The long hot summer

The hunted Ben Quick (Paul Newman), expelled on suspicion of arson, ends up in a sleepy small town in the middle of the southern states, which is dominated by the rich plantation owner Will Varner (Orson Welles). His dearest wish is to marry off his daughter Clara (Joanne Woodward). He likes Quick's self-assurance, which makes him not only a suitable son-in-law, but also a potential successor at the top of the company. But this causes discord to grow in the Varner family.
The cast consisted mainly of members of the Actors Studio in New York, including lead actor Paul Newman, whose Hollywood career still lay ahead of him. He and his film partner Joanne Woodward married after the end of filming in January 1958.
Martin Ritt was still inexperienced as a film director. As his name was on Senator McCarthy's famous blacklist for alleged links to communism, he had previously had to work in the theater.
There were several arguments between Martin Ritt and Orson Welles on the film set becaus...

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