John McTiernan is an American director best known for his films "Predator" and "Die Hard".
Early years
Director John McTiernan was born on January 8, 1951 in Albany (USA). Since childhood, he was involved in theatrical art. His father was an opera singer, and at the age of seven, John began acting in the theater, playing small roles in his parent's productions.
After graduating from high school, McTiernan entered the Juilliard School to study theater directing, but quickly realized that he was more interested in filmmaking. After transferring from Juilliard to the State University of New York, he received a fellowship from the American Film Institute. During his studies, he also received a grant to complete his student project, the film Watcher.
Then he worked as a designer and technical director of the Manhattan School of Music. After leaving school, McTiernan began to try his hand at writing and directing commercials. At the same time, he was writing his first screenplay for the upcoming film "The Tramps".
Filmography
John McTiernan made his feature film directorial debut in1986 with the film "The Tramps", where the main role was played by Pierce Brosnan (the first major film role in Brosnan's career). After making a good impression at the Cannes Film Festival, with neither commercial success nor critical acclaim, McTiernan directs the sci-fi action movie Predator starring Arnold Schwarzenegger. The project became a hit, attracted the attention of all Hollywood to McTiernan. In the wake of the success of this film, he made two more hits: "Die Hard" with Bruce Willis and "The Hunt for Red October" with Alec Baldwin and Sean Connery. "Die Hard" was a huge commercial success, received first-class reviews from critics and became one of the most successful films of 1988.
In 1992, McTiernan teamed up with Sean Connery to film The Witch Doctor in Mexico. The film flopped heavily at the box office. The director could not regain his position until 1995, when the film "Die Hard 3: Retribution" was released. Before the end of the 20th century, McTiernan managed to shoot two more blockbusters: "The Thirteenth Warrior" and "The Thomas Crown Affair".
In 1997, John McTiernan received the James Franklin Award for Excellence in Directing from the American Film Institute.
Private life
John McTiernan was married four times.
- McTiernan's first marriage was the longest of his life so far. With Carol Land, he lived happily for 12 years: from December 12, 1973 to 1986.
- In 1987, he started dating Donna Dubrow. They married in 1988 after a year of relationship. Their marriage lasted 9 years, after which the couple divorced in 1997.
- John's next love was Kate Harington. This marriage also lasted 9 years: from December 19, 2002 to 2012.
- The actor is currently married to Gail Sistrank. The wedding took place in 2012, and to this day they are happily married.
Criminal charges, convictions and detentions
April 3, 2006, John McTiernan was charged with perjury and perjury to an FBI investigator in the case of his hiring private investigator Anthony Pellicano to illegally wiretap two people, one of whom was Charles Roven, his co-producer on sci-fi Rollerball movie.
McTiernan faced over 5 years in prison on various charges. However, in 2010, John pleaded guilty, and Judge Fisher reversed his decision, sentencing him to one year in prison, three years of supervised probation, and a $100,000 fine. The director spent a period in federal prison from April 2013 to February 2014. During his imprisonment in October 2013, he filed for bankruptcy and is now struggling to pay all sorts of legal fees and back taxes.
The last completed project of the director was the thriller Clayton Base, released in 2003.
