The Easy Rider filmmaker passed away from natural causes on Monday (12Dec11), his daughter Audrey Simon has confirmed.
The New York native, who was the son of former Columbia Pictures president Abraham Schneider, started his television and film career in the 1960s.
Teaming up with Bob Rafelson to form Raybert Productions, one of Schneider’s first projects was to create sitcom The Monkees, which followed a fictional rock band.
The group went on to be a successful international pop act, and helped Schneider and Rafelson break into feature films.
His first major success was 1969’s iconic movie Easy Rider, starring Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper, and he also made 1970 movie Five Easy Pieces, starring Jack Nicholson.
Schneider and Rafelson went on to create films including The Last Picture Show and The King of Marvin Gardens, while Schneider also won a Best Documentary Oscar for 1974’s Hearts and Minds, about opposition to the Vietnam War.
Schneider married four times throughout his life, and once dated actress Candice Bergen.
