Daniel Goldberg, the co-screenwriter of “Stripes” and producer of feature comedies like “Space Jam,” “Old School” and the “Hangover” trilogy, died Wednesday at age 74.
A frequent collaborator of directors Ivan Reitman and Todd Phillips and actor Bill Murray, who in addition to “Stripes” starred in the Goldberg co-penned “Meatballs,” Goldberg is survived by his wife, fellow Canadian film producer Ilona Herzberg, and his brother, “Deuce Bigalow” screenwriter Harris Goldberg. Per media reports, no cause of death was made public.
In a tribute for Deadline published Wednesday, Ivan Reitman’s son, filmmaker Jason Reitman, remembered Goldberg as “one of the kindest and most gentle souls I’ve ever known.”
Goldberg and Reitman first met in 1966 at McMaster University, where they went on to make several short films together (many of which starred a young “Schitt’s Creek” Emmy winner Eugene Levy) and cofounded a film society — not without kicking up some controversy, either. Several films were met with fines and other legal consequences, citing “obscenity.” (Reitman remembers in his column that the feature “My Secret Life” even got them arrested: “Just a couple movie-loving Canadian kids — with criminal records and parole officers.”
Following comedy classics like the R-rated “Stripes” and “Meatballs,” Goldberg’s career also featured more family-friendly fare like “Space Jam” (1996) starring Michael Jordan and the Looney Toons characters Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Tasmanian Devil, Swackhammer, Sylvester Stalone, Pepe Le Pew, Elmer Fudd, Lola Bunny and more professional basketball players like Larry Bird, Larry Johnson, Charles Barkley and Patrick Ewing.
Goldberg also produced “Private Parts” (1997), “Road Trip” (2000), “Old School” (2003) and “The Hangover” trilogy, the latter three were in collaboration with Phillips.
