Oh God, I begged you to get some therapy

That line always gets one of the biggest laughs in Tootsie. And it's uttered not by Dustin Hoffman, but by the film's actor-director Sydney Pollack, who only took the part of the agent after Hoffman sent him flowers and a note saying, "Please be my agent. Love, Dorothy."

Pollack, who died of cancer Monday at 73, hadn't acted in a movie in 20 years. He'd had a string of hugely successful movies as a director in the 70s, including They Shoot Horses, Don't They?, which received many Oscar nominations and won for Gig Young, as well as the Robert Redford-Barbra Stresand weeper The Way We Were.

His biggest succcess was yet to come: he won directing and producing Oscars for the Redford-Meryl Streep pairing in the box office smash Out of Africa.

Yet it was Pollack's acting that kept him the public's mind after his success in Tootsie. He went on to play memorable roles in Husbands and Wives, The Player, Eyes Wide Shut and in last year's Michael Clayton, as George Clooney's rich firm boss. He also appeared frequently on TV, including a recurring role as Will's dad on Will & Grace. His TV credits went back to 1959, including appearances on The Twilight Zone and Alfred Hitchcock Presents.

He also kept active as a producer, with credits varying from King Ralph to Sense and Sensibility. His last movie will be The Reader, starring Kate Winslet, a project he began with Anthony Minghella, who died earlier this year at age 54.