Mike Nichols Biography
Mike Nichols (1931 - 2014) After establishing himself in the popular comedy duo with Elaine May in the late 1950s, Mike Nichols became one of the most decorated directors of stage and screen, earning several Tony Awards for his work on Broadway while he ran the influential Academy Award-winning Films. Although he began his career as an improvisational comedian and gained some popularity with May, Nichols found his greatest success first on Broadway, where he collaborated extensively with Neil Simon to direct "Barefoot in the Park" (1963) and "The strange couple". " (1965); both earned him Tony Awards for Best Director. He soon moved to Hollywood and directed the controversial "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" (1966), which pioneered his use of profanity and the frank handling of marital infidelity, and "The Graduate" (1967), which managed to tap into the feelings of isolation and abandonment of that era's youth. He soon broke away from Hollywood to focus on the stage, only to return with the acclaimed biopic "Silkwood" (1983), starring Meryl Streep. After popular hits like "Working Girl" (1988) and "Biloxi Blues" (1988), Nichols' film career took a sharp downturn until he directed the hit comedy "The Birdcage" (1996). On the small screen, he found even more success with the acclaimed made-for-cable movie "Wit" (HBO, 2001) and the extraordinary miniseries "Angels in America" (HBO, 2003), both of which have earned their share of critical adulation and awards. After returning to the big screen with "Closer" (2004) and "Charlie Wilson's War" (2007), Nichols proved himself to be just as good as he was when he broke new ground for the previous generation.
