George Abbott

At 96, he became a newlywed - albeit for the third time - and directed a Broadway show; at 102, he was writing a libretto for an off-Broadway production of "Frankenstein." In a career that spanned nine decades, few things, least of all age, slowed the producer, writer, director and sometime actor George Abbott until his death at the age of 107. Throughout his life, he had been known as "Mr. Broadway" due to his influence on the stage there, but he also wrote and directed a number of films as well. From his first hit on the stage, "Broadway" (1926) through a 1994 revival of the classic "Damn Yankees," Abbott's contributions indelibly shaped the American theater landscape. Hardworking, dashing and formal - most people eschewed his first name, famously calling him "Mr. Abbott" instead - his work won him multiple awards starting with his first for writing the screenplay for "All Quiet on the Western Front" in 1930 and culminating with Kennedy Center Honors in 1982.