British film director Peter Yates, known for both edge-of-your-seat thrillers and sensitive dramas has died in London. He was 8. Yates joined the film industry in the early 1960s after a stint as a stage actor. His first film, 1963's Summer Holiday, starred singer Cliff Richard. But it was the 1968 Hollywood thriller Bullitt with Steve McQueen that brought Yates fame.Yates also directed the thoughtful 1979 coming of age drama Breaking Away, set in the American Midwest, and 1983's The Dresser, about an aging actor and his loyal assistant. Yates was nominated for four Academy Awards during his career.