Lois Weber

American film director, producer, and screenwriter (1879-1939) who was one of the most important and prolific directors of the silent era. She was the first American woman to direct a full-length feature film and was among the highest-paid directors of her era. Her social-problem films, including Shoes (1916) and Where Are My Children? (1916), addressed issues such as poverty, birth control, and women's rights. She was a major figure at Universal Pictures.