FRED WEINTRAUB

(27 April 1928 - 5 March 2017)

Hollywood writer and producer Fred Weintraub made a lot of feature films for both the cinema and television and many documentaries, too. His first film in 1972, Rage, about a military gas leak, was directed by George C. Scott, who also starred. Weintraub’s first success, the following year, was Enter the Dragon, which starred Bruce Lee. He followed this with more martial arts, action and exploitation movies such as Black Belt Jones and Hot Potato with Jim Kelly, Truck Turner with Isaac Hayes, Golden Needles and The Pack with Joe Don Baker, and The Ultimate Warrior with Yul Brynner. In Britain he made Trial by Combat with John Mills, and also produced Steve McQueen’s penultimate film, Tom Horn. Then it was back to martial arts with Jackie Chan in Battle Creek Brawl and Joe Lewis in Force: Five and then High Road to China with Tom Selleck. Weintraub co-wrote The Women’s Club with his wife Sandra, who also directed the film, which was about a writer turned rent boy. There was Trouble Bound with Michael Madsen, Patricia Arquette and Billy Bob Thornton and many other action films up to 2003. Weintraub’s last production was Dream Warrior, a futuristic sci-fi thriller.

MICHAEL DARVELL