Ben-Hur (1959 film) New York City on November 18, 1959. Present at the premiere were William Wyler, Charlton Heston, Stephen Boyd, Haya Harareet, Martha Scott, Ramon Novarro (who played Judah Ben-Hur in the 1925 silent film version), Spyros Skouras (president of the 20th Century Fox), Barney Balaban (president of Paramount Pictures), Jack L. Warner (president of Warner Bros.), Leonard Goldenson (president of the American Broadcasting Company), Moss Hart (playwright), Robert Kintner (an ABC Television executive), Sidney Kingsley (playwright), and Adolph Zukor (founder of Paramount Pictures). During its initial release the film earned $33.6 million in North American theater rentals (the distributor's share of
Career (1959 film) Award for Best Actor – Motion Picture Drama (Franciosa) The film was nominated for three Academy Awards: Career (1959 film) Career is a 1959 American drama film co-written by Dalton Trumbo and starring Dean Martin, Tony Franciosa, and Shirley MacLaine. The movie involves actor Sam Lawson (Franciosa), bent on breaking into the big time at any cost, braving World War II, the Korean War and even the blacklist, something that writer Trumbo knew all too well from being blacklisted himself. "Career" was written by Bert Granet, James Lee (whose play served as the foundation for the film), Philip Strong and