Mark Edwin Seiler, the former president of RKO Pictures and Hemdale Films and CEO of Capella Films, died on July 7 of Parkinson’s disease. He was 75.
Another one of his proudest achievements was producing the war film “Hamburger Hill” alongside his partner Jerry Offsay. Together, Seiler and Offsay formed the cast of the film, giving Don Cheadle, Dylan McDermott, Courtney B. Vance and Steven Weber some of their first roles. Then, as CEO of Capella Films, Seiler helped to finance and produce “The Shadow” starring Alec Baldwin and “Nobody’s Fool” , which earned Paul Newman a best actor Oscar nomination.
Seiler prided himself on being a mentor in the industry, convincing his eventual partner Offsay to leave his law firm and join RKO. “He gave me that shot to go from law to creative on faith,” Offsay said in a statement. “I hope he always knew how grateful I was for changing my life.”