A gifted and likable performer, Diane Keaton proved her versatility in the 1970s, starring opposite then-paramour Woody Allen in a series of comedies (including "Sleeper" 1973 and "Love and Death" 1975) and injecting some humanity into Francis Ford Coppola's dark vision of the "Godfather" trilogy (1972, 1974, 1990) playing Kay Adams Corleone. A natural, relaxed actor with a placid core and an air of the ordinary about her, she was equally effective playing bewildering or bewildered modern women. "Annie Hall" (1977), for which she won a Best Actress Oscar, was the best showcase for Keaton's adorably kooky "shiksa" who confounded and entranced Allen's protagonists, and her "nice Waspgirl" quality served Coppola equally well as Kay evolved from Michael Corleone's innocent girlfriend into his increasingly disillusioned and finally embittered, estranged wife.

A native Californian, Keaton studied acting with Sanford Meisner at NYC's Neighborhood Playhouse and made her Broadway debut in the original cast of "Hair" (1968), becoming known as the girl who kept her clothes on in the finale. Her next walk on the Great White Way teamed her for the first time with Allen in "Play It Again, Sam" (1970), and after making her feature debut in "Lovers and Other Strangers" (also 1970), she spent much of the rest of the decade working almost exclusively for Allen and Coppola. She did find time to return to the New York stage in the Off-Broadway play "The Primary English Class" (1976) and to make three films with other directors, most notably "Looking for Mr. Goodbar" (1977). Keaton's free spirited persona, combined with her ability to embody "mainstream" values, added to the impact of that film as her formerly repressed, newly "liberated" teacher imparts a horrifying lesson in dating "dos and don'ts" in the 70s bar scene.

After accompanying Allen in the anguished "Interiors" (1978) of his first drama and the more typical comic realms of "Manhattan" (1979), Keaton opted for another male influence, taking the meaty role of leftist writer-artist Louise Bryant in then-beau Warren Beatty's ambitious "Reds" (1981). Her complex portrait of lover, heroine and feminist earned her a second Best Actress Oscar nomination and solidified her position at the top of Hollywood's A-list. Keaton's fine performances as strong-willed women in "Shoot the Moon" (1982, coping with a crumbling marriage), "The Little Drummer Girl" (1984, as a terrorist) and Mrs. Soffel" (also 1984, as a prison warden's wife who falls in love with an inmate) could not, however, raise these films above their essential mediocrity. The casting of Jessica Lange Sissy Spacek and Keaton as quirky Southern sisters in "Crimes of the Heart" (1986) did not transform Beth Henley's Pulitzer Prize-winning play into a hit film but the actress did finally enjoy a commercial success with Charles Shyer's "Baby Boom" (1987), a fluffy comedy about a devoted career woman suddenly saddled with a baby. Later that year, she reunited with Allen to contribute a luminous cameo as a nightclub singer in his nostalgic "Radio Days".

Keaton's lifelong passion for photography (she has published three collections of her photos) eventually led her to directing. She helmed the short "What Does Dorrie Want?" (1982) and two music videos for Belinda Carlisle("Heaven Is a Place on Earth" and "I Get Weak") prior to making her feature directing debut with "Heaven" (1987), a whimsical documentary glimpse at the hereafter, which (she realized too late) lacked the muscle of a full-length film. Undaunted, she continued to hone her skills on the small screen, helming "The Girl with the Crazy Brother" (1990, starring Patricia Arquette), an acclaimed "CBS Schoolbreak Special", as well as episodes of "China Beach" (in 1990) and "Twin Peaks" (in 1991). Feeling confident, Keaton turned her attentions to longforms as director of the Lifetime movie "Wildflower" (1991), which reunited her with Arquette who was cast as "devil-tetched" epileptic living in a cage in the barn behind her abusive father's house. The success of "Wildflower" paved the way for Keaton's first fictional feature, "Unstrung Heroes" (1995) for which she received mostly good notices for her examination of a boy's adventures growing up in an off-center Jewish family of the 60s.

Though she was the best thing about Leonard Nimoy's tedious "The Good Mother" (1988), Keaton's first foray into producing, "The Lemon Sisters" (1990), sat on the shelf for awhile before its desultory theatrical release. Despite reteaming with Shyer for the mild comedy remake "Father of the Bride" (1991) and its 1995 sequel, and standing in for Mia Farrowwhen the latter bowed out of Woody Allen's lighthearted "Manhattan Murder Mystery" (1993), Keaton was anything but bona fide box office during the early 90s. She resorted to the small screen for two rare, almost tailor-made roles, playing an eccentric writer involved with Presidential candidate Ed Harris in "Running Mates" (HBO, 1992) and essaying the titular pilot of "Amelia Earhart: The Final Flight" (TNT, 1994). Appropriately coifed for the period and bearing a striking resemblance to the famous aviatrix who disappeared over the Pacific in 1937, she earned an Emmy nomination for her on-target portrayal in the latter.

Keaton co-starred with Goldie Hawnand Bette Midlerin Hugh Wilson's surprise hit "The First Wives Club" and delivered an Oscar-nominated turn in Marvin's Room" (both 1996), an intimate exploration of family love and sacrifice which paired her with Meryl Streep as estranged sisters forced by circumstance to resume their relationship. With neither "The Only Thrill" (1997) nor "The Other Sister" (1999) finding an audience, the Disney Channel's "Northern Lights" (1997, for which she also served as executive producer) offered arguably her best role for the balance of the decade. As Roberta Blumstein, a smart, unsentimental and childless widow, she unwillingly took on the responsibility for her late brother's 9-year-old boy, undergoing the predictable changes and allowing the softer edges to emerge in her delightfully comic performance. Keaton's second feature as director, "Hanging Up" (2000), returned to the dynamic of sisters, and this time she starred with Meg Ryanand Lisa Kudrowas siblings coping with the impending death of their father (Walter Matthau).

Diane Keaton is one of those characters that you just gotta love. She is warm and funny and can be downright goofy at times. She has a relaxing quality that she brings to her characters. One can identify with her and all her seemingly self-conscious jitters. She has appeared in over 40 films in her career.