AFI Life Achievement Award: A Tribute to William Wyler (1976)

In 1976, William Wyler became the fourth recipient of the American Film Institute's Lifetime Achievement Award, following John Ford, James Cagney and Orson Welles. The winner of three Best Director Academy Awards (and a record twelve nominations), Wyler has directed more Oscar-winning performances than any other director: Walter Brennan (twice), Bette Davis, Fay Bainter, Greer Garson, Teresa Wright, Fredric March, Harold Russell, Olivia de Havilland, Audrey Hepburn, Burl Ives, Charlton Heston, Hugh Griffith and Barbra Streisand. Among the film luminaries who pay tribute to Wyler are Audrey Hepburn, Gregory Peck, Myrna Loy, Henry Fonda, James Stewart, Barbra Streisand, Charlton Heston, Eddie Albert, Merle Oberon, Walter Pidgeon, Greer Garson and Harold Russell. Film clips include: "The Best Years of Our Lives," "Roman Holiday," "Ben-Hur," "Mrs. Miniver," "Funny Girl," "Wuthering Heights," and "The Heiress." Conspicously absent from the tribute is Bette Davis ("Jezebel," "The Letter," "The Little Foxes"), perhaps Wyler's greatest success.