Richard Donner

Born: April 24 1930
Where: New York, USA

The former actor is probably best known for the Lethal Weapon series starring Mel Gibson and Danny Glover.

However, he was also handed the reins of Superman, the movie - helped by state-of-the art sfx - that sparked the craze for superheroes on the big screen.

A former Off-Broadway actor who began directing commercials and industrial films in the late 1950s, Donner caught his first big break directing Steve McQueen in the TV series Wanted: Dead or Alive.

Throughout the 60s and into the 70s, he helmed numerous episodes of classic shows, including The Man From U.N.C.L.E and The Fugitive.

He also dabbled in feature work - his low-budget directorial debut X-15 and 1961's Salt and Pepper.

Donner scored his first commercial if not critical success with The Omen and followed that with the enjoyable box-office smash Superman in 1978.

After that success of Superman, he attempted a film with more substance, Inside Moves, an offbeat picture examining a suicide survivor's recovery.

Donner, who started out as director of Superman II before giving way to Richard Lester, had a much more positive experience on the fantasy-adventure film Ladyhawke.

In 1987 he produced and directed Lethal Weapon, introducing one of the cinema's most popular crime fighting duo, Gibson and Glover.

Donner subsequently repeated his duties for the popular and cartoonish sequels Lethal Weapon 2 & 3.

He and his wife's successful production company, Donner/Shuler-Donner Productions, has made films including the family hit Free Willy and the predictable sequels.

Maverick saw him team up with Gibson again and he recruited Sylvester Stallone for the misfiring thriller Assassins.

He again cast Gibson opposite Julia Roberts for Conspiracy Theory and reunited him with Glover for the fourth in the Lethal Weapon series.

Recent work includes the woeful time-travelling caper Timeline with Anna Friel, Billy Connolly and Gerard Butler.