“(...) the only way you can be any good is if the camera likes you. If the camera doesn’t like you, you are gone.” —Hawks

A director, screenwriter and producer, Howard Hawks' career spanned nearly 50 years and a variety of genres, from gangster films ("Scarface," 1932) and westerns ("Red River," 1948) to screwball comedies ("Bringing Up Baby," 1938) and musicals ("Gentlemen Prefer Blondes," 1953).

Born in Goshen, Indiana in May of 1896, Hawks was always a risktaker, starting out as plane and car racer in his teens before holding a number of film production jobs. By 1926, Hawks interests turned to directing, releasing his first film, "The Road to Glory," which he also wrote. After releasing his first eight films (all silent), Hawks had made a name for himself in Hollywood, enabling him to work with some of the most illustrious people in Hollywood, including Cary Grant and Katherine Hepburn. Hawks is also credited with launching the career of Lauren Becall among others, although their relationship was one of unrequited love (Hawks was hurt when she fell in love with Humphrey Bogart). Hawks was determined not to sacrifice his independence, so unlike other filmmakers of his day (Frank Capra, John Ford), Hawks never attached himself to a genre or studio for any long period.

Hawks' protagonists are not necessarily moral people, but they do play fair, at least according to Hawks (Hawks' friends have called him a liar - among other things). His characters were never intended to be role models, and his films were not created to teach a lesson, like Frank Capra's "It's A Wonderful Life," for example. Hawks wanted tell a good story in the most entertaining way possible, and that he did, which might explain how his career was able to survive the change from silent films to talkies when many others were not so fortunate.