Garry Marshall biography

Synopsis

Profile

Director, writer, producer, actor. Born Garry Kent Masciarelli on November 13, 1934 in the Bronx, New York. The son of an industrial filmmaker and a dance instructor, Marshall majored in journalism at Northwestern University and served a stint in the army before becoming a reporter for the New York Daily News. During the course of his extensive career he's produced many iconic and beloved television series, such as Happy Days and The Odd Couple and directed films such as Pretty Woman.

Marshall moved to Los Angeles in 1961 where he teamed up with writer Jerry Belson. Together, they wrote episodes for The Dick Van Dyke Show and The Lucy Show. In 1970, Marshall produced the sit-com The Odd Couple, based on a popular Neil Simon play and starring Jack Klugman and Tony Randall. He reached the height of his career as a television producer during the '70s, with such hits as Laverne and Shirley (a Happy Days spin-off starring sister Penny Marshall) and Mork and Mindy.

Marshall also turned his talents toward the big screen. In 1968, he co-produced and co-wrote his first film, How Sweet It Is!. He made his directorial feature film debut in 1982 with Young Doctors in Love, a comic look at daytime serials. While some Marshall-directed films enjoyed box office success, such as the Goldie Hawn/Kurt Russell comedy Overboard and the Bette Midler/Barbara Hershey melodrama Beaches, none was as huge a hit as Pretty Woman. The Cinderella story of a young prostitute who captures the heart of a wealthy billionaire catapulted Julia Roberts to stardom in 1990. Following its tremendous success, Marshall tried his hand at a serious drama with Frankie and Johnny in 1991 starring Al Pacino and Michelle Pfeiffer, with lukewarm reviews. Since then, Marshall's films have tended more toward sentimental and straight dramas such as The Twilight of the Golds in 1997 and The Other Sister in 1999. Marshall returned to comedy -- and to his teaming of Julia Roberts and Richard Gere -- in 1999 with Runaway Bride. In 2003, he will direct John Corbett, Joan Cusack and Kate Hudson in Raising Helen, the story of a single woman forced to take care of her sister's three children after a car accident.

In front of the camera, Marshall has occasionally appeared in films and television shows alike. During the mid-'90s, many TV audiences came to recognize him for playing Candice Bergen's ratings-crazy boss, Stan Lansing, on Murphy Brown.

Throughout his career, Marshall has received numerous awards, including the David Susskind Television Lifetime Achievement Award in 1998 and the