Oliver Stone is an American film director and writer. His films often center around political issues, and examine American politics in complicated and sometimes controversial ways. He has won an Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay with Midnight Express in 1978, and he has also won two Best Director Oscars for Platoon and Born on the Fourth of July.
Stone was born in New York City, the son of a stockbroker, and lived a privileged life in Stamford Connecticut and Manhattan, attending a Manhattan prep school, then a boarding school, and then studying at Yale University for college for a time. After enlisting in the army and fighting in Vietnam, Stone finished his undergraduate education at New York University, studying film. After working odd jobs (including cab driver, messenger, and salesman), Stone became a screenwriter, and won his first Oscar for Midnight Express. Other films Stone wrote include Brian De Palma's Scarface and Year of the Dragon. His credits as a director include Platoon, Born on the Fourth of July, Heaven & Earth, Wall Street, Talk Radio, The Doors, JFK, Natural Born Killers, Nixon, Any Given Sunday, Alexander, World Trade Center, W., Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps, Savages, Snowden, and numerous documentaries.
In addition to his film career, Stone is known for his political leanings. His films often deal with political issues, and often have a left-leaning bent. Some of his views and statements have drawn controversial attention, making offensive statements about Adolf Hitler and "Jewish control of the media." He is an active supporter of WikiLeaks and its founder, Julian Assange, as well as other notable whistleblowers Edward Snowden and Chelsea Manning.