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Walter Coblenz, who was Oscar-nominated for producing “All the President’s Men” and also produced “The Candidate” and “The Onion Field,” died March 16. He was 93.
Coblenz also produced the Emmy-nominated Joseph Wambaugh TV mini-series adaptation “The Blue Knight.”
After serving as assistant director and production manager on Robert Redford’s “Downhill Racer,” he went on to work with Redford on “The Candidate” and “All the Presidents Men,” which racked up eight Oscar nominations and four wins.
Coblenz served as Sr. V.P. of production at both Tri-Star Pictures and Carolco Pictures, where he oversaw production on films including “The Natural.” “Places in the Heart,” “Terminator 2,” “The Doors” and “Rambling Rose.”
His other producing credits include “Money Talks,” “Her Majesty,” “The Babe” and “18 Again.”
Born in Germany, Koblenz came to the U.S. as a child and graduated from the University of Houston. He began his career as a camera operator for a Houston television station, then served as an officer in the U.S. Air Force.
After settling in Los Angeles, he began as a stage manager on variety shows, then became an assistant director and production manager for TV shows such as “The F.B.I.” and films including Monte Hellman’s “Two-Lane Blacktop.”
A member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, he served for many years on the Special Projects Committee of the Directors Guild of America.
He said about his success in the industry, “I always hired people who were smart. If they were smarter than me, great. Then I could sit on my chair on the set and happily look around, knowing I hired all the right people, and they were taking care of all the problems. That’s the sign of a good producer.”
He is survived by his son Martin Coblenz and his wife Eden, daughter Helen Iacabucci and her husband Rick, son John Coblenz, and grandchildren Evan, Danielle, Jordan and Anthony.
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