Ernst Lubitsch

Hailed by the likes of Alfred Hitchcock, Francois Truffaut and Orson Welles as a giant among filmmakers, Ernst Lubitsch was a preeminent figure in the history of cinema who directed some of Hollywood's most sophisticated and enduring comedies. More than a great director of actors and action, he added his own personal signature - known as the "Lubitsch touch" - to all his work, a sense of style and grace that was rarely duplicated on the screen. After making a name as a director in his native Germany, Lubitsch was brought over at the behest of star Mary Pickford to direct her in "Rosita" (1923). From there, he made comedies like "The Marriage Circle" (1924) and "Kiss Me Again" (1925), as well as dramas like "The Patriot" (1925). But with the advent of sound, the cigar-chomping director's career took off atop fascination with a new genre, the musical comedy, and he began displaying his famed Lubitsch touch with classics like "Monte Carlo" (1930) and "One Hour with You" (1932). He directed his first bona fide masterpiece, "Trouble in Paradise" (1932), and later hit his stride full force with "Bluebeard's Eighth Wife" (1938), "Ninotchka" (1939) and "The Shop Around the Corner" (1940). Lubitsch reached great artistic heights with "To Be or Not to Be" (1942) and "Heaven Can Wait" (1943) before dying mid-career in 1947, leaving behind a legacy virtually unmatched by a filmmaker before or since.