The films of Paul Mazursky

Five-time Academy Award-nominee Paul Mazursky, an innovative and versatile director behind such films as "Next Stop, Greenwich Village," "An Unmarried Woman," "Moscow on the Hudson," and "Down and Out in Beverly Hills," died on Monday, July 1, 2014, at age 84.

The writer-director-producer's films (in which he frequently appeared) were celebrated for their absurdist takes on contemporary social mores.

"I know there are some wonderful filmmakers with really tragic views of life," Mazursky once told The Atlantic magazine. "But for me absurdity is just around the corner. I see it all the time."

"Fear and Desire"

Born Irwin Mazursky in Brooklyn 1930, he changed his named to Paul upon graduating high school. His initial dream was to be actor, and while attending college he auditioned for director Stanley Kubrick's first fiction film, "Fear and Desire" (1953). He won the role of Sidney (left), a soldier who goes crazy after killing a girl held prisoner.

The disappointing reviews he received led Mazursky to redouble his acting studies. He appeared in the film "the Blackboard Jungle," as well as such TV shows as "The Untouchables," "The Rifleman" and "Twilight Zone," but he eventually focused his career on writing and directing.

"I Love You, Alice B. Toklas"

After earning writing credits on "The Rifleman," "The Monkees," and "The Danny Kaye Show," Paul Mazursky co-wrote the Peter Sellers counterculture comedy, "I Love You, Alice B. Toklas" (1968), which costarred Leigh Taylor-Young.

"Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice"

Elliott Gould, Natalie Wood, Robert Culp and Dyan Cannon in "Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice" (1969), Paul Mazursky's comedy-drama of two California couples and their affairs.

Mazursky's first film as director, which he also co-wrote, was a critical and box office hit. It received four Oscar nominations, including one for Mazursky for Best Original Screenplay, and acting nods for Cannon and Gould.

Mazursky later adapted the film into a short-lived 1973 TV series.

"Alex in Wonderland"

For Mazursky's second film following his smash debut, he co-wrote and directed the Fellini-esque "Alex in Wonderland" (1970), which starred Donald Sutherland as a director struggling to come up with a follow-up film after a smash debut. Ellen Burstyn co-starred.

"Blume in Love"

"Blume in Love" (1973) starred George Segal as a man trying to win back the wife who divorced him. Susan Anspach and Kris Kristofferson played the other points of the romantic triangle.

"Harry and Tonto"

Art Carney won an Oscar for Best Actor for "Harry and Tonto" (1974), as an elderly New Yorker who goes on a cross-country road trip with his cat, Tonto.

"Next Stop, Greenwich Village"

Christopher Walken (right) was one member of a winning ensemble cast in "Next Stop, Greenwich Village" (1976), Paul Mazursky's semi-autobiographical tale of his early years pursuing acting in New York City. Also featured in the cast were Lenny Baker and Shelly Winters (both Golden Globe nominees), Ellen Greene, Lois Smith and Jeff Goldblum.

"An Unmarried Woman"

"An Unmarried Woman" (1978) starred Jill Clayburgh as a Manhattanite who struggles with life and romance after her husband leaves her for a younger woman. Paul Mazursky (pictured center, with Alan Bates and Clayburgh) earned Best Picture and Best Screenplay Oscar nominations. Clayburgh also received Oscar, Golden Globe and BAFTA nominations, and won the Best Actress Award at the Cannes Film Festival for her searing performance.

"Willie & Phil"

Inspired by Francois Truffaut's "Jules and Jim," Paul Mazursky's "Willie & Phil" (1980) starred Margot Kidder as a young New Yorker who becomes the object of affection for two best friends (Ray Sharkey and Michael Ontkean) who happen also to be fans of "Jules and Jim."

"Tempest"

"Tempest" (1982), loosely based on Shakespeare's play, starred John Cassavetes, Gena Rowlands and Molly Ringwald, in the story of a New York architect whose mid-life crisis leads him, his mistress and teenage daughter to a remote Greek Island. Also starring were Susan Sarandon and Raul Julia.

"Tempest"

Raul Julia and Molly Ringwald in Paul Mazursky's "Tempest."

"Moscow on the Hudson"

Robin Williams played a Russian musician who, while on tour in New York City, defects in the middle of Bloomingdale's, in Paul Mazursky's comedy, "Moscow on the Hudson" (1984).

"Moscow on the Hudson"

Robin Williams in Paul Mazursky's "Moscow on the Hudson"

"Down and Out in Beverly Hills"

Based on Jean Renoir's great 1932 comedy "Boudu Saved From Drowning," about a bum who turns upside-down the bourgeois family that takes him in, "Down and Out in Beverly Hills" (1986) starred Nick Nolte (left, with Mike), as a homeless man who is rescued from a Beverly Hills family's swimming pool, only to turn their serene-on-the-surface life asunder. The film, which co-starred Bette Midler and Richard Dreyfuss, was a critical and audience hit. The characters' sexual peccadilloes earned the Disney Studios its first R-Rating, for its newly-launched Touchstone label.

"Moon Over Parador"

In "Moon Over Parador" (1988), Richard Dreyfuss played an actor who takes on the difficult role of impersonating the deceased dictator of a South American country. Raul Julia and Sonia Braga costarred.

"Enemies: A Love Story"

Based on a novel by Isaac Bashevis Singer, "Enemies: A Love Story" (1989) starred Ron Silver as a Holocaust survivor in New York City who must juggle his new wife, mistress (Lena Olin, left), and his first wife (Angelica Huston), whom he believed had perished during the war.

Mazursky shared a Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar nomination, while both Olin and Huston were nominated for Best Supporting Actress.

"Scenes From a Mall"

Making a rare appearance in a film which he did not direct, Woody Allen co-starred with Bette Midler in Paul Mazursky's "Scenes From a Mall" (1991), in which a bickering couple unload their marital infidelities while shopping.

"The Pickle"

Danny Aiello starred as a desperate director seeking a career revival by taking on a ridiculous-sounding studio project - a science fiction love story featuring a spaceship in the form of a giant pickle - in "The Pickle" (1993).

"Faithful"

Paul Mazursky directed the film version of Chazz Palminteri's stage play, "Faithful" (1996). It starred Palminteri as a hit man hired by Ryan O'Neal to murder his wife (Cher).

"Winchell"

Paul Mazursky directed the HBO film "Winchell" (1998), starring Stanley Tucci as columnist Walter Winchell.

Mazursky's later directorial credits included the TV movie "Coast to Coast" (starring Richard Dreyfuss), and the documentary "Yippee."

"Big Shot's Funeral (Da Wan)"

Paul Mazursky (right) appeared as a studio executive in the Chinese comedy "Big Shot's Funeral (Da Wan)" (2001), starring Donald Sutherland as an American director in China to remake "The Last Emperor."

Mazurksy's other turns as an actor included the TV series "The Sopranos," ''Curb Your Enthusiasm" and "Once and Again," and the films "Punchline," "Carlito's Way," "Crazy in Alabama," "Antz," and "Why Do Fools Fall in Love."

Paul Mazursky

Paul Mazursky, pictured at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills, Calif., on Nov. 7, 2012.

By CBSNews.com senior producer David Morgan