The Fountainhead is a 1949 American drama film based on the book of the same name by Ayn Rand. The movie stars Gary Cooper as Howard Roark, Patricia Neal as Dominique Francon, Raymond Massey as Gail Wynand and Kent Smith as Peter Keating. The film was directed by King Vidor, with the screenplay written by Ayn Rand. One of the most interesting things about the film is the courtroom speech that Howard Roark gives at the end of the film. Ayn Rand wrote the entire speech, and demanded that it was read exactly as she wrote it. The director, King Vidor, initially agreed, but when shooting commenced on the scene, decided to tighten it up a bit. Upon hearing this, Rand called the head of the studio demanding the whole speech be filmed. Rand won out, and Vidor filmed the entire speech. The scene goes on for nearly 6 minutes. It is one of the longest speeches ever in a feature film.