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Director Wolfgang Petersen dies of cancer at 81

Director Wolfgang Petersen attends the 2007 Golden Bear Award Ceremony of the Berlin International Film Festival, Berlinale. Petersen died Monday at age 81. (Getty Images)
By David Matthews New York Daily News
Director Wolfgang Petersen attends the 2007 Golden Bear Award Ceremony of the Berlin International Film Festival, Berlinale. Petersen died Monday at age 81. (Getty Images)

Director Wolfgang Petersen, known for films including “Air Force One” and “The Perfect Storm,” died Monday from pancreatic cancer at age 81.

The German-born Petersen was nominated for Oscars for best adapted screenplay and best director for 1981’s “Das Boot,” a World War II submarine drama. He made his English debut with “The NeverEnding Story” in 1984.

He went on to direct a number of major blockbusters in Hollywood, including “In The Line of Fire” with Clint Eastwood and John Malkovich; “The Perfect Storm” with George Clooney and Mark Wahlberg; “Outbreak” with Dustin Hoffman and “Air Force One” with Harrison Ford, among many others.