From an acclaimed writer, here is the first-ever biography of the hugely important and influential filmmaker, Alan J. Pakula. Pakula produced his first feature film, Fear Strikes Out, with his partner, director Robert Mulligan. Together, Pakula and Mulligan went on to create one of the greatest films in the history of cinema: the 1962 film adaptation of Harper Lee's To Kill A Mockingbird. By the late 1960s Pakula turned from producing to directing and quickly soared to the fore as one of the most sought-after directors of his time, beginning with The Sterile Cuckoo (1969, ). Next came Klute (1971), a sexy, psychological thriller that enjoyed both critical and commercial success, and All the President's Men (1976), another film universally regarded as one of the greatest accomplishments in cinema. In the '80s and '90s, Pakula still showed a sure hand with dramas and legal thrillers, including Sophie's Choice (1982), Presumed Innocent (1990) and The Pelican Brief (1993). Harrison Ford, Robert Redfort, Meryl Streep, Kevin Kline, Laruen Bacall, Candice Bergen, and Donald Sutherland), and unrestricted access to his family and archives: