Joel Andrew Douglas (born January 23, 1947) is an American film producer. The second son of Kirk Douglas (1916–2020) and Diana Douglas (1923–2015), he was born one day after his mother's 24th birthday. His paternal grandparents were Jewish immigrants from

Gomel Gomel (russian: Гомель, ) or Homiel ( be, Гомель, ) is the administrative centre of Gomel Region and the second-largest city in Belarus with 526,872 inhabitants (2015 census). Etymology There are at least six narratives of the o ...

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

(then part of the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

). His mother was from

Devonshire Parish, Bermuda Devonshire Parish is one of the nine parishes of Bermuda. Originally named ''Cavendish Tribe'' and later Devonshire Tribe, for William Cavendish, 1st Earl of Devonshire (1552–1626). ''Devonshire Redoubt'', on Castle Island, one of the Castle Har ...

; Douglas's maternal grandfather, Lieutenant Colonel

Thomas Melville Dill Lieutenant-Colonel Thomas Melville Dill OBE (23 December 1876 – 7 March 1945) was a prominent Bermudian lawyer, politician, and soldier. Early life Dill was born in Devonshire Parish, in the British Imperial fortress colony of Bermuda, the ...

, served as Attorney General of Bermuda and was commanding officer of the

Bermuda Militia Artillery The Bermuda Militia Artillery was a unit of part-time soldiers organised in 1895 as a reserve for the Royal Garrison Artillery detachment of the Regular Army garrison in Bermuda. Militia Artillery units of the United Kingdom and Colonies were in ...

. Joel chose not to follow his father and older brother into acting, opting instead to work behind the camera, producing several films throughout the 1970s and 1980s. Much of Douglas' work has centered on projects involving his family, including acting as co-producer on ''

The Jewel of the Nile ''The Jewel of the Nile'' is a 1985 American Action film#Action-adventure, action-adventure romantic comedy film directed by Lewis Teague and produced by Michael Douglas, who also starred in the lead role, and reunites with co-stars Kathleen Tur ...

'' and ''

Romancing the Stone ''Romancing the Stone'' is a 1984 action-adventure romantic comedy film directed by Robert Zemeckis, written by Diane Thomas and produced by Michael Douglas, who also starred in the film. The film co-stars Kathleen Turner and Danny DeVito. The f ...

'', being an assistant director on '' One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest'' and in 2003, acting as associate producer on '' It Runs in the Family'', which featured Kirk, Michael and Michael's son Cameron. In the 1970s and 1980s, Douglas worked as an executive for Mel Blanc and

Noel Blanc Noel Barton Blanc (born October 19, 1938) is an American commercial producer and retired voice actor. He is the son of the late cartoon voice actor, Mel Blanc. Early life and career Blanc was born on October 19, 1938 in Los Angeles, California ...

's media company, Blanc Communications Corporation, developing and producing commercials.

Marriages

Joel Douglas has married four times. His first wife was Susan Jorgensen, whom he married in 1968. He married Judith Corso in 1975, then Patricia Reid-Douglas in 1986. His most recent marriage to Jo Ann Savitt, whom he married on February 2, 2004, lasted until her death on November 21, 2013. Savitt was the daughter of bandleader

Jan Savitt Jan Savitt (born Jacob Savetnick; September 4, 1907 – October 4, 1948), known as "The Stokowski of Swing", from having played violin in Leopold Stokowski's orchestra, was an American bandleader, musical arranger, and violinist. Early life and ...

and his wife, Barbara Ann Stillwell Savitt, the step-daughter of actor Steve Brodie whom her mother remarried, and the half-sister of Steve's son, actor

Kevin Brodie Kevin Brodie (born May 31, 1952) is an American film director, screenwriter, and former child actor. He is the son of actors Steve Brodie and Barbara Ann Stillwell. Career As a child, Brodie had small roles in such films as '' Some Came Runn ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Douglas, Joel 1947 births Bryna Productions people Living people American film producers American people of Belarusian-Jewish descent American people of Bermudian descent Jewish American male actors Douglas family Dill family 21st-century American Jews