Rocky Lang is the son of producer, Jennings Lang and actress, and singer Monica Lewis. He father was an agent representing the likes of Joan Crawford before going on to be an executive at MCA/Universal where he produced over thirty movies including Earthquake, Clint Eastwood’s directorial debut Play Misty For Me and the Airport Movies. Rocky’s mom was a long time singer who not only filed the airwaves during the 1950’s and was known as “America’s Singing Sweetheart” but was also the voice of Chiquita Banana. Growing up in that world prepared Rocky for his life in the movie and television business where he has produced, directed and written films and television including producing Ridley Scott’s feature staring Jeff Bridges, White Squall.
- Mr. Lang tell us about your dad and how he influenced you the most to be the leader you are today?
My father was my best friend, mentor and teacher of all things. I live with his teachings everyday.
2. Mr. Lang, Tell us about , your mom and what was the most important lesson you learn from her?
My mom, Monica Lewis was the glue of our family. She was the spirit that burns in me even after she is no longer with us. There are far too many lessons that I couldn’t mention in a question like this.
3. Mr. Lang, I noticed you are an early ariser. Most successful people I know wake up at 5 am. Tell us your tips to have balanced active lifestyle, sleeping 8 hours a day, and how your daily routine looks like?
I wake up at 4:00 AM, have coffee and read through as many newspapers as I can. I am not only looking to see what happened in the world, but I am looking for any stories I read that might be the inspiration for a film. Many of my films have been based on true events. I then read my emails and respond to them. By 6:30 AM, I am ready to head to the tennis courts where I play 4 days a week. By 10:30, I am back in the office to usually write or attend to my movie, television and book projects. For the last year and a half, along with my writing partner, Barbara Hall we have been collecting hundreds of letters from the history of Hollywood for our book, Letters From Hollywood that will be published by Abrams Books in September of 2019. That work takes a good portion of the day. Writing this book has been an incredible journey and I am extremely proud of the work we have done. The lunch hour is often spent with friends and colleagues from the film and television business. By 2:00, I am back in the office writing more and attending to projects. I also break up this routine by checking in on my beautiful Andrea or playing with our nutty dog. By 5:00 PM I often go to the market with Andrea and become her assistant doing the most boring tasks as she prepares dinner. I take out the trash; peel potatoes, cut onions, and all the fun stuff. I am a voracious reader and after dinner, and occasionally watch a movie or a sports event. If Andrea comes to bed early, we watch The Food Channel as she controls the TV in our bedroom. It’s one of the battles that are not worth fighting about and I have learned to like the shows. By 9:00, I am asleep. In my business, every day offers different challenges but as a general rule, I try to serve my body and my mind and create something new.
ROCKY LANG BIOGRAPHY
Rocky Lang at his best
Rocky Lang has been involved in the motion picture and television business all his life. He has produced, written and directed motion pictures, documentaries, television shows, movies-of-the-week and mini-series. Mr. Lang recently executive produced Girl Fight for Lifetime Television and Racing For Time starring Charles Dutton, which received a Best Picture nomination for the Image Awards. Lang is currently developing The Patty Hearst Story at CBS, and Strange Birds at Asylum. He is also writing the book Letters From Hollywood for Abrams Books. Mr. Lang is the author of eight books, including How I Broke Into Hollywood, which was published by Judith Regan and Regan Books/Harper-Collins. His other books include Confessions of Emergency Room Doctors (Andrews McMeel), The Big Nasty (Cable), and Growing Up Hollywood, Differences Differences, Lara Takes Charge and If You Thought Your Divorce Was Bad, Wait Until You Read This Book (HLPI Publishing). Mr. Lang recently sold a book to Abrams Publishing titled Letters From Hollywood that is scheduled for a September 2019 publishing date. Mr. Lang has been published in The Huffington Post and other papers and magazines and has appeared at Book Expo America, Publishers University, the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, the San Francisco Writers Conference and other conventions across the country. Growing up as the son of veteran producer and Universal Studios executive Jennings Lang, Rocky knew early on that he wanted to write/produce and direct. He has made five documentary films including the award-winning The Making of Tootsie and Spinners, which won Best Documentary at the Los Angles Film and Script Festival in 2013. Directing assignments have included the long-running hit show Remington Steele, as well as three features: Nervous Ticks (Columbia Tri-Star), Race For Glory (New Century Vista), and All’s Fair (Moviestore). Mr. Lang also produced White Squall for Disney/Hollywood Pictures, starring Jeff Bridges and directed by Ridley Scott and the Emmy Award-winning Titanic, a four-hour mini-series for CBS. During his career, Mr. Lang has had deals as a producer, and director with Warner Bros., Universal, New World, CBS, NBC, ABC, Twentieth Century Fox, Cinecom, MGM and United Artists. He is an award-winning screenwriter and has sold his material to numerous production companies. Over the years, Mr. Lang has worked with such luminaries as Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Jackie Gleason, Clint Eastwood, Sydney Pollack, Teri Garr, Sally Kellerman, George Segal, Peter Berg, Jeff Bridges, John Savage, and many more. Rocky Lang is also the author of a series of empowering books aimed at children with diabetes. His book Lara Takes Charge is in the hands of over 40,000 children, hospitals, and libraries. He also invented the Courage Badge for children with diabetes, purchased and distributed by Travelon and QVC, and the Joe Toucan Diabetes Doll. On May 29, 2008, the American Diabetes Association honored Mr. Lang as Father of the Year for his advocacy for children living with diabetes. Mr. Lang has served on the board of Foundation School Community, a progressive school in Los Angeles. He also sits on the Health Education Advisory Board at Children’s Hospital, and served for five years on the Los Angeles Community Leadership Board and ADA National Youth Strategy Board for the American Diabetes Association. Tennis has been Lang’s passion and he is certified professional and a member of the United States Professional Tennis Association. Mr. Lang lives in Toluca Lake, CA. Website: www.rockylang.com