What Was Robert Evans' Net Worth?
Robert Evans was an American actor, producer, author, and studio executive who had a net worth of $50 million at the time of his death in October 2019.
A very successful producer, Robert Evans turned Paramount Studios around in the late '60s and '70s, producing such films as "Barefoot in the Park" (1967), "Rosemary's Baby" (1968), "The Godfather" (1972), and "The Great Gatsby"(1974). His career spanned nearly 60 years, and his other production credits include the films "Marathon Man" (1976), "Black Sunday" (1977), "Urban Cowboy" (1980), "The Cotton Club" (1984), "The Out-of-Towners" (1999), and "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days" (2003). Robert also created, executive produced, and voiced himself in the 2003 animated Comedy Central series "Kid Notorious." As an actor, Evans appeared in films such as "The Sun Also Rises" (1957), "The Best of Everything" (1959), and "Cannes Man" (1996).
His career was launched in November 1956 after being spotted by Canadian actress Norma Shearer next to The Beverly Hills Hotel pool. Norma recommended Robert for the role of her late husband, Irving Thalberg, in 1957's "Man of a Thousand Faces." Evans got his start as a producer at Paramount by purchasing the rights to the 1966 Roderick Thorp novel "The Detective," which he turned into a 1968 movie starring Frank Sinatra, Jacqueline Bisset, and Lee Remick. To satisfy Robert's desire to produce indie films, he went on to later strike a deal with Paramount that enabled him to stay on as studio head but also work as an independent producer. Robert published the autobiography "The Kid Stays in the Picture" in 1994, and a documentary of the same name was released in 2002. Evans passed away on October 26, 2019, at the age of 89.
Early Life
Robert Evans was born Robert J. Shapera on June 29, 1930, in New York City. Robert was the son of homemaker Florence Krasne and dentist Archie Shapera, and he described them as "second-generation Jews." He was raised on the Upper West Side, and he had an older brother named Charles, who founded the fashion company Evan-Picone. Robert did promotional work for the company, and after high school, he took jobs doing voice work on the radio, performing in an estimated 300+ radio shows before the age of 18.
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Career
Evans appeared in the films "Lydia Bailey" (1952) and "The Egyptian" (1954) before actress Norma Shearer spotted him at The Beverly Hills Hotel and recommended him for the role of Irving Thalberg, her late husband, in the 1957 film "Man of a Thousand Faces." Also in 1957, Robert played Pedro Romero in the film adaptation of the 1926 Ernest Hemingway novel "The Sun Also Rises." He then appeared in the films "The Fiend Who Walked the West" (1958) and "The Best of Everything" (1959). Evans wanted to become a producer, so he bought the rights to the Roderick Thorp novel "The Detective" and made it into a 1968 neo-noir film. He caught the attention of Charles Bluhdorn, the head of the company that owned Paramount, who hired him as the movie studio's head of production. Paramount was the ninth-largest studio at the time, and Robert was instrumental in making it Hollywood's most successful studio. During his eight years as Paramount's head of production, the studio released films such as "Barefoot in the Park" (1967), "The Odd Couple" (1968), "Rosemary's Baby" (1968), "The Italian Job" (1969), "True Grit" (1969), "Love Story" (1970), "Plaza Suite" (1971), "Harold and Maude" (1971), "The Godfather" (1972), "Serpico" (1973), and "The Great Gatsby" (1974).
After producing 1974's "Chinatown," which earned Robert an Academy Award nomination, he left his position as Paramount's head of production, but his production company, Robert Evans Productions, stayed under contract with the studio until 2019. He went on to produce more than a dozen films, including "Marathon Man" (1976), "Black Sunday" (1977), "Urban Cowboy" (1980), "The Cotton Club" (1984), "Sliver" (1993), "The Saint" (1997), and "The Out-of-Towners" (1999). His final film as a producer was the 2003 romantic comedy "How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days," which grossed $177.5 million at the box office. In the '90s, he appeared in the films "Cannes Man" (1996) and "An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn" (1997), and in 2000, he guest-starred on "Just Shoot Me!" and lent his voice to an episode of "The Simpsons." Evans created the 2003 animated series "Kid Notorious," which aired nine episodes on Comedy Central and received a Satellite Award nomination for Best Television Series, Comedy or Musical. In 2004, he hosted "In Bed with Robert Evans" on Sirius Satellite Radio. In his later years, Robert appeared in the 2013 film "The Girl from Nagasaki" and the 2015 Kodaline music video "Ready."
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Personal Life
Robert married seven times between 1961 and 2005. He was married to Sharon Hugueny from May 1961 to June 1962, and after their divorce, he wed Camilla Sparv in September 1964. Evans and Sparv divorced in early 1967. Robert married actress Ali MacGraw in October 1969, and they welcomed son Josh (born January 16, 1971) before divorcing in June 1973. Josh is an actor, producer, writer, and director. Evans' fourth wife was sportscaster/actress Phyllis George, who he was married to from April 1977 to July 1978. Next, he wed actress Catherine Oxenberg in July 1998, but the marriage was annulled nine days later. Robert married Leslie Ann Woodward in December 2002, and after their July 2004 divorce, he wed his seventh and final wife, Lady Victoria White (the widow of Gordon White, Baron White of Hull) in August 2005. Evans and White divorced in July 2006.
In 1980, Robert was convicted of cocaine trafficking after pleading guilty to a misdemeanor charge. He and his brother, Charles, had allegedly taken part in a large cocaine buy, and Evans had to film an anti-drug commercial as part of his plea deal. Robert denied that he was a drug dealer and said that he was just a user of the drug. In a 1994 interview with the "Philadelphia Inquirer," he stated, "Bob 'Cocaine' Evans is how I'll be known to my grave."
Health and Death
During a dinner party in honor of Wes Craven's birthday in May 1998, Robert had a stroke while he was giving a toast. He flatlined in the ambulance on the way to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, but he was resuscitated. According to "The New York Times," Evans "suffered three strokes in rapid succession. Their combined effects were so debilitating that it was not clear whether Mr. Evans would ever walk, talk or chase women again." The strokes caused paralysis on the right side of his face, and he was unable to speak. Robert's friend Sumner Redstone sat at his bedside in the hospital and encouraged him to work on his speech. A few days after Evans entered Cedars-Sinai, Frank Sinatra passed away from a heart attack in an adjoining room, which made Robert more determined to recover. Evans was eventually able to speak again, and he returned to producing. By 2013, he had limited mobility and used a cane for short walks. On October 26, 2019, Robert passed away at the age of 89. No cause of death was given.
Awards and Nominations
In 1975, Evans earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture for "Chinatown." He received a Lifetime Achievement Award in Motion Pictures at the 2003 PGA Awards, and three years earlier, he had been inducted into the PGA Hall of Fame – Motion Pictures for "Chinatown." In 1977, Robert won a David di Donatello Award for Best Foreign Film (Miglior Film Straniero) for "Marathon Man," and he received the Showmanship Award for Motion Picture at the ICG Publicists Awards. In 1981, he earned an Academy of Country Music Award nomination for Country Movie of the Year for "Urban Cowboy." Evans received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2002, and the following year he was honored with the Mary Pickford Award at the Satellite Awards and a Lifetime Achievement Award at the Palm Beach International Film Festival.
"Woodland" Beverly Hills Mansion
In the 1960s, Evans paid $290,000 for a mansion in Beverly Hills, California. The mansion, which he named "Woodland," was his home for the next two decades. Unfortunately in the 1980s, following a drug conviction and a career low-point, Robert was forced to sell the mansion. He regretted the sale immediately and was so desperate to re-acquire the home, he enlisted friends like Jack Nicholson to help him convince the buyer to sell it back. Amazingly, Nicholson flew to France to meet the buyer in person and reportedly got down on a knee and begged him to sell the home back to Evans. Nicholson was successful, and Robert lived in the home until his death in October 2019. In January 2020, his estate sold the home to media honcho David Zaslav for $16 million.
