Benton won three Academy Awards for his work on ‘Bonnie and Clyde,’ ‘Kramer vs. Kramer,’ and ‘Places in the Heart.’
Robert Benton, a screenwriter turned Oscar-winning director who was best known for “Kramer vs. Kramer,” has died at 92.
His son, John Benton, confirmed to the Associated Press that his father died on May 11 from “natural causes” at his home in Manhattan, New York.
Born in 1932, in Dallas, Benton attended the University of Texas at Austin and received a bachelor’s degree in fine arts in 1953.
He served in the Army from 1954 until 1956, before joining Esquire as an assistant to the magazine’s art director.
In his four-decade career, Benton worked on several acclaimed films, but made his mark cowriting the revolutionary “Bonnie and Clyde” in 1967.
The film itself won two Academy awards, with Benton
earning his first Oscar nomination for
Best Writing, Story and Screenplay for his work on the project.His solo and shared
credits also include, “What’s Up, Doc?,” “Superman,” “The Late Show” and “Twilight,” with his his directorial debut being “Bad Company” in 1972.
In 1979, Benton went on to direct and write the screenplay for the landmark legal drama “Kramer vs. Kramer,” for which he
won two Oscars in 1980 for
Best Writing and Best Director.The film starred Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep, and over the years
received 26 award nominations and 41 wins.
Fast-forward five years and Benton won another Oscar for Best Writing for “Places in the Heart.”
The movie, which starred Sally Field, portrays a widow with two small children who tries to save her 40-acre farm, and from Benton’s perspective, the writing gave a glimpse into his personal upbringing and experiences.
“I think that when I saw it all strung together, I was surprised at what a romantic view I had of the past,” Benton
told The Associated Press of the film in 1984.
He went on to note that “Places in the Heart” was in part paying tribute to his late mother, who died years prior.
Benton’s final credit was for directing the ensemble drama “Feast of Love,” and screenplay for the western “North of Cheyenne,” which is currently in development.
At the time of his death, he had already begun working on his memoir.
Benton is survived by his only child and son, John, and was predeceased by his wife of 60 years, artist Sallie Benton, who died in 2023 at the age of 88.
