Tennessee Williams is known as one of the greatest 20th century American playwrights. His works such as The Glass Menagerie, A Streetcar Named Desire, Cat on a Hot Tin Roof and many others are classics of the American stage which earned him two Pulitzer Prizes, Tony Awards, the Presidential Medal of Freedom, as well as many other literary awards. His work reached world-wide audiences in the 1950s when his plays were adapted into motion pictures. His works remain relevant today as his plays continue to be performed and studied internationally.