Roman Polanski

Born Rajmund Roman Lieblig on August 18, 1933 in Paris, France, Roman Polanski made his career in directing, producing, writing and acting in films. He is a true international film maker having made films in Poland, the U.S, England and France. Polanski wandered the countryside of war-torn Europe as a small boy after his parents were captured and put into concentration camps. He survived by denying his Jewish heritage. Severe beatings left him with a fractured skull. At the end of the war, in 1945 Polanski found his father who encouraged him to attend technical school.

In the 1950s Polanski began acting. He appeared in A Generation in1955 then went on to the Lodz Film School. He filmed Two Men and a Wardrobe in 1958 and The Fat and the Lean in 1961. He had a taste for filming bizarre human relationships and his humor was referred to as "black." Polanski's feature film was Knife in the Water in 1962. This film was the first movie from Poland to get an Oscar nomination for best foreign film.

Polanski left Poland and moved to France in the mid-1960s. Here Polanski collaborated with screenwriter Gerard Brach. They were collaborators for many years. In 1968 Polanski moved to Hollywood where he quickly directed Rosemary's Baby. The brutal murder of his wife, Sharon Tate by the Manson gang in 1969 cause him to return to Europe. He returned to the U.S. and directed Chinatown in 1974. His U.S. career was cut short when he raped a 13-year old girl. He served time in prison before being released early. His release was not office and he fled to back to Europe. Polanski's career floundered until 2002 when he made The Pianist. This film won almost every Academy Award offered.

Polanski was married three times. The first marriage was to Barbara Lass from September 1959 to 1962 when they divorced. Number two was Sharon Tate from January 1968 until her murder in 1969. Polanski's third wife was Emmanuelle Seigner whom Polanski married in 1989. They are still married and have two children.