He also collaborated with Sheldon Leonard on ‘The Andy Griffith Show’ and ‘I Spy’ and with Steven Spielberg in Indiana Jones films during his long career.
Mike Fenton, the influential casting director who found actors for films as striking as One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, The Godfather: Part II, ET – the extraterrestrial and the three Back to the future films, died. He was 85 years old.
Fenton, who spent more than half a century in show business, died Wednesday of natural causes at his home in Los Angeles, your son, Mick, said The Hollywood Reporter.
After starting in the Music Corporation of America mailroom and becoming an agent for Lew Wasserman, Fenton served as the casting director for Paramount and then T&L Productions for Danny Thomas and Sheldon Leonard, where he worked at The Dick Van Dyke Show, The Andy Griffith Show, That girl, Gomer Pyle: USMC and I spy.
Fenton co-founded the Casting Society of America (then known as the American Society of Casting Directors) in 1982. He was awarded the CSA’s Hoyt Bowers Award for career achievements in 1989 and was a champion of casting directors everywhere.
In a statement, CSA co-chairs Russel Boast and Rich Mento said that “Fenton’s remarkable achievements and incredible work in raising awareness and appreciation of the art of casting cast define his legacy in the film industry. entertainment “.
Fenton collaborated with Steven Spielberg on the director’s first feature, The Sugarland Express (1974), as well as in episodes of NBC’s Incredible stories, three Indiana Jones films and Sun Empire (1987). He has also worked on many films produced by Spielberg, including the trio of Back to the future movies, Poltergeist (1982) and An American tail (1986).
“Working with Mike Fenton was like working in a candy store – he made casting a blast,” said Spielberg. “His fervent support for the actors was a legend and, after getting a role, any actor’s smile was rarely as wide as Mike’s. He helped me overcome every moment of indecision when I had three good options and couldn’t choose He was just as responsible for some actors having their big opportunities in my films as I am. ”
“He didn’t just support the actors, he launched crusades. And he himself was a great actor, as he always read dialogues off camera to create energy and charm for the person who read for the role. Much like the actors he defended for. , Mike loved his role – and those around him loved him very much, and I will miss him very much. “
His extensive list of credits – he has almost 300 on IMDb – also included American Graffiti (1973), Chinatown (1974), Young frankenstein (1974), Shampoo (1975), The Bad News Bears (1976), Marathon man (1976), Slap Shot (1977), Breaking (1979), Norma Rae (1979), Blade Runner (1982), A Christmas Story (1983), uncompromised (1984), Aliens (1986), Beaches (1988), Total Recall (nineteen ninety), Chaplin (1992), Toys Story (1995) and Sharknado 2: the second (2014).
Asked about his craft in a 2019 interview, Fenton said that a casting director “brings together the psychological and physical attributes of the person you are casting. Who can best play that role? As a casting director, you choose that person because of the look , or do you launch it because of their skill? … That is the art of launching. “
Ronald Michael Feinstein was born in Los Angeles on January 29, 1935 and was raised in Beverly Hills. Her father, Robert, was a successful stockbroker who lost all his money in the Depression and then owned a gas station.
Fenton graduated from the UCLA film school in 1956 with the goal of becoming a director of photography and then got a job in the MCA’s correspondence room. Guided by Herman Citron, he was promoted to agent and represented clients like Alfred Hitchcock and Shirley MacLaine.
After a year at the Ashley-Steiner Agency, he worked alongside future Oscar-winning producer Al Ruddy (The Godfather, Million Dollar Baby) before joining Paramount as a casting director in 1963. He discovered actors for Elvis Presley and Jerry Lewis films, then spent three years at T&L, where he was also an associate producer for Robert Culp-Bill Cosby, starring I spy.
At T&L, he hired Fred Roos, another future Oscar-winning producer (The Godfather: Part II), and the duo formed their own casting agency in 1971. Fenton later teamed up with Jane Feinberg, Judy Taylor, Allison Cowitt and, more recently, Ann Frederick.
In addition to his son, his second wife, Irene, daughter-in-law Alison and grandchildren Riley and Olivia, survive. He was married to Janet Monfort from 1963 until his death in 2003.