Jeff Dowd

He was a member of the "Seattle Seven",{{cite news | first=Guy | last=Raz | title=The Dude: A Little Lebowski, Alive in All of Us | date=May 25, 2008 | publisher=National Public Radio | url =https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=90725993 | work =All Things Considered | access-date = July 23, 2009 }} who were jailed for contempt of court following a violent protest against the Vietnam War. He later moved to Los Angeles and became an independent movie producer and promoter, producing such films as Zebrahead.{{cite web|work=The New York Times|title=Zebrahead (1992) Review/Film Festival: Zebrahead; A Racial Chameleon In a Hidebound World|first=Janet|last=Maslin|author-link=Janet Maslin|date=October 8, 1992|url=https://www.nytimes.com/movie/review?res=9E0CE5D91030F93BA35753C1A964958260}} He met the Coen brothers while they were promoting their first film, Blood Simple, and was a key (though not the only) inspiration for their character Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski from The Big Lebowski.{{cite news|first=Jennifer |last=Sullivan |title="The Dude" abides on light rail |date=July 21, 2009 |url=http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009512896_webthedude21m.html |work=The Seattle Times |access-date=July 23, 2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090725120430/http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2009512896_webthedude21m.html |archive-date=July 25, 2009 }}

In 2009, Dowd was involved in an altercation with movie critic John Anderson at the Sundance Film Festival, after Anderson panned Dirt! The Movie (Dowd was the film's sales agent).{{cite web|last1=Ramos|first1=Steve|title=Critic Hits Dude at Sundance|url=http://www.vulture.com/2009/01/critic_hits_dude_at_sundance.html|website=Vulture|date=January 21, 2009 |publisher=www.vulture.com}} Anderson was eating breakfast when Dowd reportedly confronted him, and then incited a food fight and brief melee at the Yarrow Hotel Restaurant. Dowd did not press charges.{{cite web|last1=Thompson|first1=Anne|title=Sundance Watch|url=http://www.indiewire.com/2009/01/sundance-watch-john-anderson-pounds-jeff-dowd-186758/|website=Indiewire|date=January 21, 2009 |publisher=www.Indiewire.com}}

In 2011, Dowd was the subject of an 18-minute documentary-short directed by Jeff Feuerzeig and broadcast on the USA Network as part of its "Character" series.{{cite web|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/video/archive/2012/08/the-dude/261667/|title=The Dude Who Inspired 'The Dude' in the Coen Brothers' 'The Big Lebowski' |last=Cieplak-Mayr von Baldegg|first=Kasia|date=August 28, 2012|publisher=The Atlantic|access-date=September 2, 2012}}

• FernGully: The Last Rainforest (1992) (co-executive producer)
• Zebrahead (1992) (producer)
• Cement (1999) (co-executive producer)
• The Last Game (2002) (TV) (executive producer)
• Ocean of Pearls (2008) (executive producer)

{{Reflist}}

• {{IMDb name|id=0235669|name=Jeff Dowd}}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20120717051256/http://www.farfromglory.com/jeff_dowd_fortune.htm The Dude's Film School]

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Category:1949 births

Category:Living people

Category:Film producers from Washington (state)

Category:American anti–Vietnam War activists