Ivan Reitman

Ivan Reitman
Reitman in March 2011
Born	(1946-10-27) October 27, 1946 (age 70) Komárno, Czechoslovakia (now Slovakia)
Alma mater	McMaster University
Occupation	Film director, film producer
Years active	1968–present
Spouse(s)	Geneviève Robert (m. 1976)
Children	Jason, Catherine, Carolyn

Ivan Reitman, OC (born October 27, 1946) is a Slovak-Canadian film producer and director, best known for his comedy work, especially in the 1980s and 1990s. He is the owner of The Montecito Picture Company, founded in 2000.

Reitman was born in Komárno, Czechoslovakia (now in Slovakia), the son of Klara and Ladislav "Leslie" Reitman. Reitman's parents were Jewish; his mother survived the Auschwitz concentration camp and his father was an underground resistance fighter. His family came to Canada as refugees in 1950. Reitman attended Oakwood Collegiate in Toronto and was a member of the Twintone Four singing group.

Reitman attended McMaster University, receiving a Bachelor of Music in 1969. At McMaster he produced and directed many short films.

Reitman's first producing job was with the then-new station CITY-TV in Toronto. CITY was also the home of the first announcing job of his later friend and collaborator Dan Aykroyd. However, Reitman's tenure at CITY was short and he was fired during his first year by station owner Moses Znaimer.

In Toronto, he produced the stage production Spellbound (1973) which evolved into Broadway production The Magic Show.

Reitman's first commercial film ventures were as producer of two films for director David Cronenberg, Shivers (1975) and Rabid (1976). His big break came when he produced National Lampoon's Animal House in 1978 and directed Meatballs in 1979. From there, he directed and produced a number of comedies including Stripes (1981), Ghostbusters (1984),Legal Eagles (1986), Twins (1988), Ghostbusters II (1989),Kindergarten Cop (1990), Dave (1993), Junior (1994), Six Days, Seven Nights (1998), Evolution (2001), My Super Ex-Girlfriend (2006), and No Strings Attached (2011).