The writing team of Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank Jr. received an Oscar nomination for this compelling drama about life in the modern West, adapted from Larry McMurtry’s first novel, Horseman, Pass By. Paul Newman received his third Best Actor nomination for his uncompromising performance as Hud Bannon, though his charisma was so strong that some audiences viewed the amoral antihero more favorably than the filmmakers intended. The film won Oscars for the performances by co-stars Patricia Neal and Melvyn Douglas and for James Wong Howe’s vivid black-and-white cinematography.