Cuarón and Hitchcock and Scorsese, Oh My! The Greatest Directors Of All-Time

13. George Cukor

Image Source: PBS

During a 50-year career that began in 1931, this former stage director made costume dramas, romantic comedies, musicals, melodramas, even a Western — and yet all are touched by the same cosmopolitan esprit. Cukor was not just at the helm for some great Hollywood films, but there is also a real consistency in his work both with the gorgeous Technicolor musicals of 2 of his top 3 films (My Fair Lady and A Star is Born) and the tremendous work with actors, particularly female actors.

Under his nurturing eye, actresses such as Greta Garbo and Katharine Hepburn gave some of their best performances — thus Cukor’s reputation as a “woman’s director” (also a backhanded reference to his homosexuality). Cukor was also known for his great patience in “handling” actors. He was revered by his performers, who described him as “a dream director” and “an actors’ director,” because of his great respect for acting.