George Loening Hickenlooper III (May 25, 1963 – October 29, 2010) was an American narrative and documentary filmmaker.

Early life

Hickenlooper was born in

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

, the son of Barbara Jo Wenger, a social worker and stage actress, and George Loening Hickenlooper, Jr., a teacher and playwright. He was also the grand nephew of British-born conductor

Leopold Stokowski Leopold Anthony Stokowski (18 April 1882 – 13 September 1977) was a British conductor. One of the leading conductors of the early and mid-20th century, he is best known for his long association with the Philadelphia Orchestra and his appeara ...

through marriage to his great aunt, pianist

Olga Samaroff Olga Samaroff (August 8, 1880May 17, 1948) was an American pianist, music critic, and teacher. Among her teachers was Charles-Valentin Alkan's son, Élie-Miriam Delaborde. Her second husband was the conductor Leopold Stokowski. Samaroff was ...

(whose birth name was Lucy Mary Agnes Hickenlooper). He attended high school at St. Louis University High, where he was part of a group of teenage filmmakers he informally called the "Splicers". After graduating from

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

with a B.A. in History and Film Studies in 1986, Hickenlooper interned for the producer

Roger Corman Roger William Corman (born April 5, 1926) is an American film director, producer, and actor. He has been called "The Pope of Pop Cinema" and is known as a trailblazer in the world of independent film. Many of Corman's films are based on works t ...

, and launched his directing career with ''Art, Acting, and the Suicide Chair: Dennis Hopper'' in 1988.

Career

His first feature-length documentary, '' Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse'', explored the making of ''

Apocalypse Now ''Apocalypse Now'' is a 1979 American epic war film produced and directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The screenplay, co-written by Coppola, John Milius and Michael Herr, is loosely based on the 1899 novella ''Heart of Darkness'' by Joseph Conr ...

''. It won several awards, including the National Board of Review award for "Best Documentary", an American Cinema Editors award for "Best Edited Documentary", two Academy of Television Arts and Sciences awards for "Outstanding Individual Achievement – Informational Programming – Directing" and "Outstanding Individual Achievement – Informational Programming – Picture Editing", and the International Documentary Association award. Hickenlooper himself won an

Emmy The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

for direction. George Hickenlooper's cousin, then-

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

mayor

John Hickenlooper John Wright Hickenlooper Jr. (; born February 7, 1952) is an American politician serving as the junior United States senator from Colorado since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 42nd governor of Colorado from 2011 to 20 ...

, made a

cameo appearance A cameo role, also called a cameo appearance and often shortened to just cameo (), is a brief appearance of a well-known person in a work of the performing arts. These roles are generally small, many of them non-speaking ones, and are commonly eit ...

as a fictional senator in George's 2010 film ''

Casino Jack ''Casino Jack'' (known in certain territories as ''Bagman'') is a 2010 comedy-drama thriller film directed by George Hickenlooper and starring Kevin Spacey. The film focuses on the career of Washington, D.C. lobbyist and businessman Jack Abramof ...

''. In

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

, John defeated incumbent

Cory Gardner Cory Scott Gardner (born August 22, 1974) is an American attorney, lobbyist, and politician who served as a United States senator from Colorado from 2015 to 2021. A Republican, he was the U.S. representative for Colorado's 4th congressional distr ...

to represent Colorado in the

US Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

. John also served as

Governor of Colorado The governor of Colorado is the head of government of the U.S. state of Colorado. The governor is the head of the executive branch of Colorado's state government and is charged with enforcing state laws. The governor has the power to either app ...

from 2011 to 2019. In addition to his films, Hickenlooper authored a book in 1991, ''Reel Conversations''.

Death

Hickenlooper died in his sleep on October 29, 2010 at the age of 47. Despite initial reports that Hickenlooper had suffered a heart attack, the coroner ruled that his death was the result of accidental painkiller overdose, combining

oxymorphone Oxymorphone (sold under the brand names Numorphan and Opana among others) is a highly potent opioid analgesic indicated for treatment of severe pain. Pain relief after injection begins after about 5–10 minutes, after oral administration it beg ...

with alcohol.

Sleep apnea Sleep apnea, also spelled sleep apnoea, is a sleep disorder in which pauses in breathing or periods of shallow breathing during sleep occur more often than normal. Each pause can last for a few seconds to a few minutes and they happen many times ...

and a "moderately enlarged heart" were contributing factors.

Filmography

Documentaries

* ''Art, Acting, and the Suicide Chair: Dennis Hopper'', 1988 * '' Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse'', 1991 * ''Picture This: The Times of Peter Bogdanovich in Archer City, Texas'', 1991 * ''The Big Brass Ring'', 1997 (short) * ''Monte Hellman: American Auteur'', 1997 (short) * ''

Mayor of the Sunset Strip ''Mayor of the Sunset Strip'' is a 2003 documentary film on the life of Rodney Bingenheimer directed by George Hickenlooper, and produced by Chris Carter. Background In 2011, Craig Hlavaty of the ''Houston Press'' named ''Mayor of the Sunset S ...

'', 2003 * '' Speechless'', 2008 * ''

Out in the City Out may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Out'' (1957 film), a documentary short about the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 * ''Out'' (1982 film), an American film directed by Eli Hollander * ''Out'' (2002 film), a Japanese film ba ...

'', 2009 (short) * '' 'Hick' Town'', 2009

Narrative films

* '' Ghost Brigade'', 1993 * '' Some Folks Call It a Sling Blade'', 1994 (short) * ''

The Low Life ''The Low Life'' is a 1995 American film starring Rory Cochrane and directed and co-written by George Hickenlooper. Plot A Yale graduate, with dreams of becoming a writer, moves to Hollywood and struggles with low-paying jobs, poverty, romance ...

'', 1995 * '' Persons Unknown'', 1996 * ''

Dogtown Dogtown or Dog Town may refer to: Entertainment * ''Dogtown'' (film), a 1997 film * "Dogtown" (''The Simpsons''), a 2017 season episode * '' DogTown'', a National Geographic Channel series * ''Dogtown'', a 2006 television show, starring Geraldine ...

'', 1997 * ''

The Big Brass Ring ''The Big Brass Ring'' is a 1999 drama film, starring William Hurt, Nigel Hawthorne, Irene Jacob, Jefferson Mays and Miranda Richardson (who was nominated for a Golden Globe Award for her performance). The film's script was heavily rewritten by ...

'', 1999 * ''

The Man from Elysian Fields ''The Man from Elysian Fields'' is a 2001 American drama film directed by George Hickenlooper, and starring Andy Garcia, Mick Jagger, Olivia Williams, Julianna Margulies, and James Coburn. Synopsis After one book that ended up in the remainder b ...

'', 2001 * ''

Bizarre Love Triangle Bizarre may refer to: *Bizarre (rapper) (born 1976), an American rapper and member of hip hop group D12 *Bizarre (band), a Spanish rock band * ''Bizarre'' (TV series), a Canadian sketch comedy television series * ''Bizarre'' (magazine), a sister ...

'', 2005 * '' Factory Girl'', 2006 * ''

'', 2010

References

External links

* * *
Film Freak Central interview
(archived) {{DEFAULTSORT:Hickenlooper, George 1963 births 2010 deaths American documentary filmmakers Drug-related deaths in Colorado People from St. Louis Yale University alumni Writers from Missouri Film directors from Missouri Accidental deaths in Colorado Hickenlooper family