Michael Curtiz

Michael Curtiz (born Manó Kaminer, later known as Mihály Kertész) was a Hungarian-American film director known for his work during Hollywood's Golden Age. He is recognized as one of the most prolific directors in history, having directed classic films from the silent era and numerous others throughout Hollywood's prime. Born in Budapest on December 24, 1886, and having directed 64 films in Europe, he was invited to Hollywood by Warner Bros. in 1926. He helped Warner Bros. grow into the fastest-growing movie studio and ended up directing 102 films during his Hollywood career. Popular actors like James Cagney and Joan Crawford won their only Oscars under Curtiz's direction. He also introduced Doris Day and John Garfield to the silver screen, and turned actors like Errol Flynn, Olivia de Havilland, and Bette Davis into stars. He was nominated for the Best Director Oscar five times, winning once for Casablanca.

Curtiz was a versatile director, proficient in a variety of genres, from melodrama to comedy, to love story, film noir, musical, war story, Western, horror, or historical epic. He always emphasized the human-interest aspect of stories, maintaining that the "human and fundamental problems of real people" comprised the essence of good drama. However, he did court controversy after 25 horses met tragic deaths in The Charge of the Light Brigade, leading to the enactment of policy by the U.S. Congress and the ASPCA to prevent animal cruelty on film sets. Curtiz helped popularize adventures with films like The Adventures of Robin Hood and created other classic dramas such as Casablanca and Mildred Pierce. He directed leading musicals, including Yankee Doodle Dandy, This Is the Army, and White Christmas, and successfully ventured into comedy with films like Life with Father and We're No Angels.