(born 1939) Director whose remarkable Godfather trilogy (1972, 1974 and 1990) defined an auteurial vision in American cinema through its sweeping mythic vision, lavish detail and extraordinary ensemble acting. Coppola directed and produced other singular films ranging from comedy (Peggy Sue Got Married, 1986) to the grim horror of Vietnam (Apocalypse Now, 1979). His career has also been plagued by numerous financial debacles that shuttered his independent studio, American Zoetrope in 1990. Coppola’s vision has almost always focused on America—dreams as well as nightmares and failures—which permeated his intriguing biographical study Tucker (1988), as much as his own life.