  thumb|2003 stamp lewis milestone (born leib milstein)leib milstein at rootsweb'sconnect project (september 30, 1895 â september 25, 1980) was a russian-born american motion picture director. he is known for directing two arabian knights (1927) and all quiet on the western front (1930), both of which received academy awards for best director. he also directed the front page (1931 â nomination), the general died at dawn (1936), of mice and men (1939), ocean's 11 (1960), and mutiny on the bounty (1962). ==biography== milestone was born in kishinev, in the bessarabia governorate of the russian empire (now chiÅinÄu, moldova), to a family of jewish heritage.may, larry. the big tomorrow: hollywood and the politics of the american way, univ. of chicago press (2000) p. 64 he came to the united states in 1912, just prior to world war i.u.s. census, 1930, state of california, county of los angeles, enumeration district 825, p. 21-b, family 587. milestone held a number of odd jobs before enlisting in the u.s. signal corps, where he worked as an assistant director on army training films during the war. in 1919 he became a naturalized citizen of the united states. after the war he went to hollywood, where he first worked as a film cutter, and later as an assistant director. howard hughes promoted milestone to director and one of his early efforts, the 1928 film two arabian knights, won him an oscar in the first academy award ceremony. he also directed the racket, an early gangster film, and later helped hughes direct scenes for his aviation saga hell's angels (for which he never received credit). milestone won his second [[
1895_births 1980_deaths American_film_directors American_film_producers American_people_of_Moldovan-Jewish_descent American_screenwriters Bessarabian_Jews Best_Director_Academy_Award_winners Burials_at_Westwood_Village_Memorial_Park_Cemetery Imperial_Russian_emigrants_to_the_United_States Moldovan_Jews People_from_Bessarabia_Governorate People_from_ChiEinAu