As we celebrate Polish American Heritage month and embrace the captivating culture and impactful contributions of our Polish community in Greenpoint, we also take a look at the countless contributions of Polish Americans in music, film and television. We have so much information to share that we have made this a two-part blog; the second will be published on October 20. In part one we focus on actors, directors and writers. Enjoy and join us in celebrating these Polish-American greats!

Both in front of and behind the camera, Polish Americans have played a major role in film and TV. Samuel Goldwyn and the Warner brothers (Harry, Albert, Sam, and Jack) established the earliest film studios. Lee Strasberg revolutionized “method acting” in America, inspiring generations of actors from James Dean and Marilyn Monroe to Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. Max Factor created the first makeup specifically for film and developed iconic looks for many of Hollywood’s early starlets, including Clara Bow, Jean Harlow, and Joan Crawford. In the early 1920s, engineer Joseph Tykociński-Tykociner developed technology that synchronized pictures and sound on film to pique Hollywood’s interest in “talkies.”

Learn about other influential Polish Americans below and join us in celebrating their talents and work all month long and throughout the rest of the year.

Actors

Star of stage and screen Christine Baranski grew up in a bilingual household outside Buffalo, with grandparents who were actors in the Polish theater . A winner of two Tonys and an Emmy, “The Good Fight” star credits her Polish grandmother with sparking her love of theater and performing. Watch the trailer for “The Good Fight” season five, filmed at Broadway Stages

Jane Krakowski also has two Tonys and loads of television and film credits under her belt. She received four Emmy nominations for playing the arrogant, attention-seeking Jenna Maroney on “30 Rock” and also gave memorable and hilarious performances on “Ally McBeal” and “Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt.”

John Krasinski has been charming audiences since 2005, when he began playing Jim Halpert on “The Office.” Since then, he wrote and directed “A Quiet Place” and its sequel, was named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine, and started the popular web series “Some Good News” to cheer people up during the COVID-19 pandemic. Is there anything he can’t do? Apparently, he cannot speak Polish, but would like to learn.

Born Tadeusz Wladyslaw Konopka, Ted Knight spent decades making audiences laugh, most memorably as Ted Baxter on “The Mary Tyler Moore Show” and Judge Elihu Smails in “Caddyshack.” He received six Emmy nominations for his portrayal of Ted Baxter, winning twice.

Eli Wallach, born in New York to Polish immigrants, has more than 90 film credits to his name, including the iconic westerns “The Magnificent Seven” and “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.” In a career that spanned nearly eight decades, he won a Tony, Emmy, and an Honorary Academy Award.

Estelle Getty famously portrayed the elderly Sicilian Sophia Petrillo for seven seasons on “The Golden Girls,” but she was actually born in New York City to Polish immigrants. She won a Golden Globe and Emmy for her performance, and the show remains a pop culture sensation three decades after its final run.

Directors and Writers

Legendary director and screenwriter Billy Wilder was born to Polish Jews in a small town located in modern-day Poland. He moved to Hollywood in 1933, and the rest is history. He directed and wrote the classics “Some Like It Hot,” “Sunset Boulevard,” and “Double Indemnity,” as well as Best Picture winners “The Lost Weekend” and “The Apartment.” Over his long career, he won seven Oscars as a director, screenwriter, and producer, and was nominated 21 times.

Influential filmmaker Sidney Lumet was born in Philadelphia to Polish immigrants. His parents participated in Yiddish theatre, and as a result he began acting at a very young age. He went on to direct many iconic films set in New York, including “12 Angry Men,” “Serpico,” “Network,” and “Dog Day Afternoon.” Immensely respected by his peers, he received an Honorary Academy Award in 2005.

In 2003, Roman Polanski became the first Polish filmmaker to win an Academy Award for Best Director, winning for “The Pianist,” the true story of Polish Holocaust survivor Władysław Szpilman. The film was very personal, as he is also a Holocaust survivor and his mother died at Auschwitz when he was a child. He later moved to Hollywood and directed many acclaimed films, including “Rosemary’s Baby” and “Chinatown.”

Lana and Lilly Wachowski (known in the film world as the Wachowskis) changed the look of action and sci-fi films forever with their groundbreaking “Matrix” movies, which they wrote and directed. The siblings, who both transitioned from male to female over the last two decades, also created the Netflix series “Sense8,” which explores LGBTQ themes and won the GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Drama Series in 2016.

Gore Verbinski found great success directing the first three “Pirates of the Caribbean” films as well as the influential horror film “The Ring.” He also directed, produced, and co-wrote “Rango,” which won him an Oscar for Best Animated Feature.

Learn more about Polish American Heritage Month at National Today. Nostrovia!