{{short description|American producer and director}} {{Infobox person | name = Rick Friedberg | image = | alt = | caption = Jason Friedberg's father | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1944|3|11}} | birth_place = | death_date = | death_place = | death_cause = | other_names = | known_for = ''Spy Hard'' | occupation = Film director, producer, writer | children = Jason, Alix, Nicholas }}

'''Rick Friedberg''' (born March 11, 1944) is an American film and television director, screenwriter and producer, best known for his work with Leslie Nielsen. He is also the author of ''Hollywood War Stories, How to Survive in the Trenches'', a memoir/advice guide on the film industry.<ref>{{Cite book|isbn=978-1500991616|title=Hollywood War Stories: How to Survive in the Trenches|last1=Friedberg|first1=Rick|last2=Chudnow|first2=Dick|date=19 September 2014|publisher=CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform }}</ref>

== Career == Friedberg made his feature film debut in 1980 with the comedy ''Pray TV'' starring Dabney Coleman, followed by 1983's ''Off the Wall''.<ref name="rottentomatoes">{{cite web|url=https://www.rottentomatoes.com/celebrity/rick_friedberg|publisher=rottentomatoes.com|title=Rick Friedberg - Rotten Tomatoes|access-date=2016-12-05}}</ref> He would direct television episodes for ''The Twilight Zone'', ''New Monkees'' and ''CityKids''. When Friedberg made the comic instruction video ''Bad Golf Made Easier'' with Leslie Nielsen, he showed his son Jason Friedberg's script to him, which was parodying James Bond movies and other action films. Nielsen approved, and this led to 1996's ''Spy Hard''.<ref name="grantland">{{cite web|url=http://grantland.com/features/surely-they-cant-be-serious/|publisher=grantland.com|title=Surely They Can't Be Serious? «|access-date=2016-12-05}}</ref> The film eventually grossed $26&nbsp;million against a production budget of $18&nbsp;million.

Through the 2000s and 2010s, Friedberg served as second unit director on series like ''CSI: Miami'' and ''Scorpion'', as well as director/field producer on ''The Real Housewives of Orange County''.<ref name="imdb">{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0295007/?ref_=tt_ov_dr|publisher=imdb.com|title=Rick Friedberg - IMDb|access-date=2016-12-05}}</ref>

==Filmography== ===Feature films=== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Year ! Title ! width=65 | Director ! width=65 | Writer ! width=65 | Producer ! Notes |- | 1983 | ''Off the Wall'' | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | {{No}} | |- | 1996 | ''Spy Hard'' | {{Yes}} | {{Yes|Screenplay}} | {{Yes}} | |}

===Television=== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Year ! Title ! width=65 | Director ! width=65 | Writer ! width=65 | Producer ! Notes |- | 1980 | ''Pray TV'' | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | {{Yes}} | TV movie; lyrics: "Billy Bob Jingle" |- | 1985 | ''The Twilight Zone'' | {{Yes}} | {{No}} | {{No}} | 1 Episode (Wish Bank) |- | 1987 | ''New Monkees'' | {{Yes}} | {{No}} | {{No}} | 2 episodes |- | 1993 | ''CityKids'' | {{Yes}} | {{No}} | {{No}} | 6 episodes |- | 2006–2008 | ''The Real Housewives of Orange County'' | {{No}} | {{No}} | {{Yes|Field}} | 28 episodes |- | 2008–2009 | ''CSI: Miami'' | {{Yes|Second Unit}} | {{No}} | {{No}} | 5 episodes |- | 2014–2018 | ''Scorpion'' | {{Yes|Second Unit}} | {{No}} | 12 episodes |- |}

===Direct-To-Video=== {| class="wikitable" |- ! Year ! Title ! width=65 | Director ! width=65 | Producer ! Notes |- | 1988 | ''W.A.S.P. - Videos... In the Raw'' | {{Yes}} | {{No}} | |- | 1990 | ''Playboy: Sensual Pleasures of Oriental Massage'' | {{No}} | {{Yes|Creative}} | Documentary |- | 1993 | ''Leslie Nielsen's Bad Golf Made Easier'' | {{Yes}} | {{No}} | |- | 1993 | ''Our First Video'' | {{Yes}} | {{No}} | Video Short "Brother for Sale" |- | 1994 | ''Bad Golf My Way'' | {{Yes}} | {{No}} | |- | 1997 | ''Our Music Video'' | {{Yes}} | {{No}} | Segment "Brother for Sale" |}

===Music videos=== *Hot for Teacher *Summertime Girls *Blind in Texas *Wild Child

== References == {{Reflist}}

== External links == *{{IMDb name|0295007}}

{{Rick Friedberg}}

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Friedberg, Rick}} Category:Living people Category:Film directors from New York City Category:American male screenwriters Category:American comedy film directors Category:English-language film directors Category:1944 births

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