Gerald R. Molen

Gerald Robert "Jerry" Molen (born January 6, 1935) is an American film producer. He has worked closely with Steven Spielberg, having produced five of his films, and won an Academy Award for co-producing Schindler's List. Molen is now semi-retired and spends his time alternating between Montana and Las Vegas, Nevada.^[1]

Life and career

Molen was born in Great Falls, Montana, the son of Edith Lorraine (née Meyer) and Gerald Richard Molen.^[2] He grew up in North Hollywood, California, after moving from Montana, with a number of younger brothers and sisters. His mother ran a diner, "The Blue Onion", which was located across from one of the major studios. Molen got his start in the movie business by changing tires on studio trucks.

Molen has appeared in supporting roles or cameos in several of the films he has produced, including Rain Man, Days of Thunder, and Jurassic Park. The name 'Molen' can be seen painted on the front of a large black cauldron in the movie Hook as the camera pans across the pirate docks in Neverland.

Molen produced 2016: Obama's America, a documentary film critical of the American President Barack Obama, during the 2012 presidential campaign.^[3][4]

In 2012 Molen was prohibited from speaking to high school students in Montana by the principal who described him as a "right-wing conservative." The cancellation of his presentation resulted in widespread criticism of the principal. The school district superintendent regretted the principal's decision saying, "...that's not how we treat people."^[5]

In 2016 when a second consecutive year of an all-white Oscar nominee list brought accusations of discrimination in Hollywood and the threat of an Oscar boycott, Molen called the idea of a boycott "ridiculous." "There is no racism except for those who create an issue,” he said. “That is the worst kind. Using such an ugly way of complaining.”^[6]

Molen is a current active member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.^[7]

Filmography

• Tootsie (1982) (unit production manager)
• A Soldier's Story (1983) (unit production manager)
• The Color Purple (1985) (unit production manager)
• *batteries not included (1987) (associate producer)
• Rain Man (1988) (co-producer)
• Days of Thunder (1990) (executive producer)
• Hook (1991) (producer)
• Jurassic Park (1993) (producer)
• Schindler's List (1993) (producer)
• The Flintstones (1994) (executive producer)
• Casper (1995) (executive producer)
• The Trigger Effect (1996) (executive producer)
• Twister (1996) (executive producer)
• The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997) (producer)
• The Other Side of Heaven (2001) (producer)
• Minority Report (2002) (producer)
• The Legend of Johnny Lingo (2003) (producer)
• Beyond the Blackboard (2011) (executive producer)
• 2016: Obama's America (2012) (producer)
• America: Imagine the World Without Her (2014) (producer)
• The Abolitionists (2015) (producer)

References

External links

• Gerald R. Molen at the Internet Movie Database