Ernst Lubitsch (January 28, 1892) was a German director, screenwriter and producer. He began his career in film as an actor in silent comedies, and made his debut with the film
Shoe Salon Pinkus (Schuhpalast Pinkus, 1916). Later he made
Carmen (1918),
The Oyster Princess (Die Austernprinzessin, 1919),
Passion (Madame Dubarry, 1919),
The Doll (Die Puppe, 1919) and
One Arabian Night (Sumurun, 1920). In 1922, he left Germany and moved to Hollywood, where he continued his career with
The Marriage Circle (1924),
Lady Windermere\\\'s Fan (1925),
So This Is Paris (1926) and
The Patriot (1928). At the beginning of the era of sound films he made the musical
The Love Parade (1929),
The Smiling Lieutenant (1931),
Trouble in Paradise (1932),
The Merry Widow (1934),
Angel (1937),
Ninotchka (1939),
The Shop Around the Corner (1940),
To Be or Not to Be (1940), and
Heaven Can Wait (1942). He died in 1948, while filming
That Lady in Ermine, which was finished by Otto Preminger.