American Screenwriter Robert Towne Dies at 89

American Screenwriter and Director, Robert Towne died at his Los Angeles home on Monday, July 1.

The screenwriter, who perhaps established a new industry standard with his Oscar-winning script for Roman Polanski's 1974 film Chinatown, was 89.  

His spokesperson, Carri McClure, verified the information to The Hollywood Reporter.

The many scripts he worked on during his career include the Oscar-nominated screenplays for The Last Detail, Shampoo, and Greystoke: The Legend of Tarzan, Lord of the Apes (though Towne wasn't thrilled with production decisions on that last project, eventually opting to be credited under the name of his dog, P.H. Vazak).

As a screenwriter, Towne accomplished uncredited work on films such as Bonnie & Clyde and The Godfather.

Towne went on to direct several movies of his own, including Personal Best, Tequila Sunrise, and Ask the Dust.

Later in his career, he returned to TV as a consulting producer on Mad Men — and as recently as last month, Towne told Variety that he and David Fincher had finished writing all episodes of Netflix’s long-gestating Chinatown prequel series.