Ivan Reitman, ‘Ghostbusters’ Director, Dies at 75
variety.comChris Morris Music ReporterProducer-director Ivan Reitman, whose wildly successful comedies of the ‘70s and ‘80s included the blockbuster spookfest “Ghostbusters,” died in his sleep on Feb.
12, his family confirmed to the Associated Press. He was 75. The cause of death was not released.“Our family is grieving the unexpected loss of a husband, father, and grandfather who taught us to always seek the magic in life,” his children, director Jason Reitman, Catherine Reitman and Caroline Reitman said via a joint statement. “We take comfort that his work as a filmmaker brought laughter and happiness to countless others around the world.
While we mourn privately, we hope those who knew him through his films will remember him always.” Born in Czechoslovakia and raised in Canada (where he first met such young comics as his later stars Dan Aykroyd and Rick Moranis), Reitman made his first major impression as the producer of “National Lampoon’s Animal House” (1978), the madcap, wildly successful frat comedy that introduced “Saturday Night Live” star John Belushi to big-screen audiences.He quickly segued into feature directing, and his first two hits lofted another “SNL” luminary, Bill Murray, to the upper echelon of movie stardom: “Meatballs” (1979), which featured Murray as an anarchic camp counselor, and the service comedy “Stripes” (1980), which co-starred actor-writer Harold Ramis.As formidable as those pictures were at the box office, they were only a warm-up for Reitman’s biggest smash, which he produced and directed.
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