly TV revue, \u201cGreed,\u201d with Dan Aykroyd. He became associated with the Lampoon group in its off-Broadway revue that featured John Belushi, Gilda Radner, and Bill Murray. That soon led to \u201cAnimal House.\u201d Reitman seized the moment after \u201cAnimal House\u2019s\u201d massive success and raised money to direct \u201cMeatballs,\u201d which would be tamer than the hard-R \u201cAnimal House.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tom Rothman, Chairman and CEO of Sony Pictures Motion Picture Group, was quoted in a tweet from the official \u201cGhostbusters\u201d Twitter account saying, \u201cTonight, the lady with the torch weeps, as do all of us at Columbia, and film lovers around the world. Ivan Reitman was an inseparable part of this studio\u2019s legacy, but more than that, he was a friend. A great talent and an even finer man, he will be dearly missed. We send his family all our condolences.\u201d<\/p>\n
In a joint statement, his children Jason, Caroline, and Catherine said, \u201cOur family is grieving the unexpected loss of a husband, father, and grandfather who taught us to always seek the magic in life. We take comfort that his work as a filmmaker brought laughter and happiness to countless others around the world. While we mourn privately, we hope those who knew him through his films will remember him always.”<\/p>\n
In an interview about the latest \u201cGhostbusters\u201d reboot, Reitman said that he always took comedy and the power of laughter seriously. He went on to say how hard comedy is, but no one ever gives the genre respect. Thanks to the work of Ivan Reitman, people will be laughing for generations to come. He leaves behind his wife, Genevieve, and his children, Jason, Catherine, and Caroline.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Ivan Reitman, a celebrated producer and director behind some of Hollywood\u2019s biggest comedies, has died. He was 75. Reitman died peacefully in his sleep Saturday night at his home in Montecito, California, his family told The Associated Press. Reitman was behind some of the 80s and 90s most enduring comedic films, including 1984\u2019s \u201cGhostbusters,\u201d which…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":657,"featured_media":1513,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[122],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1504","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-entertainment"],"yoast_head":"\n