On December 25, 1962, To Kill a Mockingbird, a film based
on the 1960 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name
by Harper Lee, 1960 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same
name by Harper Lee, opened in theaters.
The Great Depression-era story of racial injustice and the
loss of childhood innocence is told from the perspective
of a young Alabama girl named Scout Finch, played in the
film by Mary Badham, who lives with her older brother Jem
(Phillip Alford) and their widowed attorney father Atticus
(Gregory Peck). While Scout, Jem and their friend Dill
(John Megna) become fascinated by the mysterious shut-in
Boo Radley (Robert Duvall).
Atticus goes to court to defend a Black man falsely accused
of raping a white woman.
To Kill a Mockingbird was nominated for eight Academy
Awards, including Best Picture, and won three Oscars,
including Best Actor (Gregory Peck).
Eldred Gregory Peck (April 5, 1916 – June 12, 2003)