FILM DIRECTOR
Billy Wilder
1906 - 2002
Billy Wilder
Billy Wilder (; German: [ˈvɪldɐ]; born Samuel Wilder; June 22, 1906 – March 27, 2002) was an American filmmaker and screenwriter. He was born in Sucha Beskidzka, Poland, a town in Austria-Hungary at the time of his birth. His career in Hollywood spanned five decades, and he is regarded as one of the most brilliant and versatile filmmakers of Classic Hollywood cinema. Read more on Wikipedia
Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Billy Wilder has received more than 4,231,106 page views. His biography is available in 64 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 60 in 2019). Billy Wilder is the 43rd most popular film director (down from 33rd in 2019), the 59th most popular biography from Poland (up from 66th in 2019) and the 3rd most popular Polish Film Director.
Billy Wilder is most famous for his comedies, which include Some Like It Hot, The Apartment, and The Lost Weekend.
Memorability Metrics
4.2M
Page Views (PV)
70.06
Historical Popularity Index (HPI)
64
Languages Editions (L)
6.48
Effective Languages (L*)
4.01
Coefficient of Variation (CV)
Among FILM DIRECTORS
Among film directors, Billy Wilder ranks 43 out of 2,041. Before him are Ken Loach, John Ford, Krzysztof Kieślowski, James Cameron, David Lynch, and Lars von Trier. After him are Vittorio De Sica, Rainer Werner Fassbinder, Yasujirō Ozu, Roberto Rossellini, Isao Takahata, and Emir Kusturica.
Most Popular Film Directors in Wikipedia
Go to all RankingsKen Loach
1936 - Present
HPI: 70.75
Rank: 37
John Ford
1894 - 1973
HPI: 70.63
Rank: 38
Krzysztof Kieślowski
1941 - 1996
HPI: 70.57
Rank: 39
James Cameron
1954 - Present
HPI: 70.55
Rank: 40
David Lynch
1946 - Present
HPI: 70.51
Rank: 41
Lars von Trier
1956 - Present
HPI: 70.16
Rank: 42
Billy Wilder
1906 - 2002
HPI: 70.06
Rank: 43
Vittorio De Sica
1901 - 1974
HPI: 69.97
Rank: 44
Rainer Werner Fassbinder
1945 - 1982
HPI: 69.71
Rank: 45
Yasujirō Ozu
1903 - 1963
HPI: 69.52
Rank: 46
Roberto Rossellini
1906 - 1977
HPI: 69.50
Rank: 47
Isao Takahata
1935 - 2018
HPI: 69.44
Rank: 48
Emir Kusturica
1954 - Present
HPI: 69.20
Rank: 49
Contemporaries
Among people born in 1906, Billy Wilder ranks 20. Before him are Victor Vasarely, Josephine Baker, Hassan al-Banna, Sayyid Qutb, Sergei Korolev, and Faisal of Saudi Arabia. After him are Henri Charrière, Hans Bethe, Roberto Rossellini, Ernst Ruska, Emmanuel Levinas, and Ilse Koch. Among people deceased in 2002, Billy Wilder ranks 9. Before him are Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, Pierre Bourdieu, Simo Häyhä, Hans-Georg Gadamer, Thor Heyerdahl, and John Rawls. After him are Richard Harris, Vavá, Ruth Handler, László Kubala, Valeriy Lobanovskyi, and Prince Claus of the Netherlands.
Others Born in 1906
Go to all RankingsVictor Vasarely
ARTIST
1906 - 1997
HPI: 71.01
Rank: 14
Josephine Baker
DANCER
1906 - 1975
HPI: 70.95
Rank: 15
Hassan al-Banna
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1906 - 1949
HPI: 70.48
Rank: 16
Sayyid Qutb
WRITER
1906 - 1966
HPI: 70.36
Rank: 17
Sergei Korolev
ENGINEER
1906 - 1966
HPI: 70.27
Rank: 18
Faisal of Saudi Arabia
POLITICIAN
1906 - 1975
HPI: 70.22
Rank: 19
Billy Wilder
FILM DIRECTOR
1906 - 2002
HPI: 70.06
Rank: 20
Henri Charrière
WRITER
1906 - 1973
HPI: 69.89
Rank: 21
Hans Bethe
PHYSICIST
1906 - 2005
HPI: 69.64
Rank: 22
Roberto Rossellini
FILM DIRECTOR
1906 - 1977
HPI: 69.50
Rank: 23
Ernst Ruska
PHYSICIST
1906 - 1988
HPI: 69.46
Rank: 24
Emmanuel Levinas
PHILOSOPHER
1906 - 1995
HPI: 68.96
Rank: 25
Ilse Koch
POLITICIAN
1906 - 1967
HPI: 68.78
Rank: 26
Others Deceased in 2002
Go to all RankingsPrincess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon
NOBLEMAN
1930 - 2002
HPI: 77.24
Rank: 3
Pierre Bourdieu
SOCIOLOGIST
1930 - 2002
HPI: 74.74
Rank: 4
Simo Häyhä
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1905 - 2002
HPI: 74.70
Rank: 5
Hans-Georg Gadamer
PHILOSOPHER
1900 - 2002
HPI: 72.04
Rank: 6
Thor Heyerdahl
EXPLORER
1914 - 2002
HPI: 71.63
Rank: 7
John Rawls
PHILOSOPHER
1921 - 2002
HPI: 70.54
Rank: 8
Billy Wilder
FILM DIRECTOR
1906 - 2002
HPI: 70.06
Rank: 9
Richard Harris
ACTOR
1930 - 2002
HPI: 69.05
Rank: 10
Vavá
SOCCER PLAYER
1934 - 2002
HPI: 69.00
Rank: 11
Ruth Handler
INVENTOR
1916 - 2002
HPI: 68.28
Rank: 12
László Kubala
SOCCER PLAYER
1927 - 2002
HPI: 67.72
Rank: 13
Valeriy Lobanovskyi
COACH
1939 - 2002
HPI: 67.65
Rank: 14
Prince Claus of the Netherlands
NOBLEMAN
1926 - 2002
HPI: 67.61
Rank: 15
In Poland
Among people born in Poland, Billy Wilder ranks 59 out of 1,694. Before him are Emil von Behring (1854), Klaus Kinski (1926), Konstantin Rokossovsky (1896), Wojciech Jaruzelski (1923), Sigismund I the Old (1467), and Paul Ehrlich (1854). After him are Ferdinand Lassalle (1825), Bolesław I the Brave (967), Zbigniew Brzezinski (1928), Hans-Ulrich Rudel (1916), Albert A. Michelson (1852), and Emanuel Lasker (1868).
Others born in Poland
Go to all RankingsEmil von Behring
PHYSICIAN
1854 - 1917
HPI: 70.48
Rank: 53
Klaus Kinski
ACTOR
1926 - 1991
HPI: 70.46
Rank: 54
Konstantin Rokossovsky
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1896 - 1968
HPI: 70.23
Rank: 55
Wojciech Jaruzelski
POLITICIAN
1923 - 2014
HPI: 70.22
Rank: 56
Sigismund I the Old
POLITICIAN
1467 - 1548
HPI: 70.13
Rank: 57
Paul Ehrlich
PHYSICIAN
1854 - 1915
HPI: 70.13
Rank: 58
Billy Wilder
FILM DIRECTOR
1906 - 2002
HPI: 70.06
Rank: 59
Ferdinand Lassalle
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1825 - 1864
HPI: 69.83
Rank: 60
Bolesław I the Brave
POLITICIAN
967 - 1025
HPI: 69.70
Rank: 61
Zbigniew Brzezinski
POLITICIAN
1928 - 2017
HPI: 69.70
Rank: 62
Hans-Ulrich Rudel
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1916 - 1982
HPI: 69.64
Rank: 63
Albert A. Michelson
PHYSICIST
1852 - 1931
HPI: 69.63
Rank: 64
Emanuel Lasker
CHESS PLAYER
1868 - 1941
HPI: 69.60
Rank: 65
Among FILM DIRECTORS In Poland
Among film directors born in Poland, Billy Wilder ranks 3. Before him are Andrzej Wajda (1926), and Krzysztof Kieślowski (1941). After him are Dziga Vertov (1896), Fred Zinnemann (1907), Jerzy Grotowski (1933), Jerzy Skolimowski (1938), Agnieszka Holland (1948), Robert Wiene (1873), Jean Epstein (1897), Jerzy Stuhr (1947), and Krzysztof Zanussi (1939).
Andrzej Wajda
1926 - 2016
HPI: 71.25
Rank: 1
Krzysztof Kieślowski
1941 - 1996
HPI: 70.57
Rank: 2
Billy Wilder
1906 - 2002
HPI: 70.06
Rank: 3
Dziga Vertov
1896 - 1954
HPI: 66.95
Rank: 4
Fred Zinnemann
1907 - 1997
HPI: 65.91
Rank: 5
Jerzy Grotowski
1933 - 1999
HPI: 64.17
Rank: 6
Jerzy Skolimowski
1938 - Present
HPI: 61.62
Rank: 7
Agnieszka Holland
1948 - Present
HPI: 60.87
Rank: 8
Robert Wiene
1873 - 1938
HPI: 60.08
Rank: 9
Jean Epstein
1897 - 1953
HPI: 58.89
Rank: 10
Jerzy Stuhr
1947 - 2024
HPI: 58.73
Rank: 11
Krzysztof Zanussi
1939 - Present
HPI: 57.98
Rank: 12