On this day: Sydney Pollack dies

Born in Indiana in 1934, Sydney Pollack's career saw him embrace life as an actor, director, producer and a Torah student, not to mention a stint in the US army in the 1950s.

When he died at the age of 73, he was still critically lauded – the last film he produced was The Reader, for which he won a posthumous Best Picture Oscar,

His Hollywood trajectory began with TV directing in the 1960s and continued to a slew of Academy Award nominated films in the next few decades. Some 48 of his films were shortlisted for Oscars, with more than ten winning, including Out of Africa and Tootsie.

He directed the best and brightest of Hollywood, from Robert Redford to Barbra Streisand, and Paul Newman to Jessica Lange. He also moved into acting, playing roles in Woody Allen's Husbands and Wives and Eyes Wide Shut, as well as guest appearances on television shows including Will and Grace and The Sopranos.