American Beauty (1999 film) "American Beauty" to the fledgling DreamWorks studio, which bought the script for $250,000, outbidding several other production bodies. DreamWorks financed the $15 million production and served as its North American distributor. "American Beauty" marked theater director Mendes' film debut; courted after his successful productions of the musicals "Oliver!" and "Cabaret", Mendes was only given the job after 20 others were considered and several A-list directors turned down the opportunity. Spacey was Mendes' first choice for the role of Lester, though DreamWorks urged him to consider better-known actors; similarly, the studio suggested several actors for the role of Carolyn until Mendes
Richard Lester series on British cinema in the 1960s for the BBC. Director Steven Soderbergh is among many who have called for a reappraisal of Lester's work and influence. He authored "Getting Away With It", published in 1999, about Lester's career. which consists of interviews with Lester. In Soderbergh's book "Getting Away With It," Lester reveals that he is a committed atheist and debates with Soderbergh (then an agnostic), largely based on the arguments of Richard Dawkins. During Lester's time at Penn, he was a member of the Beta Rho Chapter of Sigma Nu. Richard Lester Richard Lester Liebman (born January 19,