George Seaton wrote and directed Miracle on 34th Street, winning the Academy Award for Best Screenplay, and the film has become a permanent fixture in a way none of his other work has. It is sharper than the reputation allows, with a legal argument at its centre.
He won a second screenplay Oscar for The Country Girl and directed Airport, which launched the 1970s disaster cycle and was the biggest hit of his career.
He served as president of the Academy and worked as a writer first throughout, which shows in how much his films rest on their scripts.
