Robert Redford - ©Theda Bara

The name I present in this post is that of the iconic American actor, producer, and director Robert Redford, who passed away three days ago, on September 16. Despite starring in more than 50 Hollywood films, Redford never received the Oscar for Best Actor. He received two Oscars throughout his career: one for Best Director in 1981 for “Ordinary People” (1980) and another honorary lifetime achievement award in 2002.

Throughout his career, Redford received other awards besides two Oscars; he also won a BAFTA Award and five Golden Globe Awards, one of which was the Cecil B. DeMille Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Robert Redford was a prominent environmental activist. But he also left a legacy of supporting artists, founding the Sundance Institute, a nonprofit organization he founded in 1981 to support independent film and theater, and whose best-known event is the Sundance Film Festival. Redford was also a producer, co-founding the production company Wildwood Enterprises.

Robert Redford refused to have his name engraved on a star on the Los Angeles Walk of Fame, being one of the celebrities who, despite his fame, refused the honor.

Robert Redford, born Charles Robert Redford, Jr. on August 18, 1936, in Santa Monica, California, United States, died on September 16, 2025, in Provo, Utah, United States, at the age of 89.

Robert Redford was a ladies’ man, having had numerous relationships with famous actresses, but he was married twice: first to American historian and activist Lola Van Wagenen (1936-), from 1958 to 1985, and then to German painter Sibylle Szaggars (1957-), who was widowed by Redford after a 16-year marriage, from 2009 to 2025.

Robert Redford had four children from his relationship with his ex-wife Lola. The first was Scott Anthony Redford (September 1, 1959 – November 17, 1959), who died at two months old from sudden infant death syndrome; in 1960, the couple welcomed Shauna, now 64, who followed in her stepmother Sibylle’s footsteps and became a painter; two years later (1962), James Redford arrived, following in his father’s footsteps and becoming an actor and director. James passed away in 2020 from liver cancer; Robert’s youngest daughter, Amy, 54, also followed in her father’s footsteps and is an accomplished actress.