There are interesting backstage anecdotes about pre-production in Memo from David O. Selznick, an edited collection of the iconic producer's letters and notes.

Selznick's then-wife was sought and cast as the film's lead, and his letters reflect insight into the casting process (Jane Fonda had wanted to play Rosemary; William Holden, Henry Fonda and Christopher Plummer were considered for Dick), the creative angst around the project, and Selznick's own clever insights into the source novel and its requirements to become a successful film property.

Soundtracks included the main theme "Tender Is the Night" composed by Sammy Fain with lyrics by Paul Francis Webster (above).

Other songs were: Variety wrote:A combination of attractive, intelligent performances and consistently interesting, De Luxecolorful photography of interiors and exteriors – mostly the French Riviera – provide big plus qualities in this 20th-Fox adaptation of Tender Is The Night.

But Tender Is The Night is nonetheless on its own filmic terms a thoughtful, disturbing and at times absorbing romantic drama...Jones emerges a crisply fresh, intriguing personality and creates a striking character as the schizophrenic Nicole.

Robards, whose non-matinee-idol masculinity makes him an ideal choice for the role of the ill-fated doctor-husband, Dick Diver, plays with intelligence and conviction.

Joan Fontaine is convincing as Nicole’s shallow, older sister, performing with the right manifestation of frivolity and bite that her part requires.