Paths of Glory
In 1935, Howard wrote the Broadway stage adaptation of Humphrey Cobb's novel "Paths of Glory". With its unsparing depictions of battlefield brutality, the play failed at the box office. As a World War I veteran, however, Howard believed it necessary to show the horrors of armed conflict. Convinced that the novel should be filmed one day, Howard wrote, "It seems to me that our motion picture industry must feel something of a sacred obligation to make the picture." The film version of the novel, directed by Stanley Kubrick, did not appear until 1957. Howard's screenplay for "Gone with the Wind" echoed "Paths of Glory" with an unflinching look at the cost of war.