The Third Man Theme The Third Man Theme "The Third Man Theme" (also known as "The Harry Lime Theme") is an instrumental written and performed by Anton Karas for the soundtrack to the 1949 film "The Third Man". "The Third Man" is a 1949 British film noir, directed by Carol Reed. One night after a long day of filming "The Third Man" on location in Vienna, Reed and cast members Joseph Cotten, Alida Valli and Orson Welles had dinner and retired to a wine cellar. In the bistro, which retained the atmosphere of the pre-war days, they heard the zither music of Anton Karas,
Alexander Korda advent of World War Two saw Korda make more propaganda films. They included "Q Planes" (1939) with Olivier and "The Lion Has Wings" (1939). Korda had a massive hit with another Imperial adventure directed by Zoltan, "The Four Feathers" (1939). By 1939, Michael Powell had been hired as a contract director by Korda on the strength of "The Edge of the World". Korda set him to work on some projects such as "Burmese Silver" that were subsequently cancelled. Nonetheless, Powell was brought in to save a film that was being made as a vehicle for two of Korda's star players,