BY LEE PFEIFFER
Robert Evans has passed away at age 89. The former actor-turned-studio head had a long, dramatic career that saw him appointed to run Paramount Pictures at the tender age of 36 when the studio was bleeding red ink. Under Evans' management, the studio rebounded, releasing such classics as "Chinatown", "Rosemary's Baby", "The Odd Couple", "True Grit" and, most notably, "The Godfather". Even Evan's non-blockbusters became cult classics. Among them: "Harold and Maude" and "The Italian Job". Other hits brought to the screen by Evans include "Marathon Man" and "Black Sunday". His tumultuous private life was the stuff of Hollywood lore including his seven marriages. (His marriage to Ali MacGraw ended in scandal when she dropped him in favor of Steve McQueen, who she was co-starring with in "The Getaway".) Evans' producing career started modestly when he bought the screen rights to the crime thriller "The Detective" by Roderick Thorp. He successfully brought it to the screen in an acclaimed 1968 film starring Frank Sinatra. Evans' autobiography, "The Kid Stays in the Picture" was made into a critically-acclaimed documentary. Not everyone was smitten by his charisma, however, and he gained his share of enemies. It was said that Blake Edwards' scathing Hollywood comedy "S.O.B." was a broadside at Evans in the persona of Robert Vaughn, who portrayed a macho studio head with a secret penchant for dressing in women's lingerie. The satirical portrayal stemmed from a feud between the two men that occurred when Evans forced Edwards to make major cuts to his 1970 big budget musical "Darling Lili" that bombed at the boxoffice. Edwards always blamed Evans for the film's failure. But Evans enjoyed wide respect for his professional accomplishments even among those who weren't fond of his sizable ego. For more about his life and career, click here.