Garson Kanin was a prolific American writer and director of plays and films. His first film as a director was A Man to Remember, which The New York Times considered one of the ten best films of 1938. Other directing credits include The Great Man Votes, My Favorite Wife, They Knew What They Wanted, and Tom, Dick and Harry.

Theatre credits include his Broadway produced works Born Yesterday and The Smile of the World (Lyceum Theatre), The Rat Race, A Gift of Time, and Dreyfus in Rehearsal (Ethel Barrymore Theatre), The Live Wire (Playhouse Theatre), The Good Soup (Plymouth Theatre), and Come on Strong (Morosco Theatre) and his regionally produced works Pecadillo (Royal Poinciana Playhouse) and Do Re Mi (N.Y.C. Center Stage).

Kanin's best-remembered screenplays were written in collaboration with his wife, actress Ruth Gordon. These include Adam's Rib, Pat and Mike, and A Double Life.