Ranking 10 Most Prolific Actor-Director Duos Of All Time

Collaborations: Some Like It Hot, The Apartment, Irma la Douce, The Fortune Cookie, Avanti!, The Front Page, Buddy Buddy

By the time he started fraternizing with Jack Lemmon, Billy Wilder was already a hot ticket in Hollywood. Lemmon, on the other hand, was viewed as little more than an onscreen sidekick. Within a few years of their partnership, Lemmon would turn into a legitimate a leading man, not just in the eyes of Wilder, but in the collective consciousness of the moviegoing public.

Their professional relationship was built on mutual respect and constant chop-busting. One famous story recounts how Wilder forced Lemmon to repeat a scene a dozen or so times, coaching him after each take to "do less." Flummoxed, Lemmon finally shouted "What do you want? Nothing!?"

Wilder's response was cool and immediate: "God, please."

Their amicable rapport allowed them to work together cohesively, and it often rubbed off on their work. Some Like It Hot came out strong at the box office and remains a classic. Although they never quite reached that level of success again, their relationship bore plenty more fruit over the years, and eventually introduced the world to another masterful combination: Jack Lemmon and Walter Mathau.