Mark Rydell, the Oscar-nominated director of 'On Golden Pond,' dies at
97
[August 15, 2026]
By BETH HARRIS
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Mark Rydell, the Oscar-nominated director of the
sentimental blockbuster “On Golden Pond” who worked with such Hollywood
heavyweights as Henry Fonda, Katharine Hepburn, Steve McQueen and John
Wayne, has died. He was 97.
His daughter, Amy Rydell, told The Hollywood Reporter that her father
died Thursday of natural causes at a retirement community for the
entertainment industry in the Woodland Hills section of Los Angeles.
“Hard to put into words how much I loved my dad,” she posted Friday on
her Instagram account. "He was truly one of a kind. Funniest and most
talented person I’ve ever known.”
‘On Golden Pond’ earned 10 Oscar nominations
“On Golden Pond,” which teamed Fonda with Hepburn and his daughter, Jane
Fonda, was nominated for 10 Oscars. Henry Fonda and Hepburn won leading
acting honors and the film won for screenplay, which Ernest Thompson
adapted from his play of the same name. Rydell was nominated for
directing but lost to Warren Beatty for “Reds.”
It earned over $119 million at the box office, making it the
second-highest grossing film of 1981 behind “Raiders of the Lost Ark.”
“On Golden Pond” was Henry Fonda’s final movie role. He starred as
Norman Thayer, an emotionally brittle and distant father who becomes
more accessible at the end of his life after his teenage grandson spends
the summer with him and his wife, Ethel (played by Hepburn), at their
cottage in New England. The film’s story resembled Fonda’s real-life
relationship with daughter Jane, who said working on the movie together
helped resolve some of their issues. The elder Fonda died at age 77
months after winning his only Oscar.
Rydell’s other Oscar-nominated films were “The Fox” in 1967, “The
Reivers” with McQueen in 1969, “Cinderella Liberty” with James Caan and
Marsha Mason in 1973, “The Rose” with Bette Midler in 1979, and “The
River” with Mel Gibson and Sissy Spacek in 1984.
Born Mortimer Harold Rydell on March 23, 1929, in New York City, he
studied with jazz pianist Teddy Wilson at the Julliard School of Music.
During a stint in the Army, he spent two years in Japan developing
entertainment for military personnel. He majored in English and
philosophy at New York University.
Early acting career opposite Steiger, Cassavetes, Mineo
He turned to acting when he won a scholarship to the Neighborhood
Playhouse in New York. Among his early roles were on the CBS soap operas
“The Edge of Night” and “As the World Turns.”
Rydell made his Broadway debut in “Seagulls Over Sorrento” with Rod
Steiger. In 1956, he made his movie acting debut opposite John
Cassavetes and Sal Mineo in Don Siegel’s “Crime In The Streets.”
Among his film acting credits were Robert Altman’s “The Long Goodbye” in
1973 and Woody Allen’s “Hollywood Ending” in 2002.
Rydell moved into directing television, helming episodes of “Mr. Novak,”
“Ben Casey," “I Spy,” “The Wild Wild West,” “The Long, Hot Summer,” “The
Fugitive” and “Gunsmoke.”
He made his feature-film directorial debut with 1967’s “The Fox”
starring Sandy Dennis, and it was a hit.
Two years later, Rydell directed McQueen in the comedy-drama “The
Reivers.”
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Oscar-nominated director Mark Rydell gestures during an
interview at his home in Marina Del Rey, Calif., June 29, 2001. (AP
Photo/Nick Ut,File)
 Teaming with Sydney Pollack
Rydell and Sydney Pollack, who became friends during their acting
days, formed Sanford Productions in 1971. Among their efforts were
the films “Jeremiah Johnson” starring Robert Redford and “Scarecrow”
with Al Pacino and Gene Hackman, which won the Cannes Film
Festival’s top honor, the Palme d’Or.
Rydell directed Wayne in 1972’s “The Cowboys.” He reunited with Caan
for the 1976 flop “Harry and Walter Go to New York.”
He scored a major hit with 1979’s “The Rose,” with Midler in her
Oscar-nominated role as a self-destructive rock star loosely based
on Janis Joplin.
Rydell re-teamed with Caan and Midler in “For the Boys” in 1991, but
it wasn’t successful.
“He was an actor of note before he became a director, and I was so
lucky to have met him when I did; he taught me so much on The Rose
and later on For The Boys,” Midler posted on Instagram. “Two Oscars
nominations both because of him. He was the actor’s whisperer; just
a few words was all it took to understand what was needed. Devoted
to Meisner. So many happy memories.”
TV movies and series among his credits
Rydell directed the pilot of the hit ABC drama “Family” in 1976.
Among his TV movie directing credits were “McBride and Groom,”
“Crime of the Century” with Isabella Rossellini and Stephen Rea, and
“James Dean,” which earned actor James Franco a Golden Globe award.
Rydell also appeared in the movie as Warner Bros. chief Jack Warner.
He directed the movies “Intersection” in 1994 and “Even Money” in
2006.
In 2009, Rydell, Oscar-winning actor Martin Landau and screenwriter
Lyle Kessler taught a film workshop at UCLA. Rydell and Landau were
co-artistic directors of The Actors Studio West, teaching and
coaching actors, writers and directors.
“All great art rests on telling the truth,” Rydell told UCLA’s
student newspaper The Daily Bruin. “The real pursuit of an artist is
to tell the truth.”
Besides his daughter, he is survived by son Christopher. The
siblings who went into acting were from his first marriage to actor
Joanne Linville. He had another son, Alexander, from his second
marriage to producer Esther Rydell.
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