J. Michael Riva


John Michael Riva was an American production designer.

Early life

Riva was born in Manhattan, to William Riva, a Broadway set designer, and Maria Elisabeth Sieber, a German-born actress and the daughter of Marlene Dietrich. Riva had three brothers. Riva attended the prep school Institute Le Rosey in Switzerland for six years before attending UCLA.

Career

Riva had a long and prestigious career as an art director and production designer on numerous films, including the 1985 film The Color Purple, for which he was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Art Direction. Other credits include The Goonies, Lethal Weapon, A Few Good Men, Spider-Man 3, Iron Man and Iron Man 2.
His final films, The Amazing Spider-Man and Django Unchained, were released posthumously. He was the production designer for the opening ceremony of the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta, as well as for the 74th and 79th Academy Awards in 2002 and 2007, respectively. He won a Primetime Emmy Award for his work on the latter.

Personal life and death

Riva was briefly engaged to actress Jamie Lee Curtis in the 1980s. He was married to Wendy Mickell, with whom he had four sons, Jean-Paul, John Michael Riva Jr., Daniel, and Adam.
Riva suffered a stroke on June 1, 2012, in New Orleans, Louisiana, during production of Django Unchained. He died in a hospital there on June 7, 2012, at age 63. Django director Quentin Tarantino commented, "Michael became a dear friend on this picture, as well as a magnificent, talented colleague."

Filmography

Films

;All as production designer unless stated otherwise
YearTitleNotes
1976Ilsa, Harem Keeper of the Oil SheiksArt director; credited as Mike Riva
1977Bad Georgia RoadArt director; credited as Michael Riva
1977I Never Promised You a Rose GardenUncredited
1977Bare KnucklesCredited as Michael Riva
1979Fast Charlie... the Moonbeam RiderArt director; credited as Michael Riva
1980BrubakerAlso art director
1980Ordinary PeopleArt director
1981The Hand
1981Halloween IICredited as Michael Riva
1983Bad Boys
1983Strangers KissVisual consultant; credited as Michael Riva
1984The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension
1985The Falcon and the Snowman
1985The Slugger's WifeCredited as Michael Riva
1985The Goonies
1985The Color Purple
1986The Golden Child
1987Lethal Weapon
1988Scrooged
1989Lethal Weapon 2
1989Tango & Cash
1992Radio Flyer
1992A Few Good Men
1993Dave
1994North
1995Congo
1998Hard Rain
1998Six Days Seven Nights
1998Lethal Weapon 4
1999House on Haunted HillVisual consultant
2000Romeo Must DieVisual consultant
2000Charlie's Angels
2001Evolution
2003Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle
2005Stealth
2005Zathura: A Space Adventure
2006The Pursuit of Happyness
2007Spider-Man 3
2008Iron Man
2008Seven Pounds
2010Iron Man 2
2012The Amazing Spider-ManPosthumous release
2012Django UnchainedPosthumous release

Television

;All as production designer unless stated otherwise
YearTitleNotes
1981Callie & SonTV film
1986Amazing StoriesDirector; episode 2.12: "The Eternal Mind"; credited as Michael Riva
1990Tales from the CryptDirector; episode 2.18: "The Secret"; credited as Michael Riva
1994Lily in Winter Story; TV film
19961996 Summer Olympics Opening CeremonyTV special
1999Tuesdays with MorrieTV film
2002The 74th Annual Academy AwardsTV special
2007The 79th Annual Academy AwardsTV special