The late David V. Picker is known to James Bond fans as the United Artists head of production who agreed to finance and distribute the James Bond series after Columbia Pictures turned down its option. But Picker, who was a longtime friend of Cinema Retro, can be credited with being prescient about many other aspects of the movie industry including recognizing the potential of Steve McQueen as a viable leading man in motion pictures, despite the fact that McQueen was primarily known as a "TV actor" at the time. In those days, that made it difficult for actors to fully assimilate into stars of the big screen. Picker approved McQueen as a lead in "The Magnificent Seven" and "The Great Escape", both directed by John Sturges, who also deserves enormous credit for McQueen's career ascension. Here are clips from these films and the 1968 production of "The Thomas Crown Affair" in which McQueen was allowed to play against type as a rich sophisticate. The rights to the films are now held by MGM but they represent the glory days of United Artists.