Editing Mike Nichols (section)

===1971–1989: Rise to prominence and stardom ===
[[File:Mike Nichols (4506109932).jpg|thumb|left|Nichols at the National Film Society in 1979]]
Nichols returned to Broadway to direct [[Neil Simon]]'s ''[[The Prisoner of Second Avenue]]'' in 1971. The play won Nichols another [[26th Tony Awards|Tony Award]] for Best Director. In 1973, Nichols directed a revival of [[Anton Chekhov]]'s ''[[Uncle Vanya]]'' on Broadway starring [[George C. Scott]] and with a new translation by himself and Albert Todd.<ref name="autogenerated1988"/> In 1973 Nichols directed the film ''[[The Day of the Dolphin]]'' starring [[George C. Scott]], based on the French novel ''[[The Day of the Dolphin (book)|Un animal doué de raison]]'' (lit. ''A Sentient Animal'') by [[Robert Merle]] and adapted by [[Buck Henry]]. The film was not successful financially and received mixed reviews from critics.<ref name="autogenerated1988"/> Nichols next directed ''[[The Fortune]]'' (1975), starring [[Warren Beatty]], [[Jack Nicholson]] and [[Stockard Channing]]. Again, the film was a financial failure and received mostly negative reviews. In 1975, Nichols began filming ''Bogart Slept Here'', an original screenplay by Neil Simon. The film starred [[Robert De Niro]] and Simon's wife, [[Marsha Mason]]. After one week of filming, displeased with the results, Nichols and the studio fired De Niro and shut the production down. Simon would retool the script two years later as ''[[The Goodbye Girl]]''.<ref name="bogart">{{cite web|title=When Mike Nichols Fired Robert De Niro: Excerpt from 'De Niro: A Life'|date=December 28, 2014|url=https://www.indiewire.com/2014/12/when-mike-nichols-fired-robert-de-niro-excerpt-from-de-niro-a-life-66703/|publisher=Indiewire|access-date=May 21, 2021}}</ref> Nichols would not direct another narrative feature film for eight years.<ref name="autogenerated1988"/>

Nichols returned to the stage with two moderately successful productions in 1976; [[David Rabe]]'s ''[[Streamers (play)|Streamers]]'' opened in April and ran for 478 performances.<ref>{{cite web|title=Streamers|url=http://www.ibdb.com/production.php?id=13520|publisher=The Broadway League|access-date=November 21, 2014}}</ref> [[Trevor Griffiths]]'s ''[[Comedians (play)|Comedians]]'' ran for 145 performances.<ref>{{cite web|title=Comedians|url=http://www.ibdb.com/production.php?id=3875|publisher=The Broadway League|access-date=November 21, 2014}}</ref> In 1976 Nichols also worked as Executive Producer to create the television drama ''[[Family (1976 TV series)|Family]]'' for [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]. The series ran until 1980. In 1977, Nichols produced the original Broadway production of the hugely successful musical ''[[Annie (musical)|Annie]]'', which ran for 2,377 performances until 1983. Nichols won the Tony Award for Best Musical.<ref name="Morrison">{{cite book|last1=Morrison|first1=William|title=Broadway Theatres: History and Architecture|date=1999|publisher=Dover Publications|location=Mineola, N.Y.|isbn=978-0-486-40244-4|pages=154–155}}</ref> Later in 1977, Nichols directed D.L. Coburn's ''[[The Gin Game]]''. The play ran for 517 performances and won a Tony Award for Best Actress for [[Jessica Tandy]].<ref>{{cite web|title=The Gin Game|url=http://www.ibdb.com/production.php?id=4017|publisher=The Broadway League|access-date=November 21, 2014}}</ref>

In 1980, Nichols directed the documentary ''[[Gilda Live]]'', a filmed performance of comedian [[Gilda Radner]]'s one-woman show ''Gilda Radner Live on Broadway''. It was released at the same time as the album of the show, both of which were successful. Nichols was then involved with two unsuccessful shows: he produced ''[[Billy Bishop Goes to War]]'', which opened in 1980 and closed after only twelve performances,<ref>[http://www.ibdb.com/production.php?id=3957 Billy Bishop Goes to War]. The Broadway League. Retrieved March 12, 2010</ref> and directed [[Neil Simon]]'s ''[[Fools (play)|Fools]]'', in 1981, which closed after forty performances.<ref name="rich">Rich, Frank (April 7, 1981).  [http://theater.nytimes.com/mem/theater/treview.html?res=9503E7DC1139F934A35757C0A967948260 "Theater Review. 'Fools' by Simon' "] ''The New York Times''</ref> Returning to Hollywood, Nichols's career rebounded in 1983 with the film ''[[Silkwood]]'', starring [[Meryl Streep]], [[Cher]] and [[Kurt Russell]], based on the life of whistleblower [[Karen Silkwood]]. The film was a financial and critical success, with film critic [[Vincent Canby]] calling it "the most serious work Mike Nichols has yet done."<ref name="autogenerated1988"/> The film received five [[Academy Award]] nominations, including a Best Director nomination for Nichols.

That same year, Nichols and [[Peter Stone (writer)|Peter Stone]] helped to fix up and rewrite the musical ''[[My One and Only (musical)|My One and Only]]'' just days before its Boston premiere.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Shewey|first1=Don|title=How 'My One and Only' came to Broadway|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1983/05/01/theater/how-my-one-and-only-came-to-broadway.html|work=The New York Times|access-date=November 21, 2014|date=May 1, 1983}}</ref> The show eventually went to Broadway and ran for 767 performances, winning [[Tony Awards]] for Best Actor, Best Choreography (both for [[Tommy Tune]]) and Best Supporting Actor ([[Charles Coles|Charles "Honi" Coles]]). In 1984, Nichols directed the Broadway premiere of [[Tom Stoppard]]'s ''[[The Real Thing (play)|The Real Thing]]''. ''[[The New York Times]]'' critic [[Frank Rich]] wrote that "The Broadway version of ''The Real Thing''—a substantial revision of the original London production—is not only Mr. Stoppard's most moving play, but also the most bracing play that anyone has written about love and marriage in years."<ref>{{cite news|url=http://theater.nytimes.com/mem/theater/treview.html?res=9407E7D81338F935A35752C0A962948260|title=Tom Stoppard's ''Real Thing''|last=Rich|first=Frank|date=January 6, 1984|work=The New York Times|access-date=March 15, 2011}}</ref> The play was nominated for seven [[38th Tony Awards|Tony Awards]] and won five, including a Best Director Tony for Nichols. Nichols followed the success with the Broadway premiere of [[David Rabe]]'s ''[[Hurlyburly]]'', also in 1984. It was performed just two blocks away from the theater showing ''The Real Thing''. It was nominated for three [[39th Tony Awards|Tony Awards]] and won Best Actress for [[Judith Ivey]].<ref name="autogenerated1988"/>

[[File:Whoopi Goldberg by John Mathew Smith.jpg|thumb|right|160px|[[Whoopi Goldberg]] credits Nichols with discovering her after seeing her perform her one woman show in 1983]]
In 1983, Nichols had seen comedian [[Whoopi Goldberg]]'s one woman show, ''The Spook Show'', at Dance Theater Workshop and wanted to help her expand it. Goldberg's self-titled Broadway show opened in October 1984 and ran for 156 performances. [[Rosie O'Donnell]] later said that Nichols had discovered Goldberg while she was struggling as a downtown artist: "He gave her the entire beginning of her career and recognized her brilliance before anyone else."<ref>{{cite news|last1=Rivera|first1=Zayda|title=Mike Nichols dead at 83: Whoopi Goldberg breaks down on 'The View' when talking about her 'mentor'|url=http://www.nydailynews.com/entertainment/tv/whoopi-goldberg-breaks-talking-mike-nichols-article-1.2017875|newspaper=New York Daily News|access-date=November 21, 2014|date=November 20, 2014}}</ref> In 1986 Nichols directed the Broadway premiere of [[Andrew Bergman]]'s ''[[Social Security (play)|Social Security]]'' and in 1988 directed ''[[Waiting for Godot]]'', starring [[Robin Williams]] and [[Steve Martin]].<ref>Kornbluth, Jesse. "Robin Williams's Change of Life", ''New York Magazine'', November 22, 1993</ref> Williams cited Nichols and May as among his early influences for performing intelligent comedy.<ref>Herbert, Emily. ''Robin Williams: When the Laughter Stops 1951–2014'', John Blak Publishing (2014) e-bk</ref>

In 1986, Nichols directed the film ''[[Heartburn (film)|Heartburn]]'', which received mixed reviews, and starred Meryl Streep and [[Jack Nicholson]]. In 1988, Nichols completed two feature films. The first was an adaptation of [[Neil Simon]]'s autobiographical stage play ''[[Biloxi Blues (film)|Biloxi Blues]]'' starring [[Matthew Broderick]], also receiving mixed critical reviews. Nichols directed one of his most successful films, ''[[Working Girl]]'', which starred [[Melanie Griffith]], [[Harrison Ford]] and [[Sigourney Weaver]]. The film was a huge hit upon its release, and received mostly positive reviews from critics. It was nominated for six [[61st Academy Awards|Academy Awards]] (including Best Director for Nichols) and won the [[Academy Award for Best Song]] for [[Carly Simon]]'s "[[Let the River Run]]". At one point in the 1980s, Nichols—prone to bouts of depression—reported that he had considered suicide, a feeling apparently brought on by a psychotic episode he experienced after taking the drug [[Halcion]].<ref name="Weber" />