Robert Towne

Robert Towne (born Robert Bertram Schwartz, November 23, 1934) is an American screenwriter, producer, director and actor.

Towne was part of the New Hollywood wave of filmmaking. He is best known for his Academy Award-winning original screenplay for Roman Polanski's Chinatown (1974). Towne also wrote the sequel, The Two Jakes (1990).

Towne is also known for his screenplays for The Last Detail (1973) and Shampoo (1975); and the first two Mission: Impossible movies.

Towne directed the sports dramas Personal Best (1982) and Without Limits (1998), the crime thriller Tequila Sunrise (1988), and the romantic crime drama Ask the Dust (2006).