Interview by Karen Idelson
August 17, 2001

Life is like a box of chocolat...

Producer David Brown has been part of Hollywood history for more than fifty years, having produced some of the most remarkable and successful films ever shown on screen including THE STING, THE VERDICT, A FEW GOOD MEN and DEEP IMPACT.

Along with Richard Zanuck, he produced Steven Spielberg's feature film debut, SUGARLAND EXPRESS. Later, he and Zanuck convinced the young director to make JAWS, a movie that went on to become one of the most successful films of its time.

It's a remarkable run for someone who didn't even really find film all that interesting in the beginning. "I wanted to change my life," Brown said in a recent interview, explaining how he came to leave his career as a journalist. "And I had an offer from Hollywood."

Brown started his career as a story editor with 20th Century-Fox - a studio then under the thumb of legendary mogul Darryl F. Zanuck - in 1952 and remained there in various positions through 1971. The next year, he and Richard Zanuck - son of his former boss, Darryl F. Zanuck - formed the Zanuck/Brown production company and began a phenomenal development record that lasted through the company's disbanding in 1988.

Now in his mid-80's and still developing material through his company The Manhattan Project, Ltd., the producer looks at two of his films - CHOCOLAT and JAWS 2 - recently out on DVD.