Lee Caplin

Caplin was born in New York City to Mortimer Caplin, a prominent tax attorney and founder of Caplin & Drysdale, and screenwriter, Ruth Sacks Caplin. He is the grandson of Daniel Caplin, New York City teacher and fight manager, and the great-nephew of Jewish gangster Nathan Kaplan.

Caplin moved with his family to Charlottesville, VA in 1951 when his father accepted a professorship at the University of Virginia School of Law. In 1961, his father was appointed Commissioner of Internal Revenue under the Kennedy Administration, and the family again relocated to Washington, DC.{{Cite web |url=http://millercenter.org/presidentialclassroom/exhibits/presidents-and-tax-policy#kennedy |title=Presidents and Tax Policy—Miller Center |access-date=2015-10-10 |archive-date=2015-07-03 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150703162502/http://millercenter.org/presidentialclassroom/exhibits/presidents-and-tax-policy#kennedy |url-status=dead }}{{Cite magazine|url=https://content.time.com/time/covers/0,16641,19630201,00.html|title=TIME Magazine Cover: Mortimer M. Caplin – Feb. 1, 1963|magazine=Time}}{{Cite magazine|url=http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,829745,00.html|title=Taxes: Enter Balance Due Here|magazine=Time|date=February 1, 1963|via=content.time.com}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.washingtonian.com/2013/10/30/ask-not-jfks-continuing-lure-of-government-service/|title="Ask Not": The Shift in Public Service Since JFK's Famous Appeal | Washingtonian (DC)|date=October 30, 2013}} Caplin graduated from St. Albans School in 1965. He went on to earn his Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Duke University in 1969, and his Juris Doctor from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1972, where he was an editor of the Law Review.{{Cite web|url=https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/leecaplin59|title=Lee Caplin|website=Smashwords}}

Upon earning his Juris Doctor, Caplin was special counsel to Common Cause and oversaw Appellate litigation enforcing the Clean Water Act with the Environmental Protection Agency.

Caplin worked as a Special Assistant Chairman with the National Endowment for the Arts. In conjunction with the U.S. Small Business Administration, in developing The Business of Art and the Artist, a national program designed to teach business skills to America's artists. This effort culminated in Prentice Hall Trade publishing Caplin's textbook, The Business of Art, a 3-time bestseller.{{Cite web|url=https://www.barnesandnoble.com/noresults/the-business-of-art-lee-caplin/1002925180|title=BN No Results Page|first=Barnes &|last=Noble|website=Barnes & Noble}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.artvilla.com/br00102.htm|title=The Business of Art by Lee Caplin Review|website=Artvilla.com}} Caplin's publishing companies have produced over 200 titles of illustrated educational and children's books.

Caplin founded Picture Entertainment Corporation (PEC) in 1984. Beginning with projects like The Great American Art Game and Andy Warhol: Made in China,[https://web.archive.org/web/20160307024429/http://www.nytimes.com/movies/movie/433927/Andy-Warhol-Made-in-China/credits The New York Times Movies] Caplin went on to executive produce Ali, starring Will Smith, with Sony Pictures Entertainment and Columbia Pictures in 2001. Will Smith and Jon Voight both received Academy Award nominations for their performances.

In 2005, Caplin's mother, Ruth Sacks Caplin, wrote an adaptation of a 1971 Elizabeth Taylor novel. Caplin purchased the film rights and produced Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont, directed by Dan Ireland, starring Academy Award-nominated Joan Plowright opposite Rupert Friend in the title roles. Stephen Hunter of The Washington Post described Plowright's performance as "possibly her best role in the flickers," and Roger Ebert called the film "a delight…in ways both expected and rare."[https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/ruth-sacks-caplin-screenwriter-of-mrs-palfrey-at-the-claremont-dies-at-93/2014/08/08/590c751e-1e4e-11e4-82f9-2cd6fa8da5c4_story.html Ruth Sacks Caplin, screenwriter of ‘Mrs. Palfrey at the Claremont,’ dies at 93 – The Washington Post]

PEC has evolved into a multifaceted operation spanning the entertainment, literary, and sports industries. PEC's subsidiary, Picture Entertainment Sports,{{Cite web |url=http://pictureentertainmentsports.com/about-pes/ |title=About Us | |access-date=2015-10-10 |archive-date=2016-01-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160119144242/http://pictureentertainmentsports.com/about-pes/ |url-status=dead }} focuses on Pay Per View boxing, mixed martial arts, and soccer.

Caplin is the Executor of the Literary State of Nobel Prize, author William Faulkner. In this role, he produces motion picture, television, and theatrical productions based on Faulkner's works, and oversees the development of the William Faulkner brand.{{Cite news|url=https://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424127887324328904578621821045072476.html|title=William Faulkner's Heirs Aim to Preserve His Legacy and Profit From It|first=Stefanie|last=Cohen|newspaper=Wall Street Journal|date=July 26, 2013|via=www.wsj.com}}

In 2003, Caplin granted the rights to Aaron Schneider to bring Faulkner's 1942 short story, Two Soldiers, to the screen. Schneider's adaptation went on to win the Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film at the 76th Academy Awards.{{Cite web|url=https://www.popmatters.com/two-soldiers-2003-2496230628.html|title=Two Soldiers (2003), PopMatters|first=Erik|last=Hinton|date=16 July 2007}}

In 2013, Caplin produced James Franco's directorial debut, As I Lay Dying, adapted from Faulkner's 1930 novel of the same name The film premiered at the 66th Annual Cannes Film Festival.{{Cite web|url=https://variety.com/2013/film/global/cannes-film-review-as-i-lay-dying-1200484419/|title=Cannes Film Review: 'As I Lay Dying'|first1=Leslie|last1=Felperin|date=May 20, 2013}} In 2014, Caplin partnered with James Franco once more to produce The Sound and the Fury (2014 film), the second film adaptation of Faulkner's 1929 novel of the same name. The film was selected to screen out of competition at the 71st Annual Venice International Film Festival.{{Cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2014/09/james-franco-sound-and-the-fury-venice-film-festival-exclusive-video-827503/|title=Hot Venice Clip: James Franco's 'The Sound And The Fury'|first1=Nancy|last1=Tartaglione|date=September 1, 2014}}

Caplin co-produces HBO's True Detective. The critically acclaimed series has been nominated for numerous awards, and has won the Primetime Emmy Awardfor Outstanding Main Title Design, Outstanding Cinematography, Outstanding Makeup, Outstanding Casting, and Outstanding Directing.{{Citation needed|date=August 2019}} True Detective received a Golden Globe Award nomination for Best Mini-Series or Motion Picture Made for Television, and Woody Harrelson, Matthew McConaughey, and Michelle Monaghan received nominations for their Season 1 performances.{{Citation needed|date=August 2019}}

Caplin was a Founding Faculty member of the California State University at Monterey Bay (CSUMB). He, with Luis Valdez, established CSUMB's Cinematic Arts & Technology department.{{Cite web|url=https://csumb.edu/cinearts/|title=Cinematic Arts & Technology|website=Cal State Monterey Bay}} He continues to lecture and offer courses in film and television, communications, art, business, and law. Caplin is co-owner of Keystone Studios, the successor to America's first motion picture studio, founded by Mack Sennett in 1912.

Caplin currently resides in Los Angeles with his wife, concert pianist Gita Karasik,{{Cite web|url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1985-06-08-ca-7383-story.html|title=CAREER 'WAS FOREIGN' : FOR GITA KARASIK, MUSIC IS WAY OF LIFE|date=June 8, 1985|website=Los Angeles Times}} whom he married in 1975. Together, they have one son, Daniel Alexander (born 1988).

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Category:Duke University Trinity College of Arts and Sciences alumni

Category:University of Virginia School of Law alumni

Category:Living people

Category:Film producers from California

Category:20th-century American Jews

Category:California State University, Monterey Bay faculty

Category:1946 births

Category:St. Albans School (Washington, D.C.) alumni

Category:American chief executives

Category:21st-century American Jews