Richard Zanuck, 77, film producer

LOS ANGELES - Film producer Richard Zanuck, 77, who won the best picture Oscar for Driving Miss Daisy and was involved in such blockbuster films as Jaws and The Sting after his father, Hollywood mogul Darryl F. Zanuck, fired him from 20th Century Fox, died Friday.

Mr. Zanuck's publicist said that he died of a heart attack at his Beverly Hills home.

Mr. Zanuck's run of successes as an independent producer rivaled the achievements of his legendary father who reigned over 20th Century Fox from the 1930s until age and changing audience tastes brought him down.

The production company the younger Zanuck founded with David Brown produced The Sting in 1973, as well as Steven Spielberg's first feature film, The Sugarland Express, in 1974, and Spielberg's first blockbuster, Jaws, in 1975. The Sting also won the best movie Oscar, although Mr. Zanuck and Brown were not listed as its producers. Jaws was nominated for best picture, as was the Zanuck-produced The Verdict.

"In 1974, Dick Zanuck and I sat in a boat off Martha's Vineyard and watched the mechanical shark sink to the bottom of the sea," Spielberg recalled in a statement Friday. "Dick turned to me and smiled. 'Gee, I sure hope that's not a sign.' That moment forged a bond between us that lasted nearly 40 years. He taught me everything I know about producing. He was one of the most honorable and loyal men of our profession and he fought tooth and nail for his directors."

Mr. Zanuck most recently produced the big-screen adaptation of the cult classic TV series Dark Shadows, directed by Tim Burton and starring Johnny Depp and Michelle Pfeiffer.

Other Zanuck films include MacArthur and Cocoon.

In 1988, Mr. Zanuck and Brown dissolved their partnership amicably, and Mr. Zanuck formed a new venture with his third wife, Lili Fini Zanuck. They won the Oscar with their first movie together, Driving Miss Daisy.

"Richard was a good and longtime friend," said Morgan Freeman, who costarred with Jessica Tandy in the 1989 film. "A very fine producer who was wonderful to work for and with."

The contrasts between Richard and Darryl Zanuck were many and led to clashes throughout their careers.

Richard Zanuck was reserved, soft-spoken and friendly with directors, writers and actors, and he liked to operate from behind his desk.

His authoritarian father, on the other hand, paced his office, issuing orders in a squeaky voice and sometimes wielding a polo mallet (in his early years he had played polo with other Hollywood figures). He would reach decisions quickly, and once he did they became studio law.

Richard Darryl Zanuck was born in 1934, the third child and only son of the mercurial mogul and his wife, former actress Virginia Fox Zanuck. His mother had appeared in several Buster Keaton shorts in the years before her marriage to the elder Zanuck in 1924.

Richard Zanuck had grown up at 20th Century Fox, once recalling, "When I was a kid I was playing hide-and-seek on the movie back lot."

As a student at a military school and later at Stanford University, he had worked summers at the studio in various departments, including editing and story. After graduation, he became a special assistant to his father.

Mr. Zanuck's first wife was actress Lili Gentle and the couple had two daughters, Virginia and Janet. His second wife was also an actress, Linda Harrison, and they had two sons, Harrison and Dean. Both marriages ended in divorce.