In Remembrance: Jack Brodsky

     Jack Brodsky, the former publicist turned producer of films such as Romancing The Stone and Woody Allen’s Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Sex died February 18, 2003 of a heart attack. He was 69.

     Born in Brooklyn in 1932, Brodsky was first hired in 1957 to work for Charles Einfield, head of Warner Brothers advertising and publicity at the time. His experiences working on the troubled 1963 production of Cleopatra inspired him to write the book The Cleopatra Papers with fellow publicist Nathan Weiss.

     Brodsky’s first film as a producer was Alan Arkin’s 1971 dark comedy Little Murders. He followed that with Woody Allen’s Everything You Wanted To Know About Sex in 1972 and Summer Wishes, Winter Dreams in 1973. Summer Wishes would win its star Joanne Woodward that year’s New York Film Critics’ Best Actress Award. He also produced the romantic action comedy Romancing the Stone (1984) and its sequel Jewel of the Nile (1985).

     In addition to working as an executive at Filmways, Columbia, Morgan Creek and Rastar, he produced 1991’s King Ralph and 2001’s Black Knight. His last film was Daddy Day Care with Eddie Murphy, which is set for release later this year.