Chat with Altman from Oct. 31, 2006

By Susan Thea Posnock

Over the years I've had the opportunity to interview a number of interesting and (sometimes) famous people. As a result, I'm rarely intimidated by the prospect of a one-on-one, regardless of the person on the other end of the recorder. But faced with five minutes with legendary filmmaker Robert Altman, I felt the sort of jitters I used to get on the first day of school.

That's not only because Altman is famous, but he has an imposing air about him that's hard to penetrate. More importantly, he's a cinematic icon who has made his mark over decades, having helmed more than 30 features including MASH, McCabe & Mrs. Miller, Nashville and The Player. He's racked up numerous industry honors and has been nominated for eight Academy Awards (five for Best Director and three for Best Picture, the most recent ones for Gosford Park in 2002). And while he's never won in competition, he received an Honorary Academy Award last March.


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