He was born in 1924. He acted until the 1950s when he began working as a TV director. He made his feature film debut in 1957 with 12 Angry Men, which earned him an Oscar nomination for directing. He also earned directing nominations for Dog Day Afternoon in 1975, Network in 1976 and The Verdict in 1982. In 2005, 80 years old director received honorary Academy Award. Lumet died in 2011.