27 Facts About Polly Platt

Mary Marr "Polly" Platt was an American film producer, production designer and screenwriter.

Polly Platt was the first female art director accepted into Hollywood's Art Director's Guild.

Polly Platt's father, John, was a colonel in the Judge Advocate General's Corps of the United States Army, while her mother, Vivian, worked in advertising; she had a brother, John.

Polly Platt moved to Germany at the age of six when her father presided over the Dachau Trials.

Polly Platt worked in summer stock theatre as a costume designer in New York and there met Peter Bogdanovich, whom she later married.

Polly Platt co-wrote with him his first movie Targets, conceiving the plot outline of a "Vietnam veteran-turned-sniper", and served as production designer on the film.

Polly Platt repeated the latter role on his film The Last Picture Show, having made the original suggestion to adapt Larry McMurtry's novel and having recommended Cybill Shepherd for her first film role therein.

Polly Platt knew all the departments, on a workmanlike basis, as opposed to most producers who just know things in theory.

Polly Platt was production designer on A Star Is Born.

Polly Platt wrote the screenplay for Pretty Baby, for which she was an associate producer, as well as Good Luck, Miss Wyckoff, and A Map of the World.

Polly Platt wrote the screenplay for the 1995 Academy Award-winning short film Lieberman in Love, based on a short story by W P Kinsella.

Polly Platt was the executive vice president of his production company Gracie Films from 1985 to 1995.

Polly Platt was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Art Direction for Brooks' film Terms of Endearment.

Polly Platt co-produced many of the films he worked on, which Gracie made, including Broadcast News, The War of the Roses and Bottle Rocket, as well as producing Say Anything.

Polly Platt gave Brooks the nine-panel Life in Hell cartoon, "The Los Angeles Way of Death" by cartoonist Matt Groening.

Polly Platt suggested that the two meet and that Brooks produce an animated TV version of Groening's characters; the meeting spawned a series of short cartoons about the Simpson family, which aired as part of The Tracey Ullman Show and later became The Simpsons.

Polly Platt would assume a maternal role in terms of really being there.

Polly Platt was working on a documentary about the filmmaker Roger Corman at the time of her death.

Polly Platt was very involved with the Austin Film Festival up until her death, and mentored many filmmakers through her participation in the annual festival, which is geared toward screenwriting and production skill-sharing.

Polly Platt was married to Philip Klein until his death in a car accident in 1959, eight months after they married, and to director Peter Bogdanovich from 1962 to 1971.

Polly Platt later married prop maker Tony Wade; they remained married until his death in 1985.

Polly Platt was stepmother to his two children, Kelly and Jon.

Polly Platt struggled with alcoholism for more than 25 years.

Polly Platt participated in a 2000 Texasville reunion of some of the cast and crew of The Last Picture Show.

Polly Platt died in Manhattan, on July 27,2011, from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, aged 72.

Polly Platt was survived by her brother John "Jack" Platt, her two daughters Antonia Bogdanovich and Sashy Bogdanovich, her son-in-law Pax Wassermann, and three grandchildren.

Polly Platt was the first female film art director to be accepted into the Art Director's Guild, a membership she required in order to receive credit on studio films.