Mark Rydell Dies: Oscar-Nominated ‘On Golden Pond’, ‘The Rose’ Director Was 97
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- Mark Rydell died Thursday of natural causes in Los Angeles at age 97, with Bette Midler announcing the news on Instagram and calling him "the actor's whisperer" who directed her first film.
- Rydell earned his sole Best Director Oscar nomination for On Golden Pond (1981), a Henry Fonda–Katharine Hepburn–Jane Fonda vehicle that won Academy Awards for both Fonda and Hepburn plus the adapted screenplay prize.
- The Rose (1979), Rydell's loosely Janis Joplin-inspired drama, turned Midler into a movie star and earned her first Oscar nomination alongside co-star Frederic Forrest.
- Rydell launched his directing career with The Fox (1967), a D.H. Lawrence adaptation whose suggestion of a lesbian relationship between its two female leads was a rarity of the era.
- Rydell built his Hollywood resume with star-driven films including The Reivers (1969) with Steve McQueen, The Cowboys (1972) with John Wayne, and Cinderella Liberty (1973) with James Caan and Marsha Mason.
- Eight actors across Rydell's filmography received Oscar nominations for their performances: both Fondas, Midler twice, Mason, Hepburn, Sissy Spacek, Forrest, and The Reivers' Rupert Crosse.
Why it matters: Rydell's death closes the chapter on the director behind two of Bette Midler's defining screen roles and one of the era's most celebrated ensemble dramas, with a track record of eight Oscar-nominated performances across his films marking him as a director whose casting instincts reliably translated into Academy recognition.
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