Howard Winchester Hawks (May 30, 1896 – December 26, 1977) was an American film director, producer and screenwriter of the classic Hollywood era. Critic Leonard Maltin called him "the greatest American director who is not a household name."
A versatile film director, Hawks explored many genres such as comedies, dramas, gangster films, science fiction, film noir, war films and westerns. His most popular films include Scarface (1932), Bringing Up Baby (1938), Only Angels Have Wings (1939), His Girl Friday (1940), To Have and Have Not (1944), The Big Sleep (1946), Red River (1948), The Thing from Another World (1951), Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953), and Rio Bravo (1959). His frequent portrayals of strong, tough-talking female characters came to define the "Hawksian woman".
In 1942, Hawks was nominated the only time for the Academy Award for Best Director for Sergeant York (1941). In 1974, he was awarded an Honorary Academy Award as "a master American filmmaker whose creative efforts hold a distinguished place in world cinema." His work has influenced various popular and respected directors such as Martin Scorsese, Robert Altman, Jean-Luc Godard, John Carpenter, Rainer Werner Fassbinder and Michael Mann.

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