Film - Anatomy of a Murder

BACKSTORY

"Find Lee Remick for me!" Otto Preminger demanded. He had seen Lee in
her first film, A Face in the Crowd and was considering her for the part of
Laura Manion in his new film Anatomy of a Murder.

When Lee met with Preminger in his office, he realized again that she
would be perfect for the part. She was young, attractive, and had sex-appeal.
Mind you, she was eight months pregnant when she met with him, but by the
time they started shooting the film, she would have had the baby. Preminger
gave her the script to read and sent her on her way.

A short time later, Preminger called Lee to tell her that he had given the part
he had originally offered her to someone else. "I'm sorry but I've signed Lana
Turner for the part. But there is the second lead—would you like to play it?"

She was eight months pregnant and not the least bit interested in the smaller
role and told him so. "I did a very brave thing," Lee said, "or, perhaps, a very
foolish thing. I told him, 'No, thank you, I really would not!'" Preminger was
stunned.

Lee had her baby on January 28 and a month later was beginning to
wonder if she had made a mistake turning Preminger down, when the phone
rang. "Gus Schirmer called and said that Preminger had fired Lana Turner
and that I was to go to the coast in the morning. Thinking it was a joke, I said,
'Very funny,' and hung up.

"I had fired the nanny that morning and was frantically trying to make formula
for my daughter—without poisoning her. The stuff was boiling over on the stove
when Gus called back, pleading: 'Don't hang up. It's true.' Apparently, Lana
Turner had fought with Otto about clothes—and God knows what else."

Lee barely had time to arrange for her four-week old baby's christening party before she flew to California. When she met with Preminger again, he didn't waste words. "The part is yours."

Anatomy of a Murder became one of the most popular pictures of 1959.
Film Daily voted it the best picture of the year, and both the film and
Jimmy Stewart were nominated for awards at the 1959 Venice Film
Festival, with Jimmy winning the Volpi Cup for Best Actor. Also, the film
made Lee a star, just as Preminger had predicted. Looking back at the
film years later, Lee said, "It was a big step forward in my career. It
established me."

Bosley Crowther of the New York Times called the film "well nigh
flawless." Commenting on Lee's performance he said, "Lee Remick
treads beautifully a fine line between never-resolved uncertainties."
Paul V. Beckley, reporter for the New York Herald Tribune wrote,
"Miss Remick's gauzy-brained and brassy wife is as precise as
anyone could ask...She plays it right to the point."

Lee was nominated for a Golden Globe and New York Film Critic's
Award for Best Actress. With another strong performance to her credit,
and having worked in the film industry for only two years, her star was
rapidly rising to new heights.