About Ric Menello
Richard "Ric" Menello (August 20, 1952 – March 1, 2013) was an American filmmaker and screenwriter. Menello co-directed the landmark music video for the Beastie Boys' 1987 single, "(You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party!)". His contributions to music during the era led MTV to call him, "one of the most influential visionaries behind the emergence of commercial hip-hop in the 1980s." Menello's screenwriting credits include the 1988 Run–D.M.C. film, Tougher Than Leather, directed by Rick Rubin, and two films co-written with and directed by James Gray, Two Lovers (2008), starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Joaquin Phoenix, and The Immigrant, (2013), starring Marion Cotillard and Joaquin Phoenix. Menello met record producer Rick Rubin, the founder of Def Jam Recordings, while Rubin was living in the same NYU dorm. Menello continued his association with the Beastie Boys by writing a television pilot, The Beastie Boys Get Stupid, which he co-created, with Rubin.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.