David V Picker

Early life

Picker was born to a Jewish family in New York City on May 14, 1931. His father, Eugene Picker, was a film pioneer and movie theatre executive of Loew’s Theaters. David V. Picker attended Dartmouth College. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1953.

Early career

Picker began his movie career at United Artists in 1956. There, he worked in advertising and publicity. By 1961 he was an assistant to the president. By the late ‘60s Picker was managing United Artists Records. Picker helped bring Tom Jones to United Artists in 1963. The film received four Academy Awards, including best picture and best director for Tony Richardson. In 1964, Picker accepted the award on behalf of Tony Richardson, who was not in attendance.

United Artists Corporation 1969-1973

Picker became chief operating officer and president of United Artists Corporation in 1969. He became CEO in 1970. During his time as president, Picker was responsible for a deal with producers Harry Saltzman and Albert Broccoli for the James Bond series which launched the most successful franchise in cinema history. During his time at United Artists, Picker brought the Beatles' A Hard Day's Night and Help! to the company, as well as Midnight Cowboy and Last Tango in Paris. Picker helped bring writer and director Woody Allen to United Artists in addition to European filmmakers Federico Fellini, Ingmar Bergman, François Truffaut, Louis Malle, and Sergio Leone.

1973-1993

In 1973, Picker left United Artists to form his own production company, Two Roads Productions. At Two Roads Productions, Picker produced Juggernaut and Lenny in 1974 and Smile in 1975. Lenny became a critical success and was nominated for six Academy Awards. In 1976 David V. Picker became President of Motion Pictures at Paramount but served for only a few years. During this time, he helped develop or greenlit Saturday Night Fever, Grease, and the 1980 Academy Award winner, Ordinary People. Upon leaving Paramount in 1979, Picker then partnered with comedian Steve Martin to produce The Jerk in 1979, Dead Men Don’t Wear Plaid in 1982, and The Man With Two Brains in 1983. In the mid ’80s, Picker took over as President of Feature Films at Lorimar Productions. As president, he developed and supervised the films S.O.B., Being There, and Escape to Victory. Columbia Pictures named David V. Picker as president in the 1980s. While at Columbia, Picker greenlit Hope and Glory, School Daze, Vice Versa, Punchline, and True Believer. By the mid ’80s, Picker was independently producing again. He worked with Harry Belafonte to produce Beat Street. During this period he produced other films, including a remake of Stella Dallas called Stella, starring Bette Midler.

1993 to present

Picker produced The Saint of Fort Washington for Warner Bros. in 1993 and The Crucible for Twentieth Century Fox in 1996. In 1997, Picker became president of Hallmark Entertainment Productions Worldwide. He agreed to bring the company into feature films. From 2004 to 2008 Picker served as chairman of The Producers Guild of America for the East. Picker's memoir about his career in the film industry, Musts, Maybes and Nevers, was released in 2013.

Awards and honors

Charles Fitzsimmons Award, the Producers Guild of America 2008. Academy Award - The Appointments of Dennis Jennings, Live Action Short Film, Producer 1998 The Producer Award, The Gotham Awards, 1998

Personal life

Picker's sister is Jean PIcker Firstenberg, past CEO and Director of the American Film Institute. He is married to Sandra Jetton. They live in New York City.