Woody Allen: Biography
Born Allen Stewart Konigsberg in Brooklyn, NY, on December 1, 1935, he adopted his stage name at the age of 17, and in 1953 enrolled in New York University's film program, quickly failing the course "Motion Picture Production" and soon dropping out of school to begin writing for comedian David Alber for the sum of 20 dollars a week. Two years later, Allen graduated to writing for television, working on the staff of the legendary Your Show of Shows, as well as penning material for Pat Boone. During his five-year tenure in television, his efforts won him an Emmy nomination, but like Mel Brooks, Allen found his writing career stifling, and he eventually decided to try his hand as a standup performer. After slowly gaining a reputation on the New York-club circuit, he became a frequent talk show guest and in 1964 issued his self-titled debut comedy LP.
In 1993 his private life received adverse publicity after losing a court battle for custody of three of their children, following the revelation of an affair with Farrow's adopted daughter, Soon-Yi (whom he married in 1997)
Woody Allen: Career
What's New, Pussycat? (1965) saw the start of a prolific film-making career that initially consisted of slapstick lunacy and genre parody in such productions as Bananas (1971) and Love and Death (1975). Annie Hall (1977) marked a shift in style and substance to more concentrated, autobiographical pieces and won him Oscars for writing and direction. Subsequently, he has explored his concerns with mortality, sexual inadequacies, show-business nostalgia, psychoanalysis, and urban living in such films as Interiors (1978), Manhattan (1979, British Academy Award and New York Film Critics Award), Broadway Danny Rose (1984), and Hannah and Her Sisters (1986, Oscar). His books include Getting Even (1971) and Without Feathers (1976). Later films include Husbands and Wives (1992) - whose release coincided with the much-publicized breakdown of his long-term relationship with actress Mia Farrow - Bullets over Broadway (1994, Oscar), Everyone Says I Love You (1997), Celebrity (1998), and Melinda and Melinda (2004).
Woody Allen: Films
The Ballad of Greenwich Village (2005), Anything Else (2003), Hollywood Ending (2002), Light Keeps Me Company (2001), The Curse of the Jade Scorpion (2001), Company Man (2001), Cyberworld 3D (2000), Small Time Crooks (2000), Picking Up the Pieces (1999), Antz (1998), The Impostors (1998), Wild Man Blues (1998), Deconstructing Harry (1997), Everyone Says I Love You (1996), The Sunshine Boys (1995), Mighty Aphrodite (1995), Manhattan Murder Mystery (1993), Husbands and Wives (1992), Shadows and Fog (1992), Scenes From A Mall (1991), Crimes and Misdemeanors (1989), New York Stories (1989), King Lear (1988), Hannah and Her Sisters (1986), Broadway Danny Rose (1984), Zelig (1983), A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy (1982), Stardust Memories (1980), Manhattan (1979), Annie Hall (1977), The Front (1976), Love and Death (1975), Sleeper (1973), Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Sex, But Were Afraid to Ask (1972), Play It Again, Sam (1972), Bananas (1971), Take the Money and Run (1969), Casino Royale (1967), What's New, Pussycat? (1965)
