Bert Schneider, American film and television producer (Easy Rider, Five Easy Pieces, The Monkees), died from natural causes he was 78.

Berton "Bert" Schneider was an American film and television producer died from natural causes he was 78..

(May 5, 1933 – December 12, 2011) 

He was responsible for several important and topical films of the late 1960s and early 1970s,^[1] including the road film Easy Rider (1969), directed by Dennis Hopper.

Early life and education

He was born Berton Schneider New York City, New York,^[2] the son of one-time Columbia Pictures president Abraham Schneider.
The younger Schneider tended toward the rebellious politics of the day. Briefly a student at Cornell University, located in Ithaca, New York, he was expelled.^[3][4]
His brother, Harold Schneider, would become a film producer as well.

Career

In the early 1960s, he worked for Screen Gems, Columbia's television division. In 1965, Schneider formed a partnership with the film director Bob Rafelson, creating Raybert Productions. The duo brought to television The Monkees (1966–1968), a situation comedy about a fictional rock band (who became a real group, The Monkees, to meet public demand, and their own aspirations).
The success of The Monkees allowed Schneider and Rafelson to break into feature films, first with the counterculture film Head (1968), starring The Monkees, directed by Rafelson and featuring a screenplay co-written Rafelson and Jack Nicholson. The film bombed in its initial release due to poor distribution and the lack of a target audience for 1968. ^[5] Monkees fans were disappointed that the disjointed, stream-of-consciousness ring of stories was not just an expanded episode. Art film enthusiasts may have embraced its creativity but were not interested in a film by the "pre-fab four." ^[5] In recent years, the film has received above average reviews from critics and fans alike as an interesting 1960's period piece. ^{[5] [6]}
They had their first major success with Easy Rider, which ushered in the era of New Hollywood. Then followed with the drama film Five Easy Pieces (1970), which Rafelson directed.
Following Five Easy Pieces, Schneider and Rafelson added a partner, Stephen Blauner, and Raybert turned into BBS Productions.
They subsequently made a series of films, including the drama films The Last Picture Show (1971), directed by Peter Bogdanovich; The King of Marvin Gardens (1972), directed by Rafelson. In 1975 he was a member of the jury at the 9th Moscow International Film Festival.^[7]

Academy Award Controversy

In 1975, Schneider received an Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature for producing Hearts and Minds (1974), a documentary film about the Vietnam War, directed by Peter Davis.^[8] His acceptance speech was one of the most politically controversial in Oscar history. Schneider's speech included this statement: "It’s ironic that we’re here at a time just before Vietnam is about to be liberated." He then read a telegram from the head of the North Vietnamese delegation to the Paris peace talks. It thanked the antiwar movement "for all they have done on behalf of peace. Greetings of friendship to all American people." After the receiving thousands of angry telegrams backstage, Frank Sinatra appeared later in the show to read a disclaimer that disavowed Schneider's statement, which in turn provoked angry responses from actors Shirley MacLaine and Warren Beatty. Beatty later berated Sinatra on stage, calling him "you old Republican." ^[9]

Death

He died of natural causes, aged 78, in Los Angeles, California. He was survived by his son and daughter.^[10][11][12]

In popular culture

Peter Fonda based his character, Terry Valentine, in the crime film The Limey (1999) partly on Schneider, according to Fonda's interview on the film's DVD
To see more of who died in 2011 click here