Andy Albeck, head of United Artists in the late 1970s who oversaw triumph with "Raging Bull" and massive failure with "Heaven's Gate," has died. He was 89.
Albeck died last Wednesday at NYU Hospital in New York.
He was named president and CEO of United Artists in 1978 after more than 30 years there. He worked with the likes of Martin Scorsese and Francis Ford Coppola during his long tenure, a time that included the the 1980 Western "Heaven's Gate" — such a catastrophic flop that it changed the way studios do business.
After the Kris Kristofferson and Christopher Walken film with a $40 million budget earned less than $3 million, studios began insisting on more control over directors.
But Albeck also backed "Raging Bull," Scorsese's double Oscar winner.
He is survived by his wife, a son and daughter, and several grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
