J. Michael Riva

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J. Michael Riva
Born
John Michael Riva

(1948-06-28)June 28, 1948
New York City, U.S.
DiedJune 7, 2012(2012-06-07) (aged 63)
New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.
Other namesMike Riva
OccupationProduction designer
Years active1975–2012
SpouseWendy Mickell
Children4
Parent(s)Maria Riva
William Riva
RelativesMarlene Dietrich (grandmother)
Peter Riva (brother)
AwardsPrimetime Emmy Award

John Michael Riva (June 28, 1948 – June 7, 2012), better known as J. Michael Riva, was an American production designer.

Early and personal life

John Michael Riva was born in Manhattan, to William Riva, a

UCLA.[1] Married to Wendy Mickell, he had four sons, Jean-Paul, Mikey, Daniel, and Adam.[1][2][3]

Career

Riva had a long and prestigious career as an art director and production designer on numerous films, including the 1985 film The Color Purple, for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Art Direction.[1] Other credits include The Goonies (1985), Lethal Weapon (1987), A Few Good Men (1992), Spider-Man 3 (2007), Iron Man (2008) and Iron Man 2 (2010).[1][4]

His final films,

Primetime Emmy Award for his work on the latter.[1]

Death

Riva suffered a stroke on June 1, 2012, in

New Orleans, Louisiana, during production of Django Unchained. He died in a hospital there on June 7, 2012, at age 63.[1] Django director Quentin Tarantino commented, "Michael became a dear friend on this picture, as well as a magnificent, talented colleague."[1]

Filmography

Films

All as production designer unless stated otherwise
Year Title Notes
1976 Ilsa, Harem Keeper of the Oil Sheiks Art director; credited as Mike Riva
1977 Bad Georgia Road Art director; credited as Michael Riva
1977 I Never Promised You a Rose Garden Uncredited
1977 Bare Knuckles Credited as Michael Riva
1979 Fast Charlie... the Moonbeam Rider Art director; credited as Michael Riva
1980 Brubaker Also art director
1980 Ordinary People Art director
1981 The Hand
1981 Halloween II Credited as Michael Riva
1983 Bad Boys
1983 Strangers Kiss Visual consultant; credited as Michael Riva
1984 The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension
1985 The Falcon and the Snowman
1985 The Slugger's Wife Credited as Michael Riva
1985 The Goonies
1985 The Color Purple
1986 The Golden Child
1987 Lethal Weapon
1988 Scrooged
1989 Lethal Weapon 2
1989 Tango & Cash
1992 Radio Flyer
1992 A Few Good Men
1993 Dave
1994 North
1995 Congo
1998 Hard Rain
1998
Six Days Seven Nights
1998 Lethal Weapon 4
1999 House on Haunted Hill Visual consultant
2000 Romeo Must Die Visual consultant
2000 Charlie's Angels
2001 Evolution
2003 Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle
2005 Stealth
2005 Zathura: A Space Adventure
2006 The Pursuit of Happyness
2007 Spider-Man 3 (with Neil Spisak)
2008 Iron Man
2008 Seven Pounds
2010 Iron Man 2
2012
The Amazing Spider-Man
 Posthumous release
2012 Django Unchained Posthumous release

Television

All as production designer unless stated otherwise
Year Title Notes
1981 Callie & Son TV film
1986 Amazing Stories Director; episode 2.12: "The Eternal Mind"; credited as Michael Riva
1990 Tales from the Crypt Director; episode 2.18: "The Secret"; credited as Michael Riva
1994 Lily in Winter Story; TV film
1996 1996 Summer Olympics Opening Ceremony TV special
1999 Tuesdays with Morrie TV film
2002 The 74th Annual Academy Awards TV special
2007 The 79th Annual Academy Awards TV special

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Dickey, Josh L.; Sneider, Jeff (June 7, 2012). "'Django' prod'n designer Riva dies at 63". Variety. Retrieved June 8, 2012.
  2. ^ "Screen Gem - Los Angeles Times". Los Angeles Times.
  3. ^ Country Home, Volume 25, Issues 1-6, p.100
  4. ^ Reynolds, Simon (June 8, 2012). "'Django Unchained' production designer J Michael Riva dies, aged 63". Digital Spy. Retrieved June 8, 2012.

http://vimeo.com/3559547

External links

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