George Bernard Shaw (26 July 1856 - 2 November 1950) was an Irish playwright and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism; in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism; his main talent was for drama; and he wrote more than 60 plays.

Shaw was also an essayist; novelist and short story writer. Nearly all his writings address prevailing social problems with a vein of comedy which makes their stark themes more palatable. Issues which engaged Shaw's attention included education; marriage; religion; government; health care; and class privilege.

He is the only person to have been awarded both a Nobel Prize in Literature (1925) and an Academy Award (1938); for his contributions to literature and for his work on the film Pygmalion (an adaptation of his play of the same name); respectively. Shaw refused all other awards and honours; including the offer of a knighthood. Pictures From History