Richard LaGravenese (; born October 30, 1959) is an American screenwriter and film director, known for The Fisher King, The Bridges of Madison County, and Behind the Candelabra. Personal life LaGravenese was born in Brooklyn, New York, the son of a taxi driver. He is of Italian descent. He graduated from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts in 1980 with a bachelor of fine arts degree in acting. Career LaGravenese wrote The Fisher King on spec in the late 1980s. It was acquired by Stacey Sher, Lynda Obst, Debra Hill's production company and subsequently directed by Terry Gilliam. In New York City during the early 1980s, billed as "The Double R" comedy duo, in collaboration with playwright Richard O'Donnell, LaGravenese co-penned and consecutively performed in several Off-Off-Broadway productions including Spare Parts, Blood-Brothers at The 78th Street Theatre Lab, The Lion Theatre, and West Bank Cafe. LaGravanese wrote an adaptation for the famously on-and-off version of the musical Gypsy for Barbra Streisand. In 2015, he revealed that he'd spent several months working on the script with Streisand. "I had the best time with her. I can’t even tell you. It was like a fantasy come true. I did my first draft and went to her house to do rewrites. She’s so meticulous in the best possible way. We went through it page by page by page." Filmography Film Television References 7. ^Jeremy Kinser (February 13, 2015) ‘The Last Five Years’ Director On His Heartbreaking New Musical And Working On ‘Gypsy’ With Barbra Streisand' External links HuffingtonPost DarkHorizons CharlieRose MovieMaker 1959 births Living people Male actors from New York City American male screenwriters Writers from Brooklyn Tisch School of the Arts alumni American people of Italian descent American writers of Italian descent Film directors from New York City Lafayette High School (New York City) alumni Screenwriters from New York (state)