Jonathan Michael Avnet (born November 17, 1949), is an American director, writer and producer.

Early life and education

Avnet was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York. Kings County is the most populous Administrative divisions of New York (state)#County, county in the State of New York, ...

, the son of Joan Bertha (née Grossman) and Lester Francis Avnet, a corporate executive with Avnet (a Global distributor of IT & electronics) founded by his grandfather, Charles Avnet. He has two siblings, Carole Avnet Rocherolle and Rosalind Avnet Lazarus. He attended

Great Neck North High School John L. Miller Great Neck North High School or simply "Great Neck North," is a public high school, including grades 9 through 12, in the village of Great Neck, New York, operated by the Great Neck School District. As of the 2018–19 school yea ...

in Great Neck, New York. He earned a B.A. degree in film and theater arts from Sarah Lawrence College in 1971. He is

Jewish Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

Career

Before that Jon Avnet partnered with Steve Tisch on his production company, before teaming up with McNeil/Allyn Films on motion pictures and television movies. Avnet directed his first movie, '' Fried Green Tomatoes'', in 1991, followed by '' The War'' in 1994, with Elijah Wood in the lead and

Kevin Costner Kevin Michael Costner (born January 18, 1955) is an American actor, producer, film director and musician. He has received various accolades, including two Academy Awards, two Golden Globe Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, and two Screen Actors ...

in a supporting role as his father. He directed '' Up Close & Personal'' in 1996, which was loosely based on the life of Jessica Savitch. It was written by Joan Didion and