GUBER, (Howard) PETER

GUBER, (Howard) PETER (1942– ), U.S. film producer. Guber was born and raised in Boston, Massachusetts. His father, Samuel, operated a junk metal business in nearby Somerville. After receiving his B.A. from Syracuse and both business and law degrees from NYU, he was hired by Columbia Pictures in 1968. In a few short years, Guber ascended to head of worldwide production, one of the youngest studio chiefs, generating record-breaking profits with such films as The Way We Were (1973), Shampoo (1975), and Taxi Driver (1976). In 1976, Guber left Columbia to start producing films independently, winning critical and box office successes with Midnight Express (1978). Guber teamed with Jon Peters to form one of the most successful teams in Hollywood, producing such hits as Flash-dance (1983), The Color Purple (1988), Rain Man (1988), and Batman (1989). In 1989, Guber and Peters became co-heads of Columbia Pictures Studio, which had been purchased by Sony. The rollercoaster ride of their free-spending ways and Sony's expensive education in the movie business is chronicled in detail in the book Hit and Run by Nancy Griffin and Kim Masters. Peters resigned in 1991. Nonetheless, Guber continued to deliver hits such as Terminator 2 (1991) and Groundhog Day (1993) and developed Sony into a modern film and television studio powerhouse. In 1995, Guber left Sony and launched Mandalay, a multimedia entertainment company specializing in movies, television, and sports entertainment. The films Guber directly produced earned over $3 billion and 50 Academy Award nominations. In addition to producing, Guber taught at UCLA School of Theater, Film and Television for over 30 years. He appeared regularly on his own show, AMC's Sunday Morning Shootout, opposite Peter Bart, editor-in-chief of Variety. (Max Joseph (2nd ed.)