In 1969, Woody Allen directed his first movie, Take the Money and Run. It was critically acclaimed, and throughout the next three decades Allen became one of the most prolific and beloved comedic filmmakers of the 20th century.

In 1992, however, Allen's personal life trumped his work on the big screen when he admitted to having an affair with the adopted daughter of his long-time girlfriend, Mia Farrow. The girl, Soon-yi Previn, was 22 at the time. Despite a vicious custody battle with Farrow over other children, Allen and Previn continued their relationship and were married in 1997, when Allen was 62 years old.

In a November 2005 interview with Vanity Fair, Allen admitted that he had made some mistakes in his life: "I'm sure there are things that I might have done differently. Probably in retrospect I should have bowed out of that relationship [with Farrow] much earlier than I did."

But Allen, who was about to turn 70 at the time of the interview, admitted that age had not brought discretion: "I've gained no wisdom, no insight, no mellowing. I would make all the same mistakes again, today."