When Hecht-Hill-Lancaster Productions announced a hiatus (which eventually led to their breakup) in the spring of 1959, Hecht was approached with two offers. The first was for a major executive position at Paramount Pictures as Production Chief, replacing Young Frank Freeman. But Hecht had enjoyed the freedom of being an independent producer for twelve years and was reluctant to deal with a major Hollywood studio's problems. He had also been offered a similar position at Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer two years earlier and hadn't accepted it for the same reasons. He turned down Paramount's offer and the position was eventually filled by Jack Karp.