Born in Montreal and raised in New York City, Ruddy began his entertainment career as creator, with Bernie Fein, of sixties TV sitcom . He produced features including Robert Redford drama before being brought in by Paramount as sole producer of Francis Ford Coppola’s , for which he won his first Oscar in 1973. Ruddy later served as executive producer on , the limited streaming series that chronicled his experience producing .
His other features included Burt Reynolds hits and and Clint Eastwood’s , which won him his second Oscar in 2005. He also co-created the 1990s TV series . Ruddy’s other career honours included two French César Awards, two Italian David di Donatello Awards and the USC Scripter Award.
In a statement, star Al Pacino commented: “Al Ruddy was absolutely beautiful to me the whole time on The Godfather; even when they didn’t want me, he wanted me. He gave me the gift of encouragement when I needed it most and I’ll never forget it.” Eastwood said: “He was a great friend of mine and I will deeply miss him.
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