As I delve into the captivating life story of Lynda Obst, I am struck by her indomitable spirit and unwavering determination that spanned across various realms – from filmmaking to motherhood. Her journey is a testament to resilience and adaptability, as she navigated through the tumultuous waters of Hollywood with grace and tenacity.
Producer Lynda Obst, known for leaving her distinctive touch on beloved films such as Sleepless in Seattle, Contact, Flashdance, The Fisher King, Adventures in Babysitting, How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days, and Interstellar, passed away on Tuesday. She was 74 years old.
I sadly bid farewell from this world at my Los Angeles residence, enveloped by the love and presence of my cherished family, as my son and manager-producer, Oly Obst, shared with The Hollywood Reporter.
He stated, ‘My mom broke new ground and passionately fought for women’s rights. She was not only an exceptional mother, sister, and friend, but also the best one could ask for.’ Julie and I are deeply thankful that she was my mother and that our daughters were fortunate enough to know her as a grandmother. We will dearly miss her.’
Rick Rosen, Obst’s brother and a long-respected TV executive at WME, commented: “We are incredibly proud of her career and the inspiration she provided to women in the industry. However, what truly stands out is her deep affection for our family. She found the most joy when she was with us.
According to what Obst shared with THR in a February article, this long-time industry figure struggled with COPD, which stands for Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, or as he humorously put it, “the Spanish term for ‘I ruined my lungs.'”. Unfortunately, this condition is not curable, it’s progressive, and it can be fatal.
Smoking, particularly cigarettes and marijuana, is the primary culprit behind COPD. This condition dramatically impacted Obst’s life, given that she was an avid smoker from the age of 16 until her diagnosis in 2018. She chose to share her health struggles as a warning about the potential dangers associated with tobacco use.
Obst emphasized the importance of understanding that anyone can face unexpected circumstances, like the unpredictable hand of fate. She wants to make it crystal clear what the potential outcomes of smoking may be. Spending one’s retirement or the last decades of life in this manner is not a desirable choice, she cautions,” explained Obst, who uses a portable device to convert air into pure oxygen to aid her breathing.
Beyond boasting an impressive portfolio of diverse projects, Obst was renowned in Hollywood for being a passionate advocate for women and cultivating lasting relationships with creators such as writers, actors, executives, directors, producers, and industry heavyweights like Bryan Lourd from CAA. Obst’s path crossed with the influential agent not long after he had climbed out of the mailroom.
Previously, Lourd described her as being exceptionally knowledgeable and clever when it came to the mechanics of movie-making. Her unique blend of intuitive intelligence and good taste is what sets her apart. As she put it to THR, “She adored both the audience and the filmmakers, recognizing that the true victory was in creating something exceptional with exceptional people, while providing an emotionally impactful, enjoyable, and moving experience for the viewers.
Apart from being a wordsmith, Obst authored two books that were both juicy and informative on the subject of making it in Hollywood: Hello, He Lied & Other Tales From the Hollywood Trenches and Sleepless in Hollywood: Tales from the New Abnormal in the Movie Business. In her past, she served as an editor for The New York Times Magazine, and for a significant period, she collaborated with critic David Edelstein on Oscar columns for the magazine New York.
Born in Harrison, New York, which is located in Westchester County and serves as a suburb, Obst pursued philosophy as an undergraduate student at Pomona College and later for her graduate studies at Columbia University. However, before completing her degree, she departed from Columbia when an opportunity arose to edit the Random House book titled “The Sixties“, a historical account of the revolutionary decade featuring interviews with prominent figures.
Apart from that, Obst dabbled briefly in hosting classical music shows (for about five minutes) and writing promotional materials for rock musicians. During this time, she was pondering her next steps.
Obst shared, ‘I’ve always been motivated but lacked direction,'” she admitted, who, as a child in Harrison, was more at home playing baseball with the boys rather than conforming to traditional gender roles. Later on, she transitioned to gymnastics, a sport that ignited such a fervor within her that it sustained her interest well into her 70s.
An opportunity in her professional life presented itself when she and her husband David Obst, a literary agent, journeyed from their New York home to a friend’s farm in Washington. It was there that she met filmmaker Nora Ephron. She had read every column Ephron wrote for Esquire, and there she was playing volleyball. Intrigued by the renowned winner, she decided to excel at volleyball so Ephron would take notice. Ephron wasn’t fond of losers; she preferred winners. Somehow, despite her petite stature of 5 feet, she managed to become a skilled volleyball player.
Through the blossoming friendship with Ephron, the writer requested that Obst review one of her essays. Upon reading it, Obst made no comments, indicating it was flawless. Impressed, she deemed me to be a skillful editor. Later, Nora contacted Lee Eisenberg at Esquire to secure me a job, but they had no vacancies at the time. Eventually, when an opening appeared at The New York Times Magazine, Obst’s husband recommended me, leading to my eventual appointment as an editor.
When David Obst received an offer from Simon & Schuster to establish a production company, the couple chose to relocate to Los Angeles (eventually leading to their divorce). With her extensive experience in editing and assigning stories about the industry during her time at The Times, Obst utilized her professional network to secure a job with prominent producer Peter Guber. He provided her an opportunity within the development department at Casablanca Records and FilmWorks. In Guber, Obst discovered a boss who, on occasion, was supportive and granted her freedom to pursue her ideas without restriction.
To craft her part effectively, Obst realized she required gifted scribes. Hence, she initiated meetings with a lineup that included an individual she discovered was “banished” from Esquire, a fellow named Tom Hedley. He proposed Flashdance, a concept revolving around a female welder who secretly dances at a local bar and yearns to be accepted into a renowned dance academy. This project would ultimately become Obst’s first produced credit.
Over a long period, Obst created it and established it alongside Dawn Steel at Paramount Pictures. However, she had to struggle to maintain her credit on the project as responsibilities were shifted to prominent Hollywood figures such as Don Simpson, Jerry Bruckheimer, and her superiors at Casablanca. In her 1996 memoir, Hello, He Lied, Obst wrote about her experience, stating that she started at the bottom (as Bob Dylan’s lyrics suggest: “He who comes first will later come last”) and eventually ended up with the lowest possible producer credit: associate producer.
She attributed her strong-willed nature to her father, Robert. “My mother was intelligent but frail, while my father established his own business. When they faced financial trouble, my siblings and I displayed resilience by placing signs on our door that read, ‘Never count a good person out.’ And he managed to recover.
Obst expressed heartfelt appreciation towards her mother, Claire, for fostering a passion for literature and writing within her. ‘She devoured three books every week and ignited in me an affection for poetry,’ Obst shared. ‘I remember her reading me works by Dorothy Parker, Edna St. Vincent Millay, Matthew Arnold, and renowned Irish poets. She nurtured in me a deep love of words.’ If Claire had been born at another time, she would undoubtedly have been a literary editor,’ Obst added, ‘She was always my first critic for anything I wrote.’
Obst had a close relationship with her siblings, Michael and Rick Rosen. While Rick maintains his position at WME, Michael serves as the executive vice president of development, marketing, and strategic communication at The Center for Discovery, a research and specialized center offering residential, medical, and educational programs for various disabilities and complex conditions such as autism. Prior to this, he spent over two decades in television news at ABC, CNN, and CBS, where he held the role of executive producer on shows like The Saturday Early Show and This Morning.
Leaving Casablanca governed by Guber, a piece of Ray’s pizza shared with mentor David Geffen led to a job offer. However, Obst was hesitant, so she sought advice from another influential mentor. Barry Diller proposed that she team up with Mary Tyler Moore. Diller thought it was an excellent idea as he had a close relationship with the actress, who was recently separated from her husband and wanted to manage her own business through their joint company, MTM Enterprises. Unfortunately, this collaboration did not pan out.
Obst described the one-year stint as a highly uncomfortable ordeal. She stated that it seemed Mary had little control over her fate at MTM, and we later found out they didn’t want her involved because she posed a threat to the men who were in charge of the company, trying to suppress her. Obst reminisced about getting John Hughes on board to write a screenplay for Moore and advocating for several other projects, but each time her MTM partners turned her down. ‘It was absurd,’ she said to THR, ‘I couldn’t have done any better than a John Hughes film.’
Originally dismissed, she returned to Geffen Film Company, humbly seeking employment. She admitted that it was the wisest choice she’d ever made due to David’s exceptional brilliance. He was bold, fearless, and invigorating, she added, despite his sometimes harsh demeanor. She characterized her time there as nothing short of phenomenal. She reminisced about meetings with Prince on one occasion, and another time with Michael Jackson. A memorable day stood out when both of them were in her office, waiting for a meeting with David, and she was left to entertain them. “I simply sat there, and they hardly acknowledged each other,” she recounted.
For three years, she resided with Geffen before deciding it was time to take control of her own destiny. She articulated, “I wasn’t tied down by any specific project. I understood that as a producer, you could act more independently and decide on what you were passionate about.” Although he was disappointed by her decision, Geffen guided Obst towards her next professional chapter by urging her to resolve a dispute she’d had with Paramount chief Steel over ‘Flashdance’. In response to her call offering congratulations for her recent achievements (such as ‘Flashdance’, ‘Footloose’, and others), Steel extended an invitation to the Women in Film luncheon honoring Barbra Streisand, which took place in May 1984.
This marked the start of one of the most profound relationships in my life, as I reminisced about Steel. She was more than just a friend; she was my godmother to her child. I was by her side when she passed away in December 1997.” It was Steel who inspired me to move from development to production. “She suggested, ‘You lack experience in physical production. However, I know who you should collaborate with, and that’s Debra Hill. She excels in production, and the two of you will complement each other perfectly,'” Obst recounted about their introduction.
The two teamed for five years, running one of Hollywood’s first all-female production companies, Hill/Obst Prods. During their time together, they produced Chris Columbus’ 1987 directorial debut, Adventures in Babysitting, starring Elisabeth Shue, and his 1988 follow-up, Heartbreak Hotel, as well as Terry Gilliam’s 1991 film The Fisher King, starring Jeff Bridges and Robin Williams. Steel was right — Obst learned by watching Hill expertly manage productions, thanks to time spent shepherding early installments of the Halloween franchise, The Fog, Escape From New York and Clue.
Obst shared that in the role of a producer, if you lack personal opinions about talent, you’re essentially working as an employee. She referred to herself as someone who is always aware of what’s happening on set, thanks to the Teamsters keeping her informed – that’s the secret. Her additional advice included excellent food and enjoyable parties. To maintain a positive atmosphere, she emphasized the importance of keeping both the crew and actors content and cheerful.
After parting ways with Hill following “The Fisher King”, Obst ventured into solo directing. She took immense pride in knowing each of her productions inside out, and over the past three decades, she has directed approximately 20 projects. Among these are Nancy Meyers’ initial directorial effort, “This is My Life”, as well as “Sleepless in Seattle”, which featured Tom Hanks and Meg Ryan; Michael Hoffman’s “One Fine Day”, starring Michelle Pfeiffer and George Clooney; Robert Zemeckis’ “Contact”, featuring Jodie Foster; Forest Whitaker’s “Hope Floats”, with Sandra Bullock in the lead role; Ed Zwick’s “The Siege”, starring Denzel Washington, Bruce Willis, and Annette Bening; Donald Petrie’s “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days”, starring Kate Hudson and Matthew McConaughey; and Christopher Nolan’s “Interstellar”. The latter film is the highest-grossing one on her list, earning over $730 million at the box office.
Getting The Hot Zone TV series off the ground was a decades long Herculean effort that remained another point of pride. Star Juliana Margulies was “the greatest,” someone on Obst’s short list of actors that she had hoped to reteam with one day.
In her recent conversation with THR, Obst expressed her affection for all her projects, each for unique reasons. She particularly enjoyed working on “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days” more than any other project due to the friendly and humorous atmosphere created by Hudson and her comfort with McConaughey, whom she had collaborated with numerous times.
Hudson praised Obst for involving her in all facets of the film, an involvement that significantly impacted her professional journey. “She was so eager not just to work with me,” Hudson said to THR, “but as a young actress, she made me feel that my ideas held weight. She never brushed off any of my suggestions. Instead, she always urged me to voice my thoughts freely and have strong opinions about everything. Our collaboration became one of genuine mutual respect and affection.” Hudson added that Obst was “a tough producer with a strong personality,” but her unwavering abilities kept everyone on their toes, ultimately benefiting any project she tackled. “She will always be my most valued professional partnership during the making of How to Lose a Guy,” Hudson said, recalling how Obst took her to a movie theater in New York City so she could experience the audience’s laughter firsthand and truly feel the film’s success. “The whole experience was not only fun, but a pivotal moment in my career.
1994’s all-female Western “Bad Girls,” starring Madeleine Stowe, Andie MacDowell, Mary Stuart Masterson, and Drew Barrymore, was on the brink of disaster during production. However, it was Obst who managed to save the film from complete chaos. Brought in as an executive producer by 20th Century Fox chief Peter Chernin after director Tamra Davis was let go two weeks into filming, Obst effectively steered the project back on course.
In the chaos, everyone involved in hair and makeup seemed to dislike each other, while all the actresses were bickering over a red dress, according to Obst. The situation was further complicated by the fact that everyone was still being paid during the shutdown, with the actresses earning around $100,000 per week. However, Obst found the predicament amusing and decided to relocate the entire production to a Western town in Brackettville, Texas, and send the actresses to a cowboy camp. There, the focus shifted from appearance to horse riding and gun shooting skills, which helped them reconcile. This break in the tension was exactly what was needed.
Movies such as “Contact” and “The Fisher King” encapsulated the essence of who Carl Sagan’s wife, Ann Druyan, was – a person deeply invested in philosophy, factual accuracy, and scientific exploration. As she put it, “Contact truly mirrors the phase of my life where I was dedicated to exploring profound questions about science and religion.” On the other hand, “The Fisher King” represented her soul. She explained, “It’s a film about grace, redemption, and the transformative power of kindness. It serves as a reminder that we are not one-dimensional beings.
She expressed that keeping busy and being creative well into her seventies provided the vitality and zest she required. “I’d be at a loss without work, and I’m still producing quality work,” she stated, highlighting recent ventures such as a K-pop film featuring Charles Melton, produced by Miky Lee from ‘Parasite’. Several years ago, Obst got her initial tattoo, the phrase “next” written in Korean. This was a tribute to Diller, who concisely declared when he failed to acquire Paramount in 1994: “They won. We lost. Next.” Paraphrased, it means she needs work to stay energetic and creative, and her latest projects include a K-pop film with Miky Lee and Charles Melton. She also mentioned that her first tattoo, which reads ‘next’ in Korean, was inspired by Diller’s famous quote after losing a bid for Paramount.
The phrase served as her personal motto, and the tattoo was the initial spot she’d turn to when feeling overpowered. In spite of the hardships posed by the illness, Obst – who identified herself as an unwavering optimist or “Pollyanna”, while radiating pride – consistently found happiness in spending time with her son, Olly, his wife, Julie, and their daughters, Sunny and Marlowe. She shone brightest when discussing her moments with them.
She credits him with bringing much joy into her life since he’s her one and only child, her pride and joy, and her best friend. We confide in each other and offer support when either of us is feeling low. Witnessing him create movies and television shows, then rush off to take his children to school, is a family achievement we both cherish. I believe that seeing the things you deeply care about and have worked hard on come to fruition brings great satisfaction as one grows older. Becoming a mother and later a grandmother has been a transformative experience, making me more focused on others rather than myself or my career.
I’m excitedly working behind the scenes to plan a personal farewell ceremony, keeping in mind a potential tribute event in 2025, partnered with the Producers Guild of America. This event will honor and celebrate the extraordinary life and career of the person we admire.
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2024-10-22 23:25