Lonnie (Brandon De Wilde) is searching for his notorious uncle Hud (Paul Newman) in Martin Ritt\'s brilliant 1963 adaptation of Larry McMurtry\'s novel. Ritt\'s well crafted opening wonderfully captures the essence of the hard small Texas town and the unsavory title character Hud. Brandon De Wilde\'s professional career began at age 9 in 1951 with theater and television appearances. He made a name for himself two years later starring with Alan Ladd in the legendary western Shane and for which he was nominated for an Oscar. He had a prolific career, mostly in television through 1972 when he was killed in an automobile accident on his way to appear in the play \"Butterflies are Free.\"James Wong Howe\'s cinematography is as stunning as always and won him his second Academy Award (first was Rose Tattoo, shot in 1955 and awarded 1956). Academy, Award, Brandon, Classic, De, Howe, Hud, Lazrry, Martin, McMurtry, Newman, Paul, Ritt, Western, Wilde