Birth of Roman Polanski

Roman Polanski was born on 18 August 1933 in Paris. A French-Polish film director, writer and actor, Polanski survived the Krakow Ghetto as a child, an experience that influenced his later work. He trained at the Lodz film school and made his debut with Knife in the Water, and went on to direct Repulsion, Rosemary's Baby and Chinatown. His wife, the actress Sharon Tate, was murdered by followers of Charles Manson in 1969. He won the Academy Award for Best Director for The Pianist, based on the story of Wladyslaw Szpilman. In 1977 he pleaded guilty to unlawful sex with a minor in the United States and fled the country before sentencing, which has led to a long dispute.

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