Facts: - years active: 1951 -- 88 - birth name: john nicholas cassavetes - birth date: 9 december 1929 - parents: katherine cassavetes , nicholas john cassavetes - resting place: westwood california village memorial park cemetery , los angeles , - caption: john cassavetes as johnny staccato , 1959 - death date: 3 february 1989 - spouse: gena rowlands 1954 1989 -lrb- his death -rrb- - name: john cassavetes - death place: los angeles , california , u.s. - birth place: new york city , new york , u.s. - death cause: cirrhosis of the liver - education: blair academy - nationality: american - occupation: actor editor , director , producer , screenwriter , film - alma mater: colgate university - residence: los angeles , california - home town: long island , new york - children: nick cassavetes , alexandra cassavetes , zoe r. cassavetes - image: john cassavetes johnny staccato 1959.jpg Based on these bullet points, write a short biography describing the life of john cassavetes .
A:
john nicholas cassavetes -lrb- december 9 , 1929 -- february 3 , 1989 -rrb- was a greek-american actor , film director and screenwriter .cassavetes was a pioneer of american independent film , by writing and directing over a dozen movies , some of which he partially self-financed , which pioneered the use of improvisation and a realistic cinema verite style .he also acted in many hollywood films , notably '' rosemary 's baby '' -lrb- 1968 -rrb- and '' the dirty dozen '' -lrb- 1967 -rrb- .he studied acting with don richardson , using an acting technique based on muscle memory .his children nick cassavetes , zoe cassavetes and xan cassavetes are also filmmakers .