Barry Levinson entered the entertainment business as a comic writer and performer, forming a stand-up duo with actor Craig T. Nelson and, with Nelson and Rudy DeLuca, wrote for several TV programs like "The Tim Conway Show" (CBS, 1970) and "The John Byner Comedy Hour" (CBS, 1972). His work on "The Carol Burnett Show," earned him back-to-back Emmy Awards (shared with others) for Outstanding Writing in a Comedy-Variety or Music Series" (1973/74, 1974/75) before he graduated to film work. With Mel Brooks, Levinson co-scripted and appeared in both "Silent Movie" (1976) and "High Anxiety" (1977), providing a memorable turn as the maniacal bellhop in the latter. His next feature project, Norman Jewison's "... And Justice for All" (1979), marked the first of five films he would co-write with his first wife Valerie Curtin.

Levinson made an auspicious debut directing his script "Diner" (1982), a semi-autobiographical coming-of-age tale set in late 50s Baltimore. Alternately poignant and hilarious, the film played a large part in promoting the careers of its young stars Mickey Rourke, Steve Guttenberg, Daniel Stern, Kevin Bacon and Ellen Barkin. Levinson demonstrated an understated, non-intrusive style and an ear for ensemble dialogue that would serve him well in subsequent features. His next directorial project, "The Natural" (1984), adapted from Bernard Malamud's 1952 novel and starring Robert Redford as baseball pro Roy Hobbs, received mixed reviews, with some critics finding it inconsistent and sentimental, but nearly all praised the cinematography (by Caleb Deschanel) and score (Randy Newman). "Young Sherlock Holmes" (1985) was a mildly charming Steven Spielberg-produced project that turned out to be long on special effects but short on inspiration.

In 1987 Levinson released two films, one returning to the autobiographical territory first explored in "Diner" and the other establishing the director's major-league box-office credentials. "Tin Men," set in Baltimore in 1963--several years after the events of "Diner"--followed the misadventures of rival aluminum-siding salesmen. A rich character study, it maintained a fine balance between humor and melancholy and featured some brilliantly funny dialogue, mostly traded between Richard Dreyfuss and Danny De Vito, the two protagonists. "Good Morning, Vietnam", a commercially successful Robin Williams vehicle, gave its star the chance to tap his improvisational genius in delivering a series of highly effective comic monologues. It earned Williams an Oscar nomination but failed to fully exploit Levinson's talents for ensemble character studies.

Levinson's next feature was "Rain Man" (1988), a finely handled study of the relationship between an autistic 'idiot savant' (Dustin Hoffman) and his opportunistic car-salesman brother (Tom Cruise). A huge success at the box-office, the film not surprisingly won four Oscars: Best Picture, Best Director (Levinson), Best Actor (Hoffman) and Best Screenplay (Ronald Bass and Barry Morrow). While the central performances garnered most of the critical attention, the director's adept handling of the unorthodox subject-matter with sensitivity and style was central to the film's success. The project had been through at least three other directors and countless re-writes before Levinson finally came on board two weeks before shooting began. He again returned to Baltimore and for the first time served as producer (in addition to writing and directing) of "Avalon" (1990), an epic (if curiously deracinated) saga tracing the history of his own family from the point they first arrived in the USA. Critics reacted with measured praise to a work they felt to be overlong and lacking in direction, if ultimately rewarding. That such a personal and uncommercial project could even be produced in the Hollywood of the early 90s bore witness to its director-producer's commitment and vision.

Levinson followed with the lavish "Bugsy" (1991), a stylish if superficial Warren Beatty vehicle centered on gangster Bugsy Siegel and his efforts to establish Las Vegas as a gaming center. While it was critically well-received and earned 10 Oscar nominations including Best Picture and Best Director, the film was only a minor financial success. The visual excesses of Levinson's next film, the flop "Toys" (1992), may have contributed to his interest in helming the character-driven "Jimmy Hollywood" (1994), an episodic, anecdotal comedy filmed on a relatively small budget, which also proved a box-office disappointment. In an effort to get his career back on track, Levinson made the commercial, star-driven vehicle "Disclosure" (1994), adapted from Michael Crichton's best-selling thriller by Paul Attanasio. Levinson skillfully orchestrated a suspenseful examination of a new wrinkle on the potential for sexual harassment in the work place. That same year, he made a rare acting appearance in Robert Redford's "Quiz Show", also scripted by Attanasio, playing original "Today" show host Dave Garroway.

Levinson picked up a Best Director Emmy for the pilot episode of the weekly police detective series created by Attanasio, "Homicide: Life in the Streets" (NBC, 1993- ), which he produced and shot in his native Baltimore. While the series covered familiar, if not clichéd, territory, what was noteworthy was the slightly disorienting hand-held camerawork and story lines spanning several weeks of episodes. His next feature "Sleepers" (1996), which he produced, wrote and directed, received mixed notices and prolonged the controversy that had surrounded the Lorenzo Carcaterra book following its publication the year before as to whether the supposedly true story of institutional abuse was indeed factual. He then continued his association with screenwriter Attanasio, producing the successful wise guys tale "Donnie Brasco" (1997) which also reunited him with Al Pacino.

Barry Levinson has exhibited the courage to take risks turning out remarkably dissimilar movies on his own terms. Though perhaps closest to his autobiographical Baltimore trilogy, he has scored huge hits with intimidating projects like "Rain Man" and "Good Morning, Vietnam,” and his few misses have not diminished his bankability. With the David Mamet-scripted "Wag the Dog" (1997), producer-director Levinson delivered a star-studded comedy-drama about the world of politics and TV. He then tackled science fiction for the first time with "Sphere" (1998), a thriller co-scripted by Attanasio starring Dustin Hoffman (in his fourth turn for Levinson), Samuel L Jackson and Sharon Stone with less than stellar results. Returning to the Baltimore of his youth, Levinson hit creative pay dirt with "Liberty Heights" (1999), a nostalgic look at coming-of-age in the mid-20th Century, which also did modest box office business.

Levinson next took a side road into documentary directing, helming "The 20th Century: Yesterday's Tomorrows" (2000), a look at what Americans vision of the future had been during that century, and "Original Diner Guys" (1999), following the lives and interrelationships of Levinson's friends that had inspired his film "Diner," with footage shot between 1990 and 1997. The director then made a particularly unsuccessful foray into comedy (especially surprising given his comedic roots) with two outright dogs: "An Everlasting Piece" (2000) about wig salesmen in 1980s Belfast caught in the Protestant/Catholic conflict; and "Envy" (2004), a painfully unfunny comedy starring Ben Stiller as a man envious of his best friend's (Jack Black) success. Somewhere in the middle was "Bandits" (2001), a somewhat amusing but uneven tale of two bank robbing buddies (Billy Bob Thornton and Bruce Willis) who find themselves at odds over a bored housewife (Cate Blanchett) they've taken as a hostage.

As a producer, Levinson had a hand in overseeing high-profile films he did not also write or direct, including "The Perfect Storm" (2000) and "Analyze That" (2003). After his television success with "Homicide: Life on the Street," Levinson also served as executive producer for several other small-screen efforts, including the acclaimed, hard-edged HBO prison drama "Oz" (1997-2003), also with showrunner Tom Fontana, and the well-received Sidney Lumet-directed telepic "Strip Search" (2004) which explored the loss of civil liberties following Sept. 11. Less successful were the short-lived series ventures "The Beat" (2000) "Falcone" (2000) and "Baseball Wives" (2002). Levinson teamed with Fontana again on “The Jury” (FOX, 2004-2005), a one-hour legal drama that focused on criminal cases from the perspective of a different New York jury every week. Poor ratings, however, prompted the fourth network to cancel after only 10 episodes. The duo made another foray into television, producing “The Bedford Diaries” (WB, 2005-2006), a college drama about a diverse set of human behavior students at a small liberal arts college in Manhattan who speak openly about their sex lives—unfortunately another failed series for the once-successful team.

Back in the feature world, Levinson returned to familiar territory—politics—with his election satire, “Man of the Year” (2006), starring Robin Williams as a popular talk show host whose mock run for the presidency shocks everyone when he actually wins, thanks to a computer glitch found by an employee (Laura Linney) of the company that made the voting machines. Despite an all-star cast that included—aside from Williams and Linney—Christopher Walken, Jeff Goldblum and Lewis Black, “Man of the Year” took a considerable drubbing from critics, many of whom were disappointed by the dearth of comedic punch and political bite. Meanwhile, Levinson got to work on his next film, “What Just Happened?” (lensed 2006), a Hollywood satire about a movie producer who goes through two weeks of hell as he tries to get a movie made. In a dramatic turn, Levinson prepared to direct “My Italian Story,” a coming-of-age drama set during World War II about a young Jewish boy who sets out on a mission through Nazi-occupied Italy to find a rabbi to perform his bar mitzvah.