Photo: Sarah Morris / Attribution (source: Wikimedia Commons)

Robert Towne

ロバート・タウン　/　ろばーと・たうん

American screenwriter

November 23, 1934 – July 1, 2024　・　Los Angeles, California, United States

Born in California
Screenwriter
Film director
Actor

My Take

Towne wrote what a lot of people, myself included, consider the greatest screenplay ever produced. Chinatown is a masterclass in structure, mood and that gut-punch ending, every scene seeded with something that pays off later. Beyond his credited work on The Last Detail and Shampoo, he was Hollywood's go-to script doctor, the quiet hand on countless films you'd never guess. He represented a moment when writers genuinely shaped American cinema. He didn't always get the directing career he wanted, but the writing legacy is untouchable. When people teach screenwriting, they teach Towne.

Overview

Robert Towne (November 23, 1934 - July 1, 2024) was an American screenwriter, director and actor from Los Angeles, California. A leading figure of the New Hollywood era, he won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay for Chinatown (1974), widely regarded as one of the finest screenplays ever written. He also contributed to films including The Last Detail, Shampoo and Mission: Impossible, and was renowned as one of Hollywood's most respected script doctors.

1. Profile

Name (English): Robert Towne
Name (Japanese): ロバート・タウン
Reading: ろばーと・たうん
Born: November 23, 1934 – July 1, 2024
Zodiac / Chinese zodiac: Sagittarius / Dog
Origin: Los Angeles, California, United States
Blood type: Private
Height: Private
Agency: Private
Occupation: Screenwriter / Film director / Actor

2. Background

Elementary school: Private
Junior high: Private
High school: Private
University: Pomona College

Awards & achievements

1975 Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay
1975 Edgar Award

3. Relationships

Spouse: Private
Children: Private
Parents: Private
Siblings: Private

4. Personality

Motto

Private

5. Works & records

Category	Title	Role	Year
Notable work	Chinatown	Screenwriter	1974

6. Links

Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%83%AD%E3%83%90%E3%83%BC%E3%83%88%E3%83%BB%E3%82%BF%E3%82%A6%E3%83%B3

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