Ted Demme

Ted Demme
Born Edward Kern Demme[1]
(1963-10-26)October 26, 1963
New York, New York
Died January 13, 2002(2002-01-13) (aged 38)
Santa Monica, California
Occupation Director, producer, actor
Years active 1988–2002
Spouse(s) Amanda Demme (1994–2002)
Children 2

Edward Kern "Ted" Demme[2] (October 26, 1963 – January 13, 2002) was an American film director and producer.[3]

Biography

Early life and career

Demme was born in New York City, the son of Gail (Kern) and Frederick Rogers Demme.[4] He grew up in Rockville Centre on Long Island, New York and attended South Side Senior High School. He graduated from SUNY-Cortland in 1985. His media career likely began with a radio show at WSUC-FM (SUNY-Cortland) in Cortland, New York, the show was a mix of comedy and talk radio with the usual sidekick, as well as some music and was widely listened to on and off campus.

Demme was the nephew of film producer and director Jonathan Demme.[5] His career had modest beginnings—starting as a production assistant at MTV, he later became a producer in the On-Air Promotions Department and created the cable network's seminal hip-hop show Yo! MTV Raps and directed other projects for them, including the infamous black-and-white rants starring then-unknown chain-smoking comedian Denis Leary.

Over the course of his career, he established a group of actors that he chose to work with on more than one occasion. The most frequently used of these was Denis Leary, who he directed as a lead or star in No Cure for Cancer, The Ref, Denis Leary: Lock 'n Load, and Monument Ave. Leary also produced the 2001 crime drama film Blow which starred Johnny Depp as George Jung and was directed by Demme. He directed Eddie Murphy in the 1999 film Life. Other actors he frequently used included:

Personal life

Demme was married to Amanda Scheer, with whom he had two children.[2] Scheer later opened several popular Los Angeles bars, including Teddy's at the Roosevelt Hotel, named in honor of her late husband.[6]

Death

On Sunday, January 13, 2002, while playing a celebrity basketball game, Demme collapsed and died of a heart attack which may have been related to cocaine later found in his system during an autopsy.[7][8] Actor Michael Rapaport was one of the participants in the game, and missed a taping of the IFC television series Dinner for Five, as discussed on season 1 episode 5 and season 1 episode 7 of that series.

He was cremated, and his ashes were given to his family.

Tributes

Much of one edition of the IFC program Dinner for Five was given over to a description of Demme's last night and fond reminiscences about his life, mostly by Denis Leary and the show's host Jon Favreau. This touched on Demme's being a fan of the Green Bay Packers and his fondness for playing practical jokes.

At the 2002 Golden Globe awards show, one week following Demme's death, Kevin Spacey wore a picture of Demme on his suit jacket.[9] He was also in the 74th Academy Awards In Memoriam tribute that was also presented by Kevin Spacey.

His uncle Jonathan Demme's remake of Charade, The Truth About Charlie, was dedicated in his memory.

The 2003 album Blackberry Belle, by The Twilight Singers led by Greg Dulli, was written in tribute to director Ted Demme, Dulli's close friend. Dulli had been working on another project, titled Amber Headlights (which would later see the light of day in 2005), but abandoned those sessions due to Demme's death. The recordings which followed, fueled in part by the memory of Demme, resulted in Blackberry Belle.

The 2002 film Punch-Drunk Love, written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson is dedicated to Demme: "Boom. Bang. Larrabee. 91 Hunjee. Hi there. Bye there. For TD."

Filmography

Actor

Director

Producer

  • Yo! MTV Raps (1988, Unknown episodes)
  • Hangin' w/MTV (1992, Executive producer)
  • Monument Ave. (1998)
  • Rounders (1998)
  • Tumbleweeds (1999, Executive producer)
  • A Lesson Before Dying (1999, Executive producer)
  • Action (1 episode, Executive producer, 1999)
  • Blow (2001)
  • A Decade Under the Influence (2003)

Awards and nominations

Year Award Result Category Film
1996 San Sebastián International Film Festival Nominated Golden Shell Beautiful Girls
1999 Emmy Award Won Outstanding Made for Television Movie A Lesson Before Dying (Shared with Robert Benedetti, Ellen Krass, and Joel Stillerman)
2001 Nominated Outstanding Nonfiction Special A Decade Under the Influence (Shared with Alison Palmer Bourke, Caroline Kaplan, Jerry Kupfer, Gini Reticker, and Jonathan Sehring)
2001 Karlovy Vary International Film Festival Nominated Crystal Globe Blow
2003 National Board of Review of Motion Pictures Nominated William K. Everson Film History Award A Decade Under the Influence (Shared with Richard LaGravenese)
2003 Sundance Film Festival Nominated Grand Jury Prize A Decade Under the Influence (Shared with Richard LaGravenese)

Rock musician Greg Dulli wrote The Twilight Singers' 2003 album Blackberry Belle in Demme's memory.

References

  1. ↑ Instantcheckmate.com
  2. 1 2 "Ted Demme". London: The Independent. January 17, 2002. Retrieved November 22, 2008.
  3. ↑ "Ted Demme, 38, Director for TV And for Movies, Including 'Blow'". The New York Times. January 16, 2002.
  4. ↑ Familytreemaker.genealogy.com
  5. ↑ Susman, Gary (January 14, 2002). "He Was the Man". ew.com. Retrieved November 22, 2008.
  6. ↑ Baltin, Steve (June 23, 2005). "Invitations are being sent". The L.A. Times. Retrieved November 22, 2008.
  7. ↑ "Demme took cocaine, says coroner". BBC News. February 3, 2002. Retrieved November 22, 2008.
  8. ↑ Andy Taylor-Fabe (2002-01-15). "Cardiac arrest claims life of Blow director Ted Demme". The Michigan Daily. Retrieved 2016-04-11.
  9. ↑ Harris, Beth. "Awards return glitz to Hollywood". Chicago Tribune.


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