Jeff Dowd (born November 20, 1949) is an American film producer and political activist.

He was a member of the "Seattle Seven",[1] who were jailed for contempt of court following a violent protest against the Vietnam War.

[2] He met the Coen brothers while they were promoting their first film, Blood Simple, and was a key (though not the only) inspiration for their character Jeffrey "The Dude" Lebowski from The Big Lebowski.

[4] Anderson was eating breakfast when Dowd reportedly confronted him, and then incited a food fight and brief melee at the Yarrow Hotel Restaurant.

[5] In 2011, Dowd was the subject of an 18-minute documentary-short directed by Jeff Feuerzeig and broadcast on the USA Network as part of its "Character" series.