Artist Name: Woody Allen Artist Biography: One of the foremost filmmakers of the 20th century, Woody Allen is an avowed jazz aficionado and semi-professional clarinetist. The sound of 1930s hot jazz is a familiar accompaniment to his opening credits and provides the soundtrack to his Manhattan cityscapes and neurotic comic worldview. Before becoming a director, Allen was a stand-up comedian, establishing the self-deprecating, awkward persona that long defined him in the eyes of the movie-going public. As a director, actor, and screenwriter, Allen has made over 30 films, including 1977īs Academy Award-winning masterpiece, Annie Hall. His work ranges from the slapstick Sleeper to the tragic human comedy of Crimes and Misdemeanors, with all of his work indelibly unified by his wit and insight into peopleīs relationships with one another. One of his most recent films Sweet and Lowdown (1999) deals with the life of an obscure and self destructive guitarist living in the shadow of his idol Django Reinhart; Allenīs interest in playing jazz is the subject itself of the 1998 documentary Wild Man Blues. E-mail:   Web Site: