Woody Allen
Born Allan Stewart Konigsberg, in 1935 in the Bronx, Woody Allen changed his name at seventeen, when he started to send jokes to newspaper writers to use in their columns. Earl Wilson of the New York Post gave Allen his first named credit. After one semester at New York University, where he received a D in motion picture production, Allen was accepted into the NBC television writer development program. His first television job was to write for the Colgate Comedy Hour, which was led by Danny Simon, Neil's brother. Allen later joined the comedy writing staff for Sid Caesar's television show. From 1960 until 1968, Allen became a highly regarded stand-up comic. Two of his plays had successful runs on Broadway: Don't Drink the Water, and Play It Again, Sam, which was made into a movie starring Allen and directed by Herb Ross. The writing and acting, and then directing, came together in his own film work. Allen has created a unique position in American film, not only for his consistent, almost annual output, but also for his remarkable body of work across all genres, styles, and themes -- each film captures a specific cultural moment. Allen's films include: Take the Money and Run, Bananas, Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex (But Were Afraid to Ask), Sleeper, Love and Death, Annie Hall (Oscar for best picture of the year), Interiors, Manhattan, Stardust Memories, A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy, Broadway Danny Rose, The Purple Rose of Cairo, Hannah and Her Sisters, Radio Days, September, Another Woman, Crimes and Misdemeanors, Husbands and Wives, Zelig, Bullets Over Broadway, Shadows and Fog, Manhattan Murder Mystery, Mighty Aphrodite, Everyone Says I Love You, Deconstructing Harry, Small Time Crooks, Sweet and Lowdown, Curse of the Jade Scorpion, Hollywood Ending, Anything Else, and Match Point, amongst others. He has won Oscars for best director for Annie Hall, and best screenplay for Annie Hall and Hannah and Her Sisters. Allen is also an accomplished clarinetist, regularly playing a club gig in New York. Through his books, magazine stories, and films, Allen is certainly one of the most productive American artists - and one of the most perceptive.
