28 Facts About Elliott Kastner

Elliott Kastner was an American film producer, whose best known credits include Where Eagles Dare, The Long Goodbye, The Missouri Breaks, and Angel Heart.

Elliott Kastner's father died when he was young, and he was raised by his mother in Harlem.

Elliott Kastner attended the University of Miami and Columbia University.

Elliott Kastner worked in the mail room at the William Morris Agency in New York, becoming a literary agent.

Elliott Kastner moved to Los Angeles and became a talent agent at the Music Corporation of America.

Elliott Kastner worked there for two years before becoming an independent producer.

Elliott Kastner then teamed up with producer Jerry Gershwin to form Winkast Film Productions, based at Pinewood Studios in Buckinghamshire.

Elliott Kastner then got Goldman to write a sequel The Chill, but it was never made.

The movie was a big hit and led to Elliott Kastner adapting several other MacLean stories and working with Burton a number of other times.

Elliott Kastner is famous for his film adaptations of three Raymond Chandler's novels based on the exploits of one of Chandler's most famous creations, Philip Marlowe: The Long Goodbye, Farewell, My Lovely and The Big Sleep.

Elliott Kastner admired Altman's work on The Long Goodbye and wanted to collaborate with him in a production of 92 in the Shade by Tom McGuane, however the two men had a disagreement and the film was directed by McGuane himself.

Elliott Kastner famously got each star to commit by lying and telling them the other one had already signed.

Elliott Kastner was passionate about what he did, and he was a terrific salesman as well.

Elliott Kastner planned to make Nightwork from a novel by Irwin Shaw directed by Frank Perry but the film was not made.

Elliott Kastner independently financed Oxford Blues which he sold to MGM.

Elliott Kastner produced Heat from a novel by William Goldman starring Burt Reynolds.

Robert Altman was going to direct but he and Elliott Kastner clashed and Altman left the project.

Elliott Kastner usually stayed just long enough to blow his nose in your napkin, dispense some wickedly cynical aphorism about the movies and move on.

Elliott Kastner had a financial interest in A Chorus of Disapproval directed by Michael Winner.

Elliott Kastner's career was marked by a number of lawsuits, including with Mickey Rourke and David McClintick, and over the film Frank and Jesse.

Elliott Kastner was sued by Marlon Brando over a proposed musical film version of Treasure Island.

Elliott Kastner was the second husband of the interior designer Tessa Kennedy, with whom he had two children, a son, Dillon and a daughter, Milica.

Elliott Kastner had been introduced to Kennedy by Warren Beatty.

Elliott Kastner was a stepfather to Kennedy's three sons from a previous marriage: film producer Cassian Elwes, artist Damian Elwes and actor Cary Elwes.

Elliott Kastner died of cancer on June 30,2010, in London at the age of 80.

Elliott Kastner excelled in literary adaptations, from popular works such as those of Raymond Chandler and Alistair MacLean to the more esoteric output of such writers as Iris Murdoch, Vladimir Nabokov and Edna O'Brien.

Elliott Kastner favoured tales with strong, single-minded heroes and produced films featuring such actors as Marlon Brando, Paul Newman, Jack Nicholson, Robert Mitchum, Burt Reynolds and Richard Burton.

Elliott Kastner was a producer in all films unless otherwise noted.