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Oscar nominee dies as iconic actress pays tribute to the 'actor's whisperer'

Oscar-nominated director Mark Rydell has sadly passed away, his daughter has confirmed, as iconic actress Bette Midler paid tribute to the director of her first film

[Mark Rydell ]

Director Mark Rydell at the EMMY Awards in 2007(Image: WireImage)

The Oscar-nominated director of the blockbuster "On Golden Pond" and worked with such Hollywood legends as Henry Fonda, Katharine Hepburn, Steve McQueen and John Wayne, has died. Actor turned director Mark Rydell died of natural causes and the age of 97, his family have confirmed.

His daughter, Amy Rydell, told The Hollywood Reporter that her father died Thursday (August 13) at a retirement community for the entertainment industry in the Woodland Hills section of Los Angeles.

"Hard to put into words how much I loved my dad," she posted Friday on her Instagram account. "He was truly one of a kind. Funniest and most talented person I've ever known."

[Mark Rydell with Steven Spielberg ]

Mark Rydell with fellow legendary director Steven Spielberg in 1981(Image: AP Photo/LENNOX MCLENDON)

"On Golden Pond," which teamed Fonda with Hepburn and his daughter, Jane Fonda, was nominated for 10 Oscars. Henry Fonda and Hepburn won leading acting honors and the film won for screenplay, which Ernest Thompson adapted from his play of the same name. Rydell was nominated for directing but lost to Warren Beatty for "Reds."

It earned over $119 million at the box office, making it the second-highest grossing film of 1981 behind "Raiders of the Lost Ark."

"On Golden Pond" was Henry Fonda's final movie role. He starred as Norman Thayer, an emotionally brittle and distant father who becomes more accessible at the end of his life after his teenage grandson spends the summer with him and his wife, Ethel (played by Hepburn), at their cottage in New England.

The film's story resembled Fonda's real-life relationship with daughter Jane, who said working on the movie together helped resolve some of their issues. The elder Fonda died at age 77 months after winning his only Oscar.

[Rydell and Doris Roberts ]

Rydell and actress Doris Roberts at the 30th anniversary of his film 'The Rose'(Image: Getty Images)

Rydell's other Oscar-nominated films were "The Fox" in 1967, "The Reivers" with McQueen in 1969, "Cinderella Liberty" with James Caan and Marsha Mason in 1973, "The Rose" with Bette Midler in 1979, and "The River" with Mel Gibson and Sissy Spacek in 1984.

Midler also paid tribute to Rydell on Instagram, sharing photos of him behind cameras and on set with her. She captioned the post: "Mark Rydell, the director of my first film, The Rose, died this morning.

"He was an actor of note before he became a director, and I was so lucky to have met him when I did; he taught me so much on The Rose and later on For The Boys. Two Oscars nominations, both because of him. He was the actor's whisperer; just a few words was all it took to understand what was needed. Devoted to Meisner. So many happy memories. RIP."

Born Mortimer Harold Rydell on March 23 in 1929, in New York City, he studied with jazz pianist Teddy Wilson at the Julliard School of Music. During a stint in the Army, he spent two years in Japan developing entertainment for military personnel. He majored in English and philosophy at New York University.

He turned to acting when he won a scholarship to the Neighborhood Playhouse in New York. Among his early roles were on the CBS soap operas "The Edge of Night" and "As the World Turns."

Rydell made his Broadway debut in "Seagulls Over Sorrento" with Rod Steiger. In 1956, he made his movie acting debut opposite John Cassavetes and Sal Mineo in Don Siegel's "Crime In The Streets."

[Rydell ]

Tributes have been paid to Rydell calling him the 'actor's whisperer'(Image: WireImage)

Among his film acting credits were Robert Altman's "The Long Goodbye" in 1973 and Woody Allen's "Hollywood Ending" in 2002.

Rydell moved into directing television, helming episodes of "Mr. Novak," "Ben Casey," "I Spy," "The Wild Wild West," "The Long, Hot Summer," "The Fugitive" and "Gunsmoke."

He made his feature-film directorial debut with 1967's "The Fox" starring Sandy Dennis, and it was a hit.

Two years later, Rydell directed McQueen in the comedy-drama "The Reivers."

Rydell and Sydney Pollack, who became friends during their acting days, formed Sanford Productions in 1971. Among their efforts were the films "Jeremiah Johnson" starring Robert Redford and "Scarecrow" with Al Pacino and Gene Hackman, which won the Cannes Film Festival's top honor, the Palme d'Or.

Rydell directed Wayne in 1972's "The Cowboys." He reunited with Caan for the 1976 flop "Harry and Walter Go to New York."

He scored a major hit with 1979's "The Rose," with Midler in her Oscar-nominated role as a self-destructive rock star loosely based on Janis Joplin. Rydell re-teamed with Caan and Midler in "For the Boys" in 1991, but it wasn't successful.

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