Hecht left Hollywood for a time to join the Federal Theater Project in 1934. He returned to Tinseltown as an agent and, in this capacity, "discovered" the young Burt Lancaster in a NY show and brought him West. The pair formed Harold Hecht-Norma Productions in 1948 (renamed Hecht-Lancaster Productions in 1954 and finally Hecht-Lancaster-Hill Productions after the addition of partner James Hill) and produced "Kiss the Blood Off My Hands" (1948), a so-so noir starring Lancaster and Joan Fontaine. Their subsequent collaborations included "The Crimson Pirate" (1952), "Apache" and "Vera Cruz" (both 1954). Hecht won a 1955 Best Picture Oscar as the producer of "Marty", a modest and moving adaptation of the celebrated TV play by Paddy Chayevsky. His last production of note was the well-received Western comedy "Cat Ballou" (1965) starring Jane Fonda and the Oscar-winning Lee Marvin.