What day is it? That’s right; it’s Woody Allen’s birthday! The filming legend has been directing timeless classics such as “Blue Jasmine”, “Midnight in Paris”, “Annie Hall” and “Manhattan” for over 50 years. In celebration of his 81st birthday, eniGma Magazine decided to compile five lesser-known facts about the four-time Academy Award winner:
1- He began his career as a comedy writer:
Comedy runs in Woody Allen’s blood. That’s not surprising, of course. After all, his films’ trademark humour has frequently been cited as one of the bigger reasons for his success. Not many people know, though, that Allen actually began his career by writing comedy in some major projects and was reportedly making more money than his parents combined before he even turned 20. Talk about talent.
2- He plays the jazz clarinet and piano:
Allen is an avid jazz fan. In fact, he’s been playing with a band for years now, often performing at Carlyle Hotel in Manhattan, but also at some bigger platforms such as the Montreal International Jazz Festival on occasion.
3- His movies have never grossed over 200 million dollars worldwide:
Despite his considerable success, Allen’s numerous pictures never broke the 200 million dollar benchmark in revenue. His movies have never been highly budgeted by Hollywood standards, either, often being budgeted between 20 and 30 million dollars.
4- He claims to have never watched any of his movies after they were released:
We really don’t know what to make of that; we just think it’s cool.
5- His given birth name was Allan Stewart Konigsberg:
In fact, Allen first changed his name to Heywood Allen, before settling on Woody Allen.
