Jerry Ziesmer (May 31, 1939 – August 1, 2021) was an American
assistant director,
production manager
In the cinema of the United States, a unit production manager (UPM) is the Directors Guild of America–approved title for the top below-the-line staff position, responsible for the administration of a feature film or television production. Non- ...
and occasional actor. He is best known for his role as Jerry in the 1979 film ''
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 ...
'' in which he delivers the infamous line "
terminate with extreme prejudice
Project GAMMA was the name given in 1968 to Detachment B-57, Company E (Special Operations), 5th Special Forces Group (Airborne) (5th SFG(A)) in Vietnam from 1967 to 1970. It was responsible for covert intelligence collection operations in Cambod ...
". His character is suspected to be a part of
CORDS or DOD Command Staff.
Early life
Jerry Ziesmer was born in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...
, to a postal employee and his wife, who was the daughter of Dutch immigrants.
He graduated on a scholarship from Milwaukee's
Rufus King High School
Rufus King International High School, or Rufus King, is a public magnet high school located on the north side of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, part of the Milwaukee Public Schools district. The school is ranked the 1,658th best public high school in the ...
in 1957. He received a
bachelor's degree
A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...
in acting from
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
in 1961. After graduation he moved to
Beverly Hills
Beverly Hills is a city located in Los Angeles County, California. A notable and historic suburb of Greater Los Angeles, it is in a wealthy area immediately southwest of the Hollywood Hills, approximately northwest of downtown Los Angeles. ...
and took a job as a
United States Post Office
The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the ...
employee and later, a part-time
junior high school teacher.
[ In 1964 he married Mary Kate Denny, with whom he had three children. He later obtained a ]master's degree
A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice. from UCLA
The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California ...
. He received a Directors Guild training certificate for assistant directors in 1969, applying to the program after reading an advertisement in ''Variety
Variety may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Entertainment formats
* Variety (radio)
* Variety show, in theater and television
Films
* ''Variety'' (1925 film), a German silent film directed by Ewald Andre Dupont
* ''Variety'' (1935 film), ...
''.[
]
Career
Ziesmer worked on more than 50 films, usually in the role of assistant director. His first uncredited film job was as a trainee in '' Hello, Dolly!''. His credits include ''The Way We Were
''The Way We Were'' is a 1973 American romantic drama film directed by Sydney Pollack and starring Barbra Streisand and Robert Redford. Arthur Laurents wrote both the novel and screenplay based on his college days at Cornell University and his ...
'', ''Close Encounters of the Third Kind
''Close Encounters of the Third Kind'' is a 1977 American science fiction film written and directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Richard Dreyfuss, Melinda Dillon, Teri Garr, Bob Balaban, Cary Guffey, and François Truffaut. It tells the story ...
'', '' Scarface'', ''Illegally Yours
''Illegally Yours'' is a 1988 American comedy film set in St. Augustine, Florida where a series of comic mishaps take place involving a blackmailer, a corpse, an incriminating audiotape, an innocent woman who accidentally picks up the tape, and ...
'', ''Midnight Run
''Midnight Run'' is a 1988 American road action comedy film directed by Martin Brest and starring Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin. Yaphet Kotto, John Ashton, Dennis Farina, Joe Pantoliano, and Philip Baker Hall play supporting roles.
At the 4 ...
'', ''History of the World, Part I
''History of the World, Part I'' is a 1981 American comedy film written, produced, and directed by Mel Brooks. Brooks also stars in the film, playing five roles: Moses, Comicus the stand-up philosopher, Tomás de Torquemada, King Louis XVI, an ...
'', ''Annie
Annie may refer to:
People and fictional characters
* Annie (given name), a given name and a list of people and fictional characters with the name
* Annie (actress) (born 1975), Indian actress
* Annie (singer) (born 1977), Norwegian singer
The ...
'', ''Say Anything Say Anything may refer to:
Film and television
* '' Say Anything...'', a 1989 American film by Cameron Crowe
* "Say Anything" (''BoJack Horseman''), a television episode
Music
* Say Anything (band), an American rock band
** ''Say Anything'' (alb ...
'', ''Almost Famous
''Almost Famous'' is a 2000 American comedy-drama film written and directed by Cameron Crowe, and starring Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson, and Patrick Fugit. It tells the story of a teenage journalist writing for ''Rolling Stone ...
'', and ''Jerry Maguire
''Jerry Maguire'' is a 1996 American romantic comedy-drama sports film written, produced, and directed by Cameron Crowe; it stars Tom Cruise, Cuba Gooding Jr., Renée Zellweger, and Regina King. Produced in part by James L. Brooks, it was ins ...
''.Blue Thunder
''Blue Thunder'' is a 1983 American action thriller film from Columbia Pictures, produced by Gordon Carroll, Phil Feldman, and Andrew Fogelson and directed by John Badham.
The Blue Thunder helicopter itself did exist as two copies of modifie ...
'' and a salesman in '' Rocky II''. His most famous role is as a civilian intelligence officer named Jerry in Francis Ford Coppola's Vietnam War
The Vietnam War (also known by other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vietnam a ...
film, Apocalypse Now, in which he utters what some call the film's most memorable line,[ "Terminate, with extreme prejudice", to instruct the film's lead character to carry out an assassination. Coppola, who had searched for a suitable actor for months, gave the role to Ziesmer at the spur of the moment.][
In 2000 Ziesmer wrote a ]memoir
A memoir (; , ) is any nonfiction narrative writing based in the author's personal memories. The assertions made in the work are thus understood to be factual. While memoir has historically been defined as a subcategory of biography or autobiog ...
, ''Ready when You Are, Mr. Coppola, Mr. Spielberg, Mr. Crowe'', that recounts his experiences working with some of Hollywood's most popular stars.[
Ziesmer served on the council of the ]Directors Guild of America
The Directors Guild of America (DGA) is an entertainment guild that represents the interests of film and television directors in the United States motion picture industry and abroad. Founded as the Screen Directors Guild in 1936, the group merge ...
from 1987 to 1998, for three years as the chair. He helped establish a mentorship
Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...
program for women and non-white directors.[ For many years he and his wife, Suzanne, taught an Assistant Director's course at UCLA's ]Extension school
Continuing education (similar to further education in the United Kingdom and Ireland) is an all-encompassing term within a broad list of post-secondary learning activities and programs. The term is used mainly in the United States and Canada.
...
. In 2006, he won the DGA's "Frank Capra Achievement Award", a career award given to assistant directors.
Personal life
In 1981, Ziesmer re-met and began dating his high school girlfriend and 1957 prom date, Suzanne. They married in 1982. Suzanne joined him on-set, tutoring actors including Mel Gibson
Mel Columcille Gerard Gibson (born January 3, 1956) is an American actor, film director, and producer. He is best known for his action hero roles, particularly his breakout role as Max Rockatansky in the first three films of the post-apoca ...
.[
Ziesmer died on August 1, 2021, at the age of 82.]
Filmography
As actor
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ziesmer, Jerry
1939 births
2021 deaths
American film directors
American people of Dutch descent
Northwestern University School of Communication alumni
University of California, Los Angeles alumni
Filmmakers from Milwaukee
Rufus King International High School alumni