Kim Novak is an American actress. She began her career in 1954 at age 21, and came to prominence almost immediately with a leading role in the film Picnic . Other films from this period of her career include The Man With the Golden Arm , The Eddy Duchin Story , Pal Joey , Jeanne Eagels , the Alfred Hitchcock film Vertigo , Bell, Book and Candle , and Middle of the Night . After a decade in the entertainment industry, Novak withdrew from the public eye in 1966 and appeared in films only sporadically until 1991, when she retired from acting following a tempestuous experience with director Mike Figgis on the set of Liebestraum, her last film to date.