Hal Ashby was an American film director, producer, and editor. He is best known for his 1979 comedy-drama film Being There, which earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Director. Ashby's career spanned from the late 1960s to the early 1980s, during which he directed a number of critically acclaimed films such as Harold and Maude (1971), The Last Detail (1973), Shampoo (1975), and Coming Home (1978).