The Letter (1940 film)

The Letter
The Letter
	Theatrical release poster
Directed by	William Wyler
Screenplay by	Howard E. Koch
Based on	1927 play The Letter; by W. Somerset Maugham
Produced by	Hal B. Wallis (Exec)
Starring	Bette Davis; Herbert Marshall; James Stephenson
Cinematography	Tony Gaudio
Edited by	George Amy; Warren Low
Music by	Max Steiner
Distributed by	Warner Bros.
Release date	November 22, 1940 (New York City);
Running time	95 minutes
Country	United States
Languages	English, Cantonese

The Letter is a 1940 American crime film noir melodrama directed by William Wyler, and starring Bette Davis, Herbert Marshall and James Stephenson.^[1] The screenplay by Howard E. Koch is based on the 1927 play of the same name by W. Somerset Maugham derived from his own short story. The play was first filmed in 1929, by director Jean de Limur. The story was inspired by a real-life scandal involving the Eurasian wife of the headmaster of a school in Kuala Lumpur who was convicted in a murder trial after shooting dead a male friend in April 1911. She was pardoned by the local sultan after a public furor.^{[citation needed]}