史蒂文•杰伊•施奈德 是一名电影评论家、学者、制作人，拥有哈佛大学哲学硕士学位及纽约大学电影学硕士学位。他是一位颇为内行的恐怖片鉴赏专家，其撰文著述、教学授课成果颇丰，涉及电影的方方面面，涵盖了审美学、心理分析，乃至血腥恐怖片的观赏乐趣。编著的作品有《有生之年非看不可的1001部电影》《501位电影导演》《501位电影明星》《无疆恐怖：全球恐怖电影大集合》《100部欧洲恐怖电影》《恐怖电影与心理分析》《世界电影传统》《新好莱坞暴力》和“有生之年非看不可的101部类型电影系列”。

Humphrey Bogart, Marilyn Monroe, Meryl Streep, James Dean, Anna Magnani, Tom Hanks, Nicole Kidman, Cary Grant, Marcello Mastroianni, Denzel Washington, Russell Crowe, Angelina Jolie, and hundreds more larger-than-life film stars have captured the collective imagination of millions of movie fans around the world. Now, "501 Movie Stars " pays homage to these pop culture idols with absorbing essays that describe each staras work, influences, and legacy. Each entry also includes the actoras filmography to date, descriptions of productive alliances with directors and other actors, famous cameos, stylistic innovations, and the many other details that contributed to making these actors unforgettable stars. Entries are listed chronologically by birth date, with movie stills and portrait photos accompanying each staras entry. The entries vary in length, with the most influential stars receiving up to six pages. Collected here in succinct, information-packed biographical sketches are the lives and careers behind the most widely recognized faces of the past hundred years.