Legendary casting director Dougherty dies

Marion Dougherty died in New York from natural causes on Sunday (04Dec11). She was 88.

The legendary casting director helped Hollywood abandon its system of stock casting by choosing more individual performers for certain parts.

She started out as an uncredited casting agent for Kraft Television Theatre, and helped start the careers of Dean and Hoffman on TV dramas.

Dougherty moved to Hollywood in the 1970s and later took on a role at Warner Bros. She stayed with the company for three decades and discovered the likes of Glenn Close, Diane Lane, Danny Glover, Matthew McConaughey and Brooke Shields.

Among the legendary films she cast were Escape From Alcatraz, The Killing Fields, Gorillas in the Mist, Batman and the Lethal Weapon series.