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Woody Allen (born December 1, 1935), is an United
States|American short story|short story writer,
screenwriter, and film director whose large body
of work and cerebral style have made him one of
the most widely respected and prolific filmmakers
in the modern era. He writes and directs his own
movies and has acted in many of them as well.
Allen draws heavily on literature, philosophy,
European cinema and most importantly, New York
City, where he was born and in which he has lived
all his life, for much of his inspiration; indeed,
his onscreen persona is the quintessential New
York Jewish intellectual: neurotic and
self-absorbed, cosmopolitan yet insecure, with a
self-deprecating sense of humor. 



==Life and work==

Allen was born Allen Stewart Konigsberg in the
Bronx, New York, into a Jewish family. His parents
Martin and Nettie lived in Flatbush, where he
attended a Hebrew school for eight years. After
that, he went to Public School 99 and then to
Midwood High, where "Red" (as he was called
because of his hair) impressed students with his
extraordinary talent at cards and magic tricks. To
raise money, he began writing joke|gags for the
agent David O. Alber, who sold them to newspaper
columnists. Reportedly, Allen's first published
joke was "I am two with Nature."  At sixteen, he
started writing for show stars like Sid Caesar and
began calling himself Woody Allen. He was a gifted
comedian from an early stage.

He would later joke that when he was young he was
often sent to inter-faith summer camps, in which
he "was savagely beaten by children of all races
and creeds".

After high school, he went to New York University
where he studied communication and film but, never
much of a student, he soon dropped out due to poor
grades (he would later joke he was expelled for
cheating on the metaphysics final: "I looked into
the soul of the boy sitting next to me."). He also
briefly attended City College of New York after
that. At nineteen, he married Harlene Rosen, a
philosophy student, and started writing scripts
for The Ed Sullivan Show, The Tonight Show and
others. In 1957 in television|1957, he won his
first Emmy Award; about the same time, he divorced
Harlene.

He started writing prose and plays, and in 1960,
started a new career as a stand-up comedy|stand-up
comedian and also began writing for the popular
Candid Camera television show, even appearing in
some episodes. Together with his managers he
turned his weaknesses into his strengths and
developed the neurotic, nervous, and shy figure
famous from his later movies. He soon became an
immensely popular comedian and appeared frequently
in nightclubs and on television. 

His first movie production was What's New,
Pussycat? in 1965 in film|1965, for which he wrote
the screenplay. It was a largely unpleasant
experience for Allen as he was trapped in Paris
for six months during the production. Furthermore,
the studio never showed much respect for his
script, altering the film to the point where it
bore little resemblance to Allen's original
vision. Allen's first directorial effort was
What's Up, Tiger Lily? (1966 in film|1966), in
which an existing Japan|Japanese spy movie was
redubbed in English language|English by Allen and
his friends with completely new, comic dialogue.
In 1967 in film|1967, he also appeared in the
offbeat James Bond film, Casino Royale. His first
conventional directing effort was Take The Money
and Run (1969 in film|1969), which was followed by
Bananas (movie)|Bananas, Everything You Always
Wanted to Know About Sex (But Were Afraid to Ask)
(film)|Everything You Always Wanted To Know About
Sex, Sleeper (movie)|Sleeper, and Love and Death.
In 1972, he also starred in the film version of
his own play called Play It Again, Sam, which was
directed by Herbert Ross. All of Allen's early
films are pure comedies that relied heavily on
slapstick, inventive sight gags, and non-stop
one-liners.  Among the many notable influences on
these films are Bob Hope and Groucho Marx.

In 1976 in film|1976, he starred in, but did not
direct, The Front, a serious look at Hollywood
blacklisting during the 1950s. He returned to
directing in 1977 in film|1977's Annie Hall, a
modern classic that marked a major turn away to
more sophisticated humor and thoughtful drama (the
movie won four Academy Awards, including Best
Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress). The
film set the standard for modern romantic comedy
and also started a fashion trend with the unique
dress worn by Diane Keaton in the film. He also
directed the serious drama Interiors, in the
manner of the great Swedish director,  Ingmar
Bergman, one of Allen's major influences. His most
successful movies were produced in a ten year
period starting with Annie Hall; other critical
and financial successes were Manhattan (1979
movie)|Manhattan, The Purple Rose of Cairo ( named
by Time Magazine as one of the 100 best films of
all time) and Hannah and Her Sisters (Winner of
three Academy Awards).

Allen won the 1978 O. Henry Award for his short
story "The Kugelmass Episode" published in The New
Yorker on May 2, 1977. 

Most of his 1980s films, even the comedies, have
somber and philosophical undertone. Many of them
like September (1987 movie)|September and Stardust
Memories are often said to be heavily influenced
by the works of European directors, most notably
Ingmar Bergman and Federico Fellini. Allen twice
won the César Award for Best Foreign Film, the
first in 1980 for Manhattan (1979 movie)|Manhattan
and the second in 1986 for The Purple Rose of
Cairo. He is also the most frequently nominated
person in the Academy Award  catagory of Best
Originial Screenplay, with a stunning total of 13
nominations. In addition to that, he has also been
nominated many times in the catagory of Best
Director, and his actors are also among the most
frequently nominated people in their respective
catagories.    

His 1992 film Shadows and Fog is an homage to
Fritz Lang, G.W. Pabst and F.W. Murnau, and the
German expressionists.

In the late 1990s he returned to lighter movies:
Everyone Says I Love You, a musical, Mighty
Aphrodite, for which Mira Sorvino won an Academy
Award, and others.

In 1992, his personal life became very public,
when he left his long-term partner Mia Farrow
after she discovered his secret affair with her
adopted daughter Soon-Yi Previn. Farrow accused
him of being a pedophilia|pedophile (Previn is 35
years his junior) and of abusing their
seven-year-old daughter Dylan- a charge that was
later dismissed. These events eerily echoed the
plotline of his film released at the time,
Husbands and Wives. In that film, Woody and Mia
play a couple whose decade-long relationship is
falling apart, with Woody's character becoming
attracted to one of his 20-year-old students.
Farrow discusses the events in What Falls Away: A
Memoir, ISBN 0385471874.

Allen and Previn married in 1997, and later
adopted two daughters, naming both (Bechet Allen
and Manzie Tio Allen) after jazz musicians (Sidney
Bechet and Manzie Johnson).  

Woody Allen continues to produce an average of one
film a year. Small Time Crooks (2000), his first
film with DreamWorks SKG studio, was a modest
success, grossing over ten million dollars.
Allen's films tend to be more popular in Europe,
particularly France- a country where he has a
large fan base; in fact, he himself has said that
he "survives" on the European market. In any case,
he is widely respected and admired as a major
filmmaker and he attracts diverse and talented
actors for his films, including Diane Keaton,
Julia Roberts, Sean Penn, Michael Caine, John
Cusack, Anjelica_Huston|Anjelica Houston, Alan
Alda, Judy Davis, Stockard Channing, Helen Hunt,
Téa Leoni, Christina Ricci, Chloë Sevigny,
Wallace Shawn, and David Ogden Stiers. He
continues to write roles for the neurotic persona
he created in the 1960s and 1970s. However, as
Allen gets older, the roles have been assumed by
other actors such as John Cusack (Bullets Over
Broadway), Kenneth Branagh (Celebrity), Jason
Biggs (Anything Else), and Will Ferrell (Melinda
and Melinda).

In 2002 Woody made a surprise appearance- his
first ever- at the Academy Awards ceremony. It was
part of a tribute to New York City|New York after
the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks|9/11
terrorist attacks.

Allen is also a talented clarinetist who has been
performing publicly at least since the late 1960s.
He makes regular New York appearances with his
http://www.woodyallenband.com New Orleans Jazz
Band, specializing in classic New Orleans jazz
from the turn of the century. The documentary film
Wild Man Blues (directed by Barbara Kopple)
documents a 1996 European tour by Allen and band,
as well as his relationship with Soon Yi.

In a 2005 poll The Comedian's Comedian, Allen was
voted the third greatest comedy act ever by fellow
comedians and comedy insiders.

His latest film, Match Point, starring Scarlett
Johansson, debuted at the Cannes Film
Festival|2005 Cannes Film Festival. Match Point is
set in London.

==Filmography==
Selected filmography as a director:
*Match Point (2005)
*Melinda and Melinda (2005)
*Anything Else (2003)
*Hollywood Ending (2002)
*The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (2001)
*Small Time Crooks (2000)
*Sweet and Lowdown (1999)
*Celebrity (1998 movie)|Celebrity (1998)
*Deconstructing Harry (1997)
*Everyone Says I Love You (1996)
*Mighty Aphrodite (1995)
*Bullets Over Broadway (1994)
*Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993)
*Husbands and Wives (1992)
*Shadows and Fog (1992)
*Alice (1990 film)|Alice (1990)
*Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989)
*New York Stories (1989) (segment "Oedipus
Wrecks")
*Another Woman (1988)
*September (film)|September (1987)
*Radio Days (1987)
*Hannah and Her Sisters (1986)
*The Purple Rose of Cairo (1985)
*Broadway Danny Rose (1984)
*Zelig (1983)
*A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy (1982)
*Stardust Memories (1980)
*Manhattan (1979 movie)|Manhattan (1979)
*Interiors (1978)
*Annie Hall (1977)
*Love and Death (1975)
*Sleeper (movie)|Sleeper (1973)
*Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex
(1972)
*Bananas (movie)|Bananas (1971)
*Take the Money and Run (1969)
*What's Up, Tiger Lily? (1966)

==Bibliography==
*Short Stories
**Getting Even (1971), ISBN 0394473485
**Without Feathers (1975), ISBN 0394497430
**Side Effects (1980), ISBN 0394511042
**The Gossage—Vardebedian Papers
*Woody Allen on Woody Allen: In Conversation With
Stig Bjorkman (1995), ISBN 080211556X

==Books on Woody Allen==
* Stephan Reimertz : Woody Allen : Eine
Biographie. Reinbek 2000 ISBN 3499611457 (In
German)
* -- : Woody Allen (rororo-Monographie). Reinbek
2005 ISBN 3499504103 (In German)

==External links==

*imdb name|id=0000095|name=Woody Allen
*http://www.sensesofcinema.com/contents/directors/
03/allen.html Senses of Cinema: Great Directors
Critical Database
*http://woodyallenitalia.tripod.com/short-uk.html
The Whore of Mensa - A Short Story by Woody Allen
*http://www.celebritywonder.com/html/woodyallen.ht
ml  Woody Allen at celebritywonder.com: many
recent quotes and comments attributed to Allen

	Web Quotableonline.com Frasescelebres.org Greatbookscollection.org

Woody Allen, (born Allen Stewart Königsberg on
December 1, 1935), is a  Jewish American short
story|short story writer, screenwriter, and film
director whose large body of work and cerebral
style have made him one of the most widely
respected and prolific filmmakers in the modern
era. He writes and directs his own movies and has
acted in many of them as well. Allen draws heavily
on literature, philosophy, European cinema and
most importantly, New York City, where he was born
and in which he has lived all his life, for much
of his inspiration; indeed, his onscreen persona
is the quintessential New York Jewish
intellectual: neurotic and self-absorbed,
cosmopolitan yet insecure, with a self-deprecating
sense of humor. 



==Life and work==

Allen was born Allen Stewart Königsberg in Bronx,
New York, into what could only be a Jewish family.
His parents Martin and Nettie, and his sister,
Letty, lived in Flatbush, Brooklyn, where he
attended a Hebrew school for eight years. After
that, he went to Public School 99 and then to
Midwood High, where "Red" (as he was called
because of his hair) impressed students with his
extraordinary talent at cards and magic tricks. To
raise money, he began writing joke|gags for the
agent David O. Alber, who sold them to newspaper
columnists. Reportedly, Allen's first published
joke was "I am two with Nature."  At sixteen, he
started writing for show stars like Sid Caesar and
began calling himself Woody Allen. He was a gifted
comedian from an early stage.

He would later joke that when he was young he was
often sent to inter-faith summer camps, in which
he "was savagely beaten by children of all races
and creeds".

After high school, he went to New York University
where he studied communication and film but, never
much of a student, he soon dropped out due to poor
grades (he would later joke he was expelled for
cheating on the metaphysics final: "I looked into
the soul of the boy sitting next to me."). He also
briefly attended City College of New York after
that. At nineteen, he married Harlene Rosen, a
philosophy student, and started writing scripts
for The Ed Sullivan Show, The Tonight Show and
others. In 1957 in television|1957, he won his
first Emmy Award; about the same time, he divorced
Harlene.

He started writing prose and plays, and in 1960,
started a new career as a stand-up comedy|stand-up
comedian and also began writing for the popular
Candid Camera television show, even appearing in
some episodes. Together with his managers he
turned his weaknesses into his strengths and
developed the neurotic, nervous, and shy figure
famous from his later movies. He soon became an
immensely popular comedian and appeared frequently
in nightclubs and on television. 

His first movie production was What's New,
Pussycat? in 1965 in film|1965, for which he wrote
the screenplay. It was a largely unpleasant
experience for Allen as he was trapped in Paris
for six months during the production. Furthermore,
the studio never showed much respect for his
script, altering the film to the point where it
bore little resemblance to Allen's original
vision. Allen's first directorial effort was
What's Up, Tiger Lily? (1966 in film|1966), in
which an existing Japan|Japanese spy movie was
redubbed in English language|English by Allen and
his friends with completely new, comic dialogue.
In 1967 in film|1967, he also appeared in the
offbeat James Bond spoof, Casino Royale (1967
film)|Casino Royale. 


His first conventional directing effort was Take
The Money and Run (1969 in film|1969), which was
followed by Bananas (movie)|Bananas, Everything
You Always Wanted to Know About Sex (But Were
Afraid to Ask) (film)|Everything You Always Wanted
To Know About Sex (But Were Afraid to Ask),
Sleeper (movie)|Sleeper, and Love and Death. In
1972, he also starred in the film version of his
own play called Play It Again, Sam, which was
directed by Herbert Ross. All of Allen's early
films are pure comedies that relied heavily on
slapstick, inventive sight gags, and non-stop
one-liners.  Among the many notable influences on
these films are Bob Hope and Groucho Marx.



In 1976 in film|1976, he starred in, but did not
direct, The Front, a serious look at Hollywood
blacklisting during the 1950s. He returned to
directing in 1977 in film|1977's Annie Hall, a
modern classic that marked a major turn away to
more sophisticated humor and thoughtful drama (the
movie won four Academy Awards, including Best
Picture, Best Director, and Best Actress). The
film set the standard for modern romantic comedy
and also started a fashion trend with the unique
dress worn by Diane Keaton in the film. He also
directed the serious drama Interiors, in the
manner of the great Swedish director,  Ingmar
Bergman, one of Allen's major influences. His most
successful movies were produced in a ten year
period starting with Annie Hall; other critical
and financial successes were Manhattan (1979
movie)|Manhattan, The Purple Rose of Cairo (named
by Time Magazine as one of the 100 best films of
all time, and Allen's personal favorite) and
Hannah and Her Sisters (Winner of three Academy
Awards).

Allen won the 1978 O. Henry Award for his short
story "The Kugelmass Episode" published in The New
Yorker on May 2, 1977. 

Most of his 1980s films, even the comedies, have
somber and philosophical undertone. Many of them
like September (1987 movie)|September and Stardust
Memories are often said to be heavily influenced
by the works of European directors, most notably
Ingmar Bergman and Federico Fellini. Stardust
Memories was considered by many to be a biting
piece of work; the main character (played by
Allen) expressed resentment and scorn for his
fans. In the film, overcome by the recent death of
a friend from illness, he states, "I don't want to
make funny movies any more."

Allen twice won the César Award for Best Foreign
Film, the first in 1980 for Manhattan (1979
movie)|Manhattan and the second in 1986 for The
Purple Rose of Cairo. He is also the most
frequently nominated person in the Academy Award 
category of Best Originial Screenplay, with a
stunning total of 13 nominations. In addition to
that, he has also been nominated many times in the
category of Best Director, and his actors are also
among the most frequently nominated people in
their respective catagories.    

His 1992 film Shadows and Fog is an homage to
Fritz Lang, G.W. Pabst and F.W. Murnau, and the
German expressionists.

In the late 1990s he returned to lighter movies:
Everyone Says I Love You, a musical, Mighty
Aphrodite, for which Mira Sorvino won an Academy
Award, and others.

In 1992, his personal life became very public,
when he left his long-term partner Mia Farrow
after she discovered his secret affair with her
adopted daughter Soon-Yi Previn. Farrow accused
him of being a pedophilia|pedophile (Previn was
22, 35 years younger than Allen) and of abusing
their seven-year-old daughter Dylan - a charge
that was later dismissed. These events eerily
echoed the plotline of his very dark film released
at the time, Husbands and Wives. In that film,
Woody and Mia play a couple whose decade-long
relationship is falling apart, with Woody's
character becoming attracted to one of his
20-year-old students. Farrow discusses the events
in What Falls Away: A Memoir, ISBN 0385471874.

Allen and Previn married in 1997, and later
adopted two daughters, naming both (Bechet Allen
and Manzie Tio Allen) after jazz musicians (Sidney
Bechet and Manzie Johnson).  


Woody Allen continues to produce an average of one
film a year. Small Time Crooks (2000), his first
film with DreamWorks SKG studio, was a modest
success, grossing over ten million dollars.
Allen's films tend to be more popular in Europe,
particularly France- a country where he has a
large fan base; in fact, he himself has said that
he "survives" on the European market. In any case,
he is widely respected and admired as a major
filmmaker and he attracts diverse and talented
actors for his films, including Diane Keaton,
Julia Roberts, Sean Penn, Michael Caine, John
Cusack, Anjelica_Huston|Anjelica Houston, Alan
Alda, Judy Davis, Stockard Channing, Helen Hunt,
Téa Leoni, Christina Ricci, Chloë Sevigny,
Wallace Shawn, and David Ogden Stiers. He
continues to write roles for the neurotic persona
he created in the 1960s and 1970s. However, as
Allen gets older, the roles have been assumed by
other actors such as John Cusack (Bullets Over
Broadway), Kenneth Branagh (Celebrity), Jason
Biggs (Anything Else), and Will Ferrell (Melinda
and Melinda).

In 2002 Woody made a surprise appearance - his
first ever due to his intense dislike of Los
Angeles - at the Academy Awards telecast. It was
part of a tribute to New York City|New York after
the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks|9/11
terrorist attacks.

Allen is also a talented clarinetist who has been
performing publicly at least since the late 1960s.
He makes regular New York appearances with his
http://www.woodyallenband.com New Orleans Jazz
Band, specializing in classic New Orleans jazz
from the turn of the century. The documentary film
Wild Man Blues (directed by Barbara Kopple)
documents a 1996 European tour by Allen and band,
as well as his relationship with Soon Yi.

In a 2005 poll The Comedian's Comedian, Allen was
voted the third greatest comedy act ever by fellow
comedians and comedy insiders.

His latest film, Match Point, starring Scarlett
Johansson, debuted at the Cannes Film
Festival|2005 Cannes Film Festival. Match Point is
set in London.

== Filmography ==
see details|List of Woody Allen films

==Bibliography==
*Short Stories
**Getting Even (1971), ISBN 0394473485
**Without Feathers (1975), ISBN 0394497430
**Side Effects (1980), ISBN 0394511042
**The Gossage—Vardebedian Papers
*Woody Allen on Woody Allen: In Conversation With
Stig Bjorkman (1995), ISBN 080211556X

==Books on Woody Allen==
* Stephan Reimertz : Woody Allen : Eine
Biographie. Reinbek 2000 ISBN 3499611457 (In
German)
* -- : Woody Allen (rororo-Monographie). Reinbek
2005 ISBN 3499504103 (In German)

==External links==

*imdb name|id=0000095|name=Woody Allen
*http://www.sensesofcinema.com/contents/directors/
03/allen.html Senses of Cinema: Great Directors
Critical Database
*http://woodyallenitalia.tripod.com/short-uk.html
The Whore of Mensa - A Short Story by Woody Allen
*http://www.woodyallenmovies.com/ Woody Allen
Movies
*http://www.celebritywonder.com/html/woodyallen.ht
ml  Woody Allen at celebritywonder.com: many
recent quotes and comments attributed to Allen
Woodt Allen and Philosophy