Back to Steve Martin

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: May 25, 2004
Contact: Margot Gerber
Tel: (323) 461-2020, ext. 115

STEVE MARTIN TO RECEIVE
19TH AMERICAN CINEMATHEQUE AWARD
AT GALA TRIBUTE ON NOVEMBER 12
AT THE BEVERLY HILTON HOTEL

Hollywood - The 19th American Cinematheque Award will be presented to Steve Martin at the Cinematheque's annual benefit gala, American Cinematheque Board chairman Rick Nicita announced today. The presentation takes place Friday, November 12, 2004 at the Beverly Hilton Hotel's International Ballroom in Beverly Hills. The tribute will air on AMC on Sunday, January 23, 2005.

    "The American Cinematheque is extremely pleased to honor Steve Martin at this year's celebration," said Rick Nicita. "Steve Martin is a unique Hollywood star - a renaissance man - actor, comedian, screenwriter, playwright, novelist, producer, art collector. His eclectic award-winning career has brought him to the forefront of Hollywood as both a writer and actor in some of the most memorable comedies of the past 20 years. We are looking forward to a wonderful evening honoring this extraordinary artist."

    Martin was the unanimous choice of the Cinematheque Board of Directors selection committee, which since 1986, has annually honored an extraordinary artist (actor, director or writer) in the entertainment industry, who is fully engaged in his or her work and is committed to making a significant contribution to the art of the motion picture.

    The show is executive produced by Paul Flattery and Barbara Smith and produced by Irene Crinita. Co-chairs of the event will be announced as they are confirmed.

Steve Martin, one of the most diversified performers in the motion picture industry today-actor, comedian, author, playwright, producer - has been successful as a writer of and performer in some of the most popular movies of recent film history.

Christmas 2003, Martin starred in the highest grossing film of his career, "Cheaper by the Dozen," directed by Shawn Levy for 20th Century Fox. The family comedy, co-starring Bonnie Hunt and Hillary Duff, has grossed over $135 million domestically.

Currently, Martin is in production on "The Pink Panther" for MGM. He is co-writing the script, and will be playing the role of Inspector Clouseau, originally made famous by Peter Sellers. It will re-team him with his "Cheaper by the Dozen" director Shawn Levy.
Martin has completed work on the Touchstone Pictures film "Shopgirl," costarring Claire Danes and Jason Schwartzman. The screenplay was written by Martin and adapted from his best-selling novella of the same name. "Shopgirl" follows the funny complexities of a romance between a young girl, who works at a Los Angeles Saks Fifth Avenue glove counter while nurturing dreams of being an artist, and a wealthy older man, who is still learning about the consequences that come with any romantic relationship.

    In February of 2003, he starred with Queen Latifah in the blockbuster comedy, "Bringing Down the House" for Touchstone Pictures which gross $132.7 million. In November of 2003, he co-starred in the Warner Bros comic caper "Looney Tunes: Back In Action" opposite Brendon Frasier, Jenna Elfman, and all of the Looney Tunes gang.

Mr. Martin hosted the 75th Annual Academy Awards, his second time handling those duties, the first being the 73rd Oscars. That program was nominated for seven Emmy Awards, including his nomination for "Outstanding Individual Performance In a Variety or Music Program."

Born in Waco, Texas and raised in Southern California, Mr. Martin became a television writer in the late 1960's, winning an Emmy Award for his work on the hit series "The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour." By the end of the decade he was performing his own material in clubs and on television.

Launched by frequent appearances on Johnny Carson's "Tonight Show," Mr. Martin went on to host several shows in the innovative "Saturday Night Live" series and to star in and co-write four highly rated television specials. When performing on national concert tours, he drew standing-room-only audiences in some of the largest venues in the country. He won Grammy Awards for his two comedy albums, "Let's Get Small" and "A Wild and Crazy Guy," and had a gold record with his single "King Tut."

Mr. Martin's first film project, "The Absent-Minded Waiter," a short he wrote and starred in, was nominated for a 1977 Academy Award. In 1979, he moved into feature films, co-writing and starring in "The Jerk," directed by Carl Reiner. In 1981, he starred opposite Bernadette Peters in Herbert Ross' bittersweet musical comedy, "Pennies From Heaven."

The actor then co-wrote and starred in the 1982 send-up of detective thrillers, "Dead Men Don't Wear Plaid" and the science fiction comedy "The Man With Two Brains," both directed by Carl Reiner. In 1984, Mr. Martin received a Best Actor Award from both the New York Film Critics Association and the National Board of Review for his performance opposite Lily Tomlin in "All of Me," his forth collaboration with writer/director Carl Reiner.

In 1987, his motion picture hit, "Roxanne," a modern adaptation of the Cyrano de Bergerac legend, garnered Martin not only warm audience response, but also a Best Actor Award from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association and Best Screenplay Award from the Writer Guild of America. Mr. Martin was also the executive producer on the film.

In 1988, he costarred with Michael Caine in the hit comedy film "Dirty Rotten Scoundrels," his second feature collaboration with director Frank Oz (the first being "Little Shop of Horrors"). In 1989, he starred with Mary Steenburgen and Diane Wiest in Ron Howard's affectionate family comedy, "Parenthood" for Universal Pictures.

    In 1991, Mr. Martin wrote, starred in and co-executive produced the critically acclaimed comedy, "L.A. Story," a motion picture about a love story set in Los Angeles.

That same year he made a cameo appearance in Lawrence Kasdan's critically lauded "Grand Canyon" and starred with Diane Keaton in the hit Disney film "Father Of The Bride," receiving the People's Choice Award for Favorite Actor in a Comedy Motion Picture for the latter. In 1992, he starred in the Universal comedy feature "Housesitter," opposite Goldie Hawn, winning the People's Choice Award for Favorite Actor in a Comedy, for the second year in a row.

In 1996, he starred again with Diane Keaton in the hit sequel to "Father of the Bride," and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award. In 1997, he received universal critical acclaim for his riveting performance in director David Mamet's thriller, "The Spanish Prisoner."

Mr. Martin wrote and starred in the hilarious 1999 feature comedy, "Bowfinger," opposite Eddie Murphy for Director Frank Oz. The film was showcased at the Deauville International Film Festival.

Mr. Martin's other films include classic comedies like Frank Oz's "Little Shop of Horrors," in which he played a demented dentist; John Hughes' "Planes, Trains and Automobiles," co-starring John Candy; the comic Western send-up "The Three Amigos" co-staring Marin Short and Chevy Chase; "The Lonely Guy" co-starring Charles Grodin; Jonathan Lynn's big screen adaptation of "Sgt. Bilko," co-starring Dan Aykroyd and Phil Hartman; Richard Pearce's "Leap of Faith," co-starring Deborah Winger and Liam Neeson; "My Blue Heaven," co-starring Rick Moranis and Joan Cusack;and the black comedy, "Novocaine," co-starring Helena Bonham Carter and Laura Dern.

    In the fall of 1993, Mr. Martin's first original play, the comedy-drama "Picasso at the Lapin Agile," was presented by Chicago's prestigious Steppenwolf Theatre. Following rave reviews and an

extended run in Chicago, the play was presented successfully in Boston and Los Angeles, and then Off-Broadway in New York at the Promenade Theatre, to nationwide critical and audience acclaim. It has since been, and continues to be, mounted in productions worldwide. "The Underpants," a dark comedy Mr. Martin adapted from the 1911 play by Carl Sterneim, premiered Off-Broadway at the Classic Stage Company on April 4, 2002.

Mr. Martin was selected as Harvard University's Hasty Pudding Theatricals 1988 Man Of The Year and accepted the award at the Cambridge, Massachusetts campus. In 1996, he was honored with a retrospective of his work, by the American Film Institute's Third Decade Council at the U.S. Comedy Arts Festival. He was also presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the ceremony. A selection of paintings from his extensive, private, modern art collection was given a special exhibition at the Bellagio Hotel gallery in Las Vegas in 2000, with catalog notes written for the show my Mr. Martin.

After the success of his first novella Shopgirl Mr. Martin's second novella, "The Pleasure of My Company," published by Hyperion, once again was ranked on best seller lists around the country including the New York Times. He has also written a best selling collection of comic pieces, Pure Drivel, and his work frequently appears in the New Yorker and the New York Times. He lives in New York City and Los Angeles.

    Eddie Murphy received the first American Cinematheque Award in 1986. Previous honorees are as follows: Bette Midler (1987); Robin Williams (1988); Steven Spielberg (1989); Ron Howard (1990); Martin Scorsese (1991); Sean Connery (1992); Michael Douglas (1993); Rob Reiner (1994); Mel Gibson (1995); Tom Cruise (1996); John Travolta (1997); Arnold Schwarzenegger (1998); Jodie Foster (1999); Bruce Willis (2000); Nicolas Cage (2001); Denzel Washington (2002) and Nicole Kidman (2003).

    Twelve hundred entertainment industry notables are expected to attend the Tribute. This annual event is the American Cinematheque's most important benefit, providing funds for the non-profit film exhibition organization's programs throughout the year and operation of the historic landmark Egyptian Theatre on Hollywood Boulevard as well as the soon-to-open Aero Theatre in Santa Monica on Montana Avenue.
   
Tickets to the Cinematheque Tribute, an elegant black-tie dinner followed by a multi-media award show start at $500. Call Event Producer Corrinne Mann for further information at 323.314.7000. Please note that this event was formerly known as the Moving Picture Ball.

Established in 1981, the American Cinematheque is a non-profit viewer-supported film exhibition and cultural organization dedicated to the celebration of the Moving Picture in all of its forms. At the Egyptian Theatre, the Cinematheque presents daily film and video programming which ranges from the classics of American and international cinema to new independent films and digital work. Exhibition of rare works, special and rare prints, etc., combined with fascinating post-screening discussions with the filmmakers who created the work, are a Cinematheque tradition that keep audiences coming back for once-in-a-lifetime cinema experiences.

The American Cinematheque renovated and reopened (on December 4, 1998) the historic 1922 Hollywood Egyptian Theatre. This includes a state-of-the-art 616-seat theatre housed within Sid Grauman's first grand movie palace on Hollywood Boulevard. The exotic courtyard is fully restored to its 1922 grandeur. The Egyptian was the home of the very first Hollywood movie premiere in 1922. In 2004 the American Cinematheque will expand its programming to the Aero Theatre in Santa Monica.

To obtain press credentials for this event, please send a fax on letterhead from your outlet to request an application form (new this year). Indicate that you have a specific assignment and when the coverage will air/appear in print. Fax to Margot Gerber at 323 461 9737 by Thursday, November 1, 2004.

A photo of Steve Martin (to run with an announcement story) is available upon request from Margot Gerber.

CONTACTS:
Alan Nierob       
Rogers & Cowan                
(Representing Steve Martin)   
(310) 201-8839

Margot Gerber   
American Cinematheque Publicist/   
(Press Request Inquiries)
323.461.2020 ext. 115

           
Lynn Weiss       
AMC                        
LLWEISS@rainbow-media.com

# # #

Press Release 2