Gale Anne Hurd

File:Gale Anne Hurd - Star.jpg star, 2012]]

Gale Anne Hurd was born on October 25, 1955, in Los Angeles, California. She is the daughter of Lolita (née Jordan) and Frank E. Hurd, an investor.{{cite web|url=http://www.filmreference.com/film/76/Gale-Anne-Hurd.html |title=Gale Anne Hurd Biography (1955–) |website=Filmreference.com |access-date=June 7, 2012}} She grew up in Los Angeles and Palm Springs, California and graduated from Palm Springs High School in 1973.{{cite news | url=https://www.desertsun.com/story/life/entertainment/movies/film-festival/2018/01/10/walking-dead-producer-returns-home-present-mankiller-palm-springs-festival/1022762001/ | title='Walking Dead' producer returns home to present 'Mankiller' at Palm Springs festival | first=Bruce | last=Fessier | work=The Desert Sun | date=January 10, 2018 | access-date=February 19, 2019}} Hurd attended Stanford University, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in economics and communications with a minor in political science in 1977.{{cite news| url=https://variety.com/2007/dirt/real-estalker/gale-anne-hurd-and-jonathan-hensleighs-pasadena-palace-1201226201/ | title=Gale Anne Hurd and Jonathan Hensleigh's Pasadena Palace | work=Variety | first=Mark | last=David | date=May 23, 2007 | access-date=February 19, 2019}}

Early Career

Hurd began her career in the entertainment industry as an executive assistant to Roger Corman at New World Pictures. She quickly rose through the ranks, becoming involved in various aspects of production,{{cite web|url=http://www.mediabistro.com/articles/details.asp?aID=11890& |title=So What do You Do, Gale Anne Hurd, Executive Producer of the Walking Dead? |publisher=Mediabistro |date=August 14, 2013 |first=Janelle |last=Harris |access-date=October 15, 2014 }} and became the head of marketing. After co-producing her first film for Corman, Smokey Bites the Dust (1981), she launched her own production company in 1982.

Breakthrough

Hurd's breakthrough came when she produced and co-wrote the 1984 science fiction film The Terminator, directed by James Cameron. The film was a commercial success{{Cite web |title=The Terminator |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0088247/ |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=Box Office Mojo}} and established Hurd as a prominent producer in Hollywood. The Terminator is Hurd's only real writing credit in her entire career. She subsequently worked only as a producer or executive producer. She continued her collaboration with Cameron on Aliens (1986) and The Abyss (1989), both of which were successes at the box office.{{Cite web |title=Aliens |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0090605/?ref_=bo_se_r_1 |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=Box Office Mojo}}{{Cite web |title=The Abyss |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0096754/?ref_=bo_se_r_2 |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=Box Office Mojo}}

1990s and 2000s

Throughout the 1990s and 2000s, Hurd produced a variety of successful films including Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991), which became the second Terminator film to be added to the National Film Registry by the US Library of Congress in 2024,{{Cite web |title=25 Films Selected for Preservation in National Film Registry |url=https://newsroom.loc.gov/news/25-films-selected-for-preservation-in-national-film-registry/s/aa4bef48-95f6-486f-882d-110613633b1e |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=The NewsMarket |language=en}} The Ghost and the Darkness (1996) and Armageddon (1998). Terminator 2 and Armageddon both claimed the top spots at the worldwide box office in their respective release years,{{Cite web |title=Armageddon |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0120591/?ref_=bo_se_r_1 |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=Box Office Mojo}}{{Cite web |title=Terminator 2: Judgment Day |url=https://www.boxofficemojo.com/title/tt0103064/?ref_=bo_se_r_1 |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=Box Office Mojo}} solidifying Hurd's enduring influence in the realm of blockbuster cinema. Her additional major studio credits in the 90s and 2000s include Tremors (1990), The Waterdance (1992), Hulk (2003), The Punisher, Æon Flux (2005), The Incredible Hulk (2008) and many others. She also expanded into television with titles such as Falling Water (2016–18).

In 2010, Hurd became an executive producer for the AMC television series The Walking Dead. The show, based on the comic book series of the same name, became a cultural phenomenon and one of the highest-rated series in cable television history.{{Cite web |last=Porter |first=Rick |date=2022-11-19 |title='The Walking Dead' by the Numbers: One of Cable's Biggest Ever Series Bows Out |url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/tv/tv-news/walking-dead-by-the-numbers-ratings-amc-1235265635/ |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=The Hollywood Reporter |language=en-US}} Hurd’s work on The Walking Dead earned her critical acclaim and numerous awards.{{Cite web |title=Gale Anne Hurd - Executive Producer {{!}} The Walking Dead Bios {{!}} AMC |url=https://www.amc.com/shows/the-walking-dead/cast/gale-anne-hurd--1033111 |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=www.amc.com |language=en}} In addition, Hurd is an executive producer for all of the series' spin-offs including Fear The Walking Dead (2015–23), Daryl Dixon (2023–present), The Ones Who Live (2024) and Dead City (2023–present).

Documentaries

Hurd has also produced several documentaries including three PBS documentaries focused on Native Americans in partnership with Cherokee director, Valerie Red-Horse Mohl: True Whispers: The Story of the Navajo Code Talkers and Choctaw Code Talkers as well as Mankiller, celebrating the life of the late Wilma Mankiller, the first woman elected Principal Chief of the Cherokee Nation.

Hurd's most recent documentary is The YouTube Effect, directed by Alex Winter, which delves into YouTube, a site with humble origins that has gone on to change how we experience the world. The film premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival{{Cite web |title=The YouTube Effect {{!}} 2022 Tribeca Festival |url=https://tribecafilm.com/films/youtube-effect-2022 |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=Tribeca}} and was released in the US theatrically by Alamo Drafthouse Films.{{Cite web |last=Gutelle |first=Sam |date=2023-08-04 |title='The YouTube Effect' documentary arrives on streaming on August 8 |url=https://www.tubefilter.com/2023/08/04/the-youtube-effect-documentary-available-streaming-alex-winter-film-tribeca-premiere/ |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=Tubefilter |language=en-US}}

In 1985, Hurd married James Cameron following their collaboration on The Terminator. They divorced in 1989.{{Cite web |title=Linda Hamilton Says James Cameron's On-Set Affair Didn't End Their Marriage — Best Life |url=https://bestlifeonline.com/linda-hamilton-james-cameron-affair/ |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=bestlifeonline.com |language=en}} Hurd then married Brian De Palma, with whom she had a daughter, Lolita De Palma.{{Cite web |last=Dutka |first=Elaine |date=1992-08-02 |title=De Palma and Hurd, Made for Each Other |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-08-02-ca-5565-story.html |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}}

Hurd is an active philanthropist and advocate for various causes. She is involved with organizations such as Women In Film, The Smithsonian Institution, and The Producers Guild of America, where she has served on the board of directors.

Hurd has shared her expertise and perspectives at panels hosted by the US Embassies in Peru, Iceland, Georgia, Estonia, North Macedonia and Zimbabwe, among others. She has also addressed audiences at the EuroImages Conference in Helsinki, Finland,{{Cite web |date=2019-01-17 |title=Frontières 2019: Project Lineup, Awards, Gale Anne Hurd for Finance and Packaging Forum in Helsinki |url=https://screenanarchy.com/2019/01/frontieres-2019-project-line-up-finance-packaging-forum-in-helsinki.html |access-date=2024-10-30 |website=ScreenAnarchy}} as well as in Tallinn, Estonia at the Black Nights Film Festival, and the AVP/Summit in Trieste, Italy, representing Women in Film & Television International (WIFTI). She remains active with several organizations and groups, underscoring her dedication to various causes. These include the League of Conservation Voters, the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington, and the McCain Institute.

File:Gale Ann Hurd and James Cameron.jpg, James Cameron and Hurd]]

She was producer for all films unless otherwise noted.

She was executive producer for all films unless otherwise noted.

Hurd has received numerous awards and accolades throughout her career, including:

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• [https://www.twitter.com/gunnergale Official Twitter page]
• [http://www.valhallamotionpictures.com Official company website] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200419020859/https://www.valhallamotionpictures.com/ |date=April 19, 2020 }}

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{{David O. Selznick Achievement Award in Theatrical Motion Pictures}}

{{Saturn Award for Best Writing 1973–1990}}

{{The President's Memorial Award}}

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Category:1955 births

Category:20th-century American screenwriters

Category:20th-century American women writers

Category:Film producers from Los Angeles

Category:American people of Jewish descent

Category:Television producers from California

Category:American women television producers

Category:American women screenwriters

Category:Living people

Category:Stanford University alumni

Category:American women film producers

Category:Screenwriters from Los Angeles

Category:21st-century American women