Alan Walbridge Ladd Jr. (October 22, 1937 – March 2, 2022) was an American film industry executive and producer. He served as president of 20th Century Fox from 1976 to 1979, during which he approved the production of Star Wars, on his confidence of George Lucas, which proved well founded. He later established The Ladd Company and headed MGM/UA. Ladd won an Academy Award for Best Picture in 1996 for producing Braveheart.
Early life
Ladd was born in Los Angeles, California, on October 22, 1937.[1][2] He was the only child of Alan Ladd and Marjorie Jane (née Harrold),[3][4] who divorced when he was two years old.[1] He initially stayed with his mother, but lived with his father at his estate in Holmby Hills due to her poor health.[1][2] He later recounted how the time he spent with the elder Ladd was sparse,[1] and described their relationship as "basically nonexistent".[2] Ladd served in the U.S. Air Force and was called up as a reservist during the Berlin Crisis of 1961,[5] before being employed by his stepfather's business for a brief period. He subsequently joined Creative Management Associates as an agent in 1963 and worked under Freddie Fields. Among Ladd's clients were Robert Redford and Judy Garland.[1][6] His paternal half-brother is actor and producer David Ladd.[citation needed]
Career
Ladd relocated to London at the end of the 1960s to work as an independent producer.[1] There, he established a film venture with Jay Kanter and Jerry Gershwin.[7] Ladd made nine films during his sojourn there, including The Walking Stick,[8]A Severed Head,[9]Villain,[8]The Nightcomers, and X Y & Zee.[9][10] He eventually returned to the United States in 1973 to become vice president of creative affairs at 20th Century Fox. Three years later, he was promoted from worldwide production head to president of Fox's film division.[1]
Ladd came to Fox President Gordon Stulberg to request consideration for making George Lucas's Star Wars. Stulberg approved the production, and the two men remained as Lucas's support at times when the board of directors of 20th Century Fox wished to shut down production. The production was plagued by location difficulties, story problems, and budgetary disagreements for a project that was mainly considered a risk to the studio. However, when Ladd saw the audience's rapturous appreciation of the film at its first public screening at the Northpoint Theatre in San Francisco in early May 1977, he was moved to joyful tears at seeing the unlikely production he and Stulberg had supported against all odds culminating in spectacular vindication in their faith in Lucas.[11]Star Wars was a massive and critically hailed hit upon release, becoming, up to that point, the highest-grossing film of all time, and spawned an extensive media franchise that includes many other films as well as television, radio, video game and print media.[12]
Ladd married his first wife Patricia Ann Beazley in September 1959. They met while studying at the University of Southern California together.[18][19] They had three children, Kelliann, Tracy and Amanda, but divorced in 1983.[5] Ladd married his second wife Cindra Pincock in 1985.[2] They had one child, Chelsea,[5] who predeceased him in March 2021.[2] Ladd and Pincock separated in March 2015[20] and later divorced.[5]
