Maureen O'Hara O'Hara beat Lauren Bacall to the role as she was busy with other engagements. Though the film was critically acclaimed, Crowther of "The New York Times" felt that the characters of O'Hara and the daughter could have been made "more humorous and spirited than they are". The following year, O'Hara appeared in the CBS television film, "Mrs. Miniver", but despite some critics approving her performance, most thought that the remake was ill-timed and that she could not top Greer Garson's performance in the 1942 Oscar-winning film. In 1961, O'Hara portrayed Kit Tilden in the western "The Deadly Companions", Sam Peckinpah's
James Hilton (novelist) months later it appeared as a book in Britain. Hilton, who lived and worked in Hollywood beginning in the mid-1930s, won an Academy Award in 1942 for his work on the screenplay of "Mrs. Miniver", based on the novel by Jan Struther. He presented six episodes of "Ceiling Unlimited" (1943) and hosted "The Hallmark Playhouse" (1948–1953) for CBS Radio. One of his later novels, "Morning Journey", was about the film business. Some of Hilton's novels were filmed: Hilton co-wrote the book and lyrics for "Shangri-La", a disastrous 1956 Broadway musical adaptation of "Lost Horizon". There is one sequel to "Lost