A Director, Writer, Producer and an Inspiration to All
The three-time Oscar nominee, most famous for When Harry Met Sally and Sleepless In Seattle, Nora Ephron passed away Tuesday, June 26th, 2012, at the New York Presbyterian/Weill Cornell Medical Center. Ephron was diagnosed in 2006 with acute myeloid leukemia and died from pneumonia, a complication resulting from leukemia.
Nora Ephron was many things. She was a filmmaker, director, producer, screenwriter, author, playwright, journalist, blogger, mother and wife. Born in Manhattan, Nora was the oldest of four girls, but the family moved to Beverly Hills, CA when Nora was just four. Her parents, Henry and Pheobe Ephron, were successful screenwriters for films like Carousel and There’s No Business Like Show Business. After being raised in California, Ephron returned to the east coast and studied political science at Wellesley College in Massachusettes, graduating in 1962.
After writing occasional essays for New York publications like The New York Times and Esquire, Nora’s writings became part of the best selling volumes Wallflower at the Orgy, Crazy Salad, and Scribble Scribble. But most of Ephron’s writing success came from her popular late ’80s/early ’90s flicks like Sleepless in Seattle and When Harry Met Sally. Ephron also made her directorial debut with the 1992 film, This Is My Life, which, although wasn’t a box office hit, paved the way for Ephron’s career.
Ephron’s career continued to flourish with late ’90s films like Michael starring John Travolta and the mega-hit You’ve Got Mail. But Ephron pursued many other projects which included playwriting and working on the film adaptation of Bewitched. Her most recent success was in 2009′s Julie and Julia, about her self-proclaimed favorite topic, food.
The world lost a great woman with the passing of Ephron. Innovative and creative people like her keep the movie world on its toes and help to bring great ideas to life. But as we all know, “the goal isn’t to live forever, it’s to create something that will.” With her resume of countless endeavors, it’s certain that Nora Ephron’s legacy will live on for a long time.
Nora Ephron’s Filmography:
- Silkwood (1983 – Writer)
- Heartburn (1986 – Writer)
- When Harry Met Sally… (1989 – Writer & Producer)
- Cookie (1989 – Writer & Producer)
- My Blue Heaven (1990 – Writer & Producer)
- This Is My Life (1992 – Writer & Director)
- Sleepless in Seattle (1993 – Director & Writer)
- Mixed Nuts (1994 – Director & Writer)
- Michael (1996 – Director, Writer, & Producer)
- Strike! / The Hairy Bird / All I Wanna Do (1998 – Executive producer)
- You’ve Got Mail (1998 – Director, Writer, & Producer)
- Hanging Up (2000 – Writer & Producer)
- Lucky Numbers (2000 – Director & Producer)
- Bewitched (2005 – Director, Writer & Producer)
- Julie & Julia (2009 – Director, Writer & Producer)
