Nichols, Mike (1931– )

German-born stage/film director, writer, and comedian. Nichols first moved to national attention with An Evening with Mike Nichols and Elaine May (1960), with its wry spoofs of everyday and unusual relationships. He went on to direct numerous stage plays – including Barefoot in the Park (1963), and The Odd Couple (1965) – and films, including The Graduate (1967), which won an Academy Award for best film. His later films include Working Girl (1988), Postcards From the Edge (1990), and What Planet Are You From? (2000).

Born in Berlin, Germany, and brought to the USA as a child to escape the Nazis, he emerged out of the cross-fertilizing of the university and the improvised theatre of Chicago in the 1950s. In later years he earned a reputation as a ‘doctor’ who was often brought in to rescue stage or movie productions in trouble.