Yahoo Lifestyle Ronnie Yeskel Dies; Casting Director For ‘Pulp Fiction’ & ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm’ Was 76
Casting director Ronnie Yeskel, whose career spanned three decades of work in television and film, died Jan. 4 at The Motion Picture & Television Fund Retirement Home in Woodland Hills after an extended battle with cancer. She was 76.
Her passing was confirmed by casting director and AMPAS Governor Richard Hicks, who was Yeskel’s former business partner.
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Yeskel collaborated with Quentin Tarantino on Reservoir Dogs and Pulp Fiction, and cast the hit series NBC series LA Law. She also worked on the first three seasons of HBO’s Curb Your Enthusiasm with casting director Richard Hicks, among others.
She found Kieran Culkin for his first lead role in Igby Goes Down.
Born and raised in New Jersey, Yeskel graduated from the University of Maryland and worked as a stage manager off-Broadway before segueing to casting for theater in New York and Washington, D.C. She then moved to Los Angeles to further pursue her career.
“Ronnie touched the lives and careers of so many of us with her passion and her talent,” said her friend/actor Matt O’Toole in a statement. “She always fought for the actor with great respect and kindness. She was so joyful.”
In the late ‘90’s, Yeskel served on the board of the Casting Society and earned 10 CSA Artios Award nominations and won 3 for Pulp Fiction (an award she shared with casting director Gary Zuckerbrod), Curb Your Enthusiasm (with Hicks) and The Sessions.
Yeskel, described as a proud hippie who still has her original ticket to Woodstock, was also a member of the Casting Directors branch of AMPAS.
She is survived by her brother David, daughter Emily, son-in-law David Jones and grandchildren Bentley and Luna. A celebration of life will be held in the spring.
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