" I don't want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it through not dying."
Early Life:
On December 1, 1935 Allan Stewart Konigsberg was born. He was raised by his parents, who did not particularly get along, causing the childhood of him and his sister to not be the happiest. The relationships he shared with his parents were always rocky, but especially with his stern, temperamental mother.
Allan attended Hebrew school for eight years while also attending Public School 99. From there he went to Midwood High School where he graduated in 1953. He was always liked by the students but showed more interest in baseball, card and magic tricks, rather than the school work. After completing high school, Allan went on to attend New York University where he studied communication and film. After failing a motion picture production class he decided to drop out. He attempted again to study film in 1954 at the City College of New York but before the semester ended decide he was better off teaching himself then in a classroom.
Comedy:
At the age of fifteen Allan began writing jokes to earn a little bit of money. Once various Broadway writers showed interest in his work, he started to go by the name of Woody Allen to not stir up too much attention at school. One writer that's attention was caught by Allen's jokes was a man by the name of Abe Burrows, coauthor of Guys and Dolls.
After Allen mailed his work to various writers, at the age of nineteen he was invited to join the NBC Writer's Development Program in 1955. His career path went on when he began to write scripts for The Ed Sullivan Show, The Tonight Show, and specials for Sid Caesar post- Caesar's Hours. During this time he worked alongside of Danny Simon, who he also credits for helping him discover his writing style.
From 1960 to 1969, Allen performed as a stand-up comedian. When he first began, Allen was very shy when it came to being on stage. He would wrap the microphone cord around his neck in a nervous act and audiences would be confused, as well as concerned with what they were seeing. The style of his jokes were also very different than the other comedians around. "His jokes were created from life experiences, and typically presented with a dead serious demeanor which made them funnier." With some practice Allen was able to get the hang of it and continued to deliver excellent shows for his crowds.
By developing a neurotic, nervous, and intellectual persona in his stand-up, Allen was able to secure regular gigs from himself in nightclubs and on television.
Films:
In 1965 Allen's first screenplay What's New Pussycat was released. After being disappointed with the final product he was inspired to direct every film that he would write. The list of films that Woody Allen has directed, starred in, co-wrote, or even just contributed a bit of his time to, has started in 1965 and continues on today.
One of the first films Allen directed, starred in, and co-wrote was in 1969 titled Take the Money and Run that led to a signed deal with United Aritsts to produce several films (which later became Bananas (1971), Everything You Always Wanted To Know About Sex (1972), Sleeper (1973), and Love and Death (1975).
Between Allen's two most famous films Annie Hall and Manhattan, he wrote and directed Interiors (1978) which stands for a departure of his comedies. Many of his films released in the 1980s show a somber and philosophical undertone with influences from Ingmar Bergman and Federico Fellini. Allen had a tendency to place same actresses and actors in numerous films. Diane Keaton is seen in multiple films (Manhattan, Sleeper, Men of Crisis: The Harvey Wallinger Story, Radio Days, Manhattan Murder Mystery, Play It Again, Sam, Love and Death, and Annie Hall) and starting in his A Midsummer Night's Sex Comedy (1982), Mia Farrow would start her 13 film streak.
From his famous comedies, to romantic films, to even a few documentaries Woody Allen is still making films shown in theaters such as Cafe Society (2016) bringing in $25,300,078 to the box office. Although this world is something that runs on money, Allen doesn't really look too much into the numbers. In the film Woody Allen: A Documentary he shares that as long as his film makes a dollar he is happy, because then he can make his next one.
Annie Hall:
" The first film where it's truly grounded in adult feeling. This is the one where he thinks I'm going to go with feeling first and people first and the jokes have to come out of those people. And so ya know, it feels like a landmark change. "
The release of Annie Hall brought a rather different reaction from the audiences. Allen was known for his comedic writing and roles, whereas Annie Hall was a modern romantic story. Of course, the comedic lines weren't completely left out of this film, but it was in fact a different story line then what audiences were used to receiving from Allen. In 1977 Annie Hall won four Academy Awards including Best Picture, Best Actress in a Leading Role for Diane Keaton, Best Original Screenplay and Best Director for Allen. Awards are an exciting experience for anybody but Allen didn't care too much about them as he thought that would persuade people's opinions on them.
This wasn't the only film Keaton appeared in side by side of Allen. The two had great chemistry and always delivered a fascinating story with one another. In a 1976 interview with Rolling Stone, Allen shares, "I don't like meeting heros. There's nobody I want to meet and nobody I want to work with- I'd rather work with Diane Keaton than anyone-she's absolutely great, a natural."
Woody Today:
Although Allen is mostly known for his films and acting, he is also very interested in music. A very passionate jazz fan, he has always wanted to create a film about the origins of jazz in New Orleans. After calculating that the film would cost between $80 and $100 million dollars he knows it is unlikely to be made, but has the title and hope that it will someday happen.
His next project has been filming since September 2016. The film is set in 1950's in Coney Islands with stars Kate Winslet and Justin Timberlake.
