Jan Tomáš "Miloš" Forman, a renowned Czech and American film director, screenwriter, actor, and professor, was born on February 18, 1932. He rose to fame in his native Czechoslovakia before emigrating to the United States in 1968.
As a prominent figure in the Czechoslovak New Wave, Forman's 1967 film The Firemen's Ball was initially seen as a biting satire on Eastern European Communism by film scholars and Czechoslovak authorities. However, the film was later banned by the Communist government after the 1968 invasion by the Warsaw Pact countries, forcing Forman to leave his homeland.
Forman continued to make films in the United States, achieving wider critical and financial success. His 1975 film One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, starring Jack Nicholson, received widespread acclaim and won all five major Academy Awards: Best Picture, Director, Screenplay, Actor in Leading Role, and Actress in Leading Role.
In 1978, Forman directed the anti-war musical Hair, which premiered at the 1979 Cannes Film Festival. He then directed the turn of the century drama film Ragtime in 1981, featuring a large ensemble cast, and receiving eight Academy Award nominations.
Forman's next feature was the period biographical film Amadeus, released in 1984, based on the life of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, starring Tom Hulce and F. Murray Abraham. The film was both critically and financially successful, earning eleven Academy Award nominations and winning eight, including Best Picture and Best Director.
In 1996, Forman received another Academy Award nomination for Best Director for The People vs. Larry Flynt. Throughout his career, Forman won two Academy Awards, three Golden Globe Awards, the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival, the Golden Bear at the Berlin Film Festival, a British Academy Film Award, a César Award, a David di Donatello Award, and the Czech Lion.
