Mark Rydell, the Oscar-nominated director best known for On Golden Pond, has died at age 97, according to ABC News. His daughter, Amy Rydell, told The Hollywood Reporter that he died Thursday of natural causes at a retirement community for the entertainment industry in Woodland Hills, Los Angeles.
Rydell’s 1981 film On Golden Pond earned 10 Oscar nominations. Henry Fonda and Katharine Hepburn won acting awards, and the movie also took home the prize for adapted screenplay. Rydell was nominated for best director but lost to Warren Beatty for Reds.
The film was a major box office success, bringing in more than $119 million and ranking as the second-highest grossing movie of 1981 behind Raiders of the Lost Ark. It also marked Henry Fonda’s final film role.
Before becoming known as a director, Rydell worked as an actor and later directed television and feature films including The Fox, The Reivers, The Rose, and The River. He is survived by his daughter Amy, his son Christopher, and his son Alexander.
