42. Nancy Meyers: Self-Empowered Woman

Dear Followers,

I'm willing to bet that many of your favorite movies - like mine - over the last 20 years have been made due to the genius of writer/director/producer Nancy Meyers. From "Private Benjamin" to both versions of "Father of The Bride" to "The Holiday" and "It's Complicated," Meyers has changed the way that Hollywood power brokers think about movie audiences.

Not surprisingly, Meyers has her share of Self-Empowered characteristics. She definitely surprised movie studios with her ability to create highly profitable films (13: More Than Meets The Eye). And after her long domestic and creative partnership with Charles Shyer, they split in 1998 (15: Forget About Prince Charming). Since she's been on her own, however, her last four movies have earned $200 million worldwide (8: Turning No's Into Yes's).

As a director, Meyers is famous for micromanaging every tiny detail about her films (10: The Critic Within), and although her two daughters are now grown, when they were younger they went on movie sets as much as possible, had private tutors, and even had their own cribs on location with their Mom (16: Intensive Motherhood).

Meyers has given us movies that celebrate intelligent, accomplished women who have retained their appeal even if (or perhaps because) they've lost their youth. Critics predict that "It's Complicated" will be the fifth home run in a row for 60 year old Nancy Meyers, who managed to tap into her own life and values to give the rest of us a good time at the movies.

Looking forward to your comments...